Digital Barriers to the Rights and Education of Unaccompanied Foreign Minors (UFM): The Case of the Numeric and Alphanumeric Tax Code Assignment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7346/-fei-XXIII-01-25_07Keywords:
Unaccompanied Foreign Minors, Numeric Tax Code, Digital Exclusion, Access to Rights, ducation and TechnologyAbstract
The digitalisation of public services, while promising efficiency and accessibility, can generate new forms of exclusion for the most vulnerable groups. This qualitative research explores the impact of a numeric rather than alphanumeric tax code, algorithmically assigned to some Unaccompanied Foreign Minors (UFM), which results in discrimination in access to fundamental rights such as education, healthcare, and vocational training. The investigation was carried out in 2024 within an educational community in northern Italy and was validated through comparison with five other communities in the same region. It involved 28 professionals through narrative interviews, complemented by document analysis of around 50 email exchanges between the community and institutional bodies. The results show that the numeric tax code, although formally valid, is not recognised by numerous IT systems, making it impossible for minors to access essential services. This technical-administrative malfunction constitutes a structural form of digital discrimination. The research highlights the need for effective human oversight in automated processes and proposes practical solutions to humanise digital systems, ensuring equity and real inclusion within the reception system for UFMs.
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