Background More than 800 000 asylum-seeking children were registered in Europe during 2015-2017. Many of them arrived with accumulated needs of healthcare. In this study, we examined the legislation for health examinations on arrival for migrant children in the EU/EAA area. Methods We did a survey to child health professionals within the EU-funded MOCHA project, supplemented by desktop research of official documents. Results In all but three surveyed countries in the EU/EEA, there were systematic health examinations of newly settled migrant children. In most eastern European countries and Germany, this health examination was mandatory; while in the rest of western and northern Europe it was mostly voluntary. All countries that had a mandatory policy of health examinations screened for communicable diseases to protect the host population. Almost all countries with a voluntary policy also aimed to assess a child's individual healthcare needs, but this was rarely the case in countries with a mandatory policy. Conclusion Systematic health examinations of migrant children are routinely performed in most countries in the EU/EEA; but in many countries, it could be improved considerably by extending the focus from screening for communicable diseases to assessing and addressing individual needs of healthcare. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

Screening Children's rights School health Infectious diseases Health service

Germany health care survey Human immunodeficiency virus infection health care policy medical examination human typhoid fever priority journal Eastern Europe Western Europe asylum seeker migrant tuberculosis Syphilis child health hepatitis Article Northern European communicable disease hepatitis B immunization health care need