Assessment Report I NRC legal identity and civil documentation on an ongoing basis. The vast majority of IDPs surveyed (87 per cent) reported that it was necessary for them to have civil documentation, whether official or otherwise, in order to access humanitarian assistance; 60 per cent reported that civil documentation is required in order for children to access school; and 57 per cent reported that they require civil documentation to move around. The experience of the majority of IDP respondents is, therefore, that they need civil documentation in order to survive and meet their basic needs. This is despite the fact that, in terms of access to humanitarian assistance, most humanitarian organisations report that they do not require documentation from IDPs for this purpose. Further clarification on this apparent discrepancy is needed, as well as advocacy with all humanitarian actors to ensure that it is not compulsory for affected populations to provide civil documentation in order to obtain life-saving assistance. Given the contrast between reports received from IDPs through the survey and during FGDs and those received from humanitarian actors, the reality may be that it is much easier for IDPs to access humanitarian assistance if they have civil documentation, as opposed to having to go through alternative procedures such as producing witnesses etc. every time they wish to receive assistance, so that their perception is that such documentation is required or at least more desirable than the alternative. The end result is that IDPs face the risk of being criminalised in the process of obtaining documents to secure their basic emergency needs and may well be exposed to other protection risks in the longer term. It was found that there is a chasm of unmet needs in terms of legal identity and civil documentation for IDPs in areas outside of the control of the Government of Syria that can only be addressed through people being able to access legal identity and civil documentation that will be recognised by the Government of Syria and internationally. NRC Assessment Report I 27