Three asylum seeker children have been transferred from detention at Nauru to the Australian mainland on mental health grounds, the federal government has confirmed.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said the trio was taken to Brisbane "in accordance with our standard health procedures".
The minister stressed the children had not been sent to Nauru as unaccompanied minors.
One went as part of a family group and later asked to be separated, Mr Morrison told ABC radio.
The other two were previously believed to be adults.
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"They were subsequently found not to be over the age of 18 ... and they were then found to be unaccompanied minors and they have now been returned to Australia," he said.
The group, which includes a teenage girl who attempted self harm, had been transferred to Nauru in September.
Mr Morrison said there are no other unaccompanied minors on Nauru, which would remain the off-shore processing hub for asylum-seeker families.
He added there were no immediate plans for the government to return an asylum-seeker mother and her baby son to Nauru.
"All family groups are subject to off-shore processing and when there are appropriate medical clearances ... that's what would take place," Mr Morrison said.
Lawyers for the woman will on Tuesday try to secure a Federal Court injunction preventing her transfer back to Nauru.
Mr Morrison said the government would ensure appropriate conditions were in place at Nauru if the woman was returned.
(*Readers seeking urgent support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467)
