UN Experts Criticise US Decision to Cut Legal Aid for Unaccompanied Migrant Children

United Nations human rights experts on Tuesday condemned the Trump administration’s decision last year to cut legal aid for unaccompanied children involved in US immigration proceedings.

The criticism came days after UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk urged Washington to ensure that its migration policies comply with international law and respect individual rights.

“Denying children their right to legal representation and forcing them to navigate complex immigration proceedings without legal counsel is a serious violation of children’s rights,” the independent experts, appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, said in a statement.

The White House rejected the criticism, saying it had made efforts to locate children who were allegedly smuggled into the United States under the previous administration, though it did not provide specific examples.

“No one takes the UN seriously because of its extreme bias and selective outrage,” said White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson. “They should be praising the administration for protecting children, not misrepresenting our policies.”

In February, the US Department of the Interior ordered legal service providers working with migrant children to halt operations and cut funding. The providers filed a lawsuit, and a federal judge later temporarily restored the funding.

The cuts came as part of President Donald Trump’s broader immigration crackdown, including efforts to deport hundreds of thousands of migrant children who entered the country without their parents.

The UN experts said the deportations were unlawful and violated international human rights law, particularly protections for vulnerable groups such as children at risk of human trafficking. They also criticised the administration’s offer of $2,500 to encourage voluntary departures.

“Child-sensitive justice procedures must be guaranteed in all immigration and asylum cases involving children,” the experts said, noting that they have been in contact with the US government.

According to government data, more than 600,000 migrant children have crossed the US-Mexico border without a parent or legal guardian since 2019.