Children on the move in Greece: April-June 2026

This quarterly brief, Children on the Move in Greece: April–June 2026, developed by Save the Children and the Greek Council for Refugees, examines recent trends and protection concerns affecting children on the move in Greece. As of mid-June 2026, 14,340 people had arrived in Greece, with Crete accounting for around 70 per cent of sea arrivals. Sudanese and Afghan nationals together represented almost 39 per cent of sea arrivals, while 1,465 unaccompanied children were accommodated in Greece as of May 2026.

The brief focuses on the national legislation adopted in June 2026 to implement the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. It raises serious concerns that the new framework may weaken child protection safeguards through increased reliance on border procedures, movement restrictions, detention or de facto detention, and accelerated processing. Particular concerns relate to unaccompanied children, including provisions allowing children aged 16 and above to be placed in adult accommodation, the use of “safe zones” as more permanent accommodation, and the reintroduction of the possibility of detention where this is presented as safeguarding the child. The brief also raises concerns about the independence and effectiveness of the monitoring mechanism designated under the Pact, and about the broader weakening of the child protection system for unaccompanied children due to funding delays, service suspensions and possible discontinuation of key services.

The brief concludes with recommendations to ensure that Pact implementation strengthens, rather than weakens, child protection safeguards, and that specialised services for unaccompanied children are preserved and adequately funded.