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FAMILY TRAVEL

Unaccompanied minors

When your child is flying alone, we’ll be there every step of the way to make sure their journey is an adventure.
Unaccompanied Minors and young flyers

Our Unaccompanied Minors service is for children aged between 5 and 11 who are flying alone. Our service also applies to children between 5 and 11 years old who are flying in a different cabin class from their parent or guardian. They will only be considered accompanied if they are traveling in the same cabin class with a passenger over 16 years old.

You can also make a special request for our Unaccompanied Minors service for solo travelers aged between 12 and 15 if you’d like us to be with them on their journey.

We’ll help your child to enjoy a fun and memorable trip from check-in until meeting their parent or guardian at their destination.

  • Help through the airport
    A specialist member of our team will meet your child at our Unaccompanied Minors check-in desk. They’ll stay with them all the way through the airport to help them at security and immigration, before meeting the cabin crew at the aircraft door.
  • Priority boarding
    Families and young flyers always board the plane first. That gives them more time to get settled on the flight and our cabin crew can help them to stow their hand luggage and make them comfortable.
  • Care on the flight
    Our cabin crew are on hand to make sure your young flyer has a fun, comfortable and memorable journey. When you book, tell us the kind of meal your child prefers and whether they’d like to sit by the window or the aisle. If it’s their birthday, you can order a cake a few days ahead and we’ll celebrate together. We also have a Polaroid camera so they can take home memories of their flight.
  • Support at landing
    When your child arrives, a specialist member of our team will be at the aircraft door to welcome them to their destination. We’ll help your child through the airport before delivering him or her to a parent or guardian.
  • What is the fare for an unaccompanied minor?
    To fly alone, unaccompanied minors must travel on an adult fare. Otherwise children under 12 will not be able to fly solo.
     
    Children over 12 can travel alone and they fly on an adult fare. If you’d like to use our Unaccompanied Minors service for children aged 12 to 15, the fee is USD 50 for each leg of the journey.
  • How to book your child's solo flight
    Contact us to book your child’s flight and arrange the Unaccompanied Minors service up to 12 hours before departure. You can also book through LiveChat or at your local Emirates office.
     
    You can find out more about our Unaccompanied Minors service in the FAQs and in our terms and conditions below.
Unaccompanied Minors Lounge

When you drop off your young flyer at Dubai International, you can take them straight to the Unaccompanied Minors Lounge near the check-in area. We’ll check them in there, before taking them to one of our departure lounges just for young solo adventurers. 

Our lounges have video games, free Wi-Fi, and comfy sofas. Kids can enjoy drinks and snacks while they wait for their flight, and there are children’s bathrooms in the lounges too. 

If your child has a connecting flight in Dubai, they’ll be taken to one of our Unaccompanied Minors Lounges to wait before being handed over to our cabin crew. We’ll also accompany them to eat if they’re with us during a meal time.

Terms and conditions

  • Young Passengers (YP) are children aged 5 to 15.
  • Our Unaccompanied Minors service for Young Passengers (YP) applies only to Emirates-operated flights. The service must be arranged separately for the outward and return journey.
  • The maximum connection time allowed at the airport is 4 hours (when your child is connecting to another airline as part of their itinerary).
  • The maximum connection time allowed is 8 hours if your child is transferring to another Emirates flight at Dubai International (DXB). If the connection time is more than 8 hours, this will be subject to approval from Emirates.
  • A Young Passenger cannot stay overnight at their connecting airport unless an adult guardian is arranged to meet and care for them at the transit point. This will be subject to approval.
  • Children who need special assistance or who need specific care must be accompanied by a fare-paying guardian who is 16 years old or over.
  • For safety and security, a legal parent or guardian will need to complete and sign a Declaration of Indemnity form before your child can fly with us. You'll find these forms at Emirates Airport Offices.
  • The Young Passenger’s parent or guardian must stay at the airport until the flight has departed. The parent or guardian escorting at departure or collecting the Young Passenger at the airport must provide proof of identification. We offer our Unaccompanied Minor service for Young Passengers only on Emirates flights and not with our partner airlines. Please contact partner airlines directly to find out about their services for children traveling alone.
  • The Young Passenger’s passport will be kept with the airline while the service is provided by the carrier.
  • It is the customer’s responsibility to check in with Emirates for the service at the airport.
  • The Unaccompanied Minor paid service for young passengers aged 12 to 15 is:
    • Per passenger, per sector
    • Non-transferable
    • Subject to refund conditions and limitations
  • Young passengers flying from Japan to Dubai can use the Unaccompanied Minors service free of charge.
  • Changes to the Young Passenger paid services:
    Voluntary and involuntary changes to the originally booked service are allowed when the flight, date, or route is changed on the ticket.
  • Refunds
    YP paid services are independent from our ticket refund conditions. You will be eligible for a refund only in the following circumstances:
    • The service is not provided by Emirates
    • We move you to a flight not operated by Emirates; or
    • You booked your flight via www.emirates.com/us/english including a flight sector to or from the USA at least 7 days before departure, and you cancel your flight within 24 hours of booking

    If you’d like a refund for the YP paid services booked online or through Emirates offices, you need to submit your refund application after the flight has taken place using our form, which you can find here.

    Refund applications cannot be processed on board or at the airport. Refund applications are accepted up to three months after the date of the last flight in your itinerary.

    Unless otherwise stated, we will refund the full amount (including any refundable tax) to the original form of payment used to pay the YP service.

    Please note that the YP service will not be refunded if you voluntarily cancel your flight.