We study singularly perturbed time dependent convection-diffusion equations in a circular domain. Considering suitable compatibility conditions, we present convergence results and provide as well approximation schemes and error estimates. To resolve the oscillations of classical numerical solutions due to the stiffness of our problem, we construct, via a specific boundary layer analysis, the so-called boundary layer elements which absorb the boundary layer singularities. Using a P1 classical finite element space enriched with the boundary layer elements, we obtain an accurate numerical solution using a quasi-uniform mesh, that is without refinement of the mesh in the boundary layer. ⓒ 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved