Switzerland to assess deporting asylum seekers to third countries 

Deporting asylum seekers is a controversial subject. KEYSTONE/© KEYSTONE / MARTIAL TREZZINI

Switzerland intends to draw up a feasibility report on the possible expulsion of asylum seekers to third countries.

The report will take into account discussions in the European Union on the theme of asylum deportations. It will examine the compatibility of this practice with Swiss law and its international obligations. 

The Swiss government announced the report in response to a postulate from parliamentarian Andrea Caroni. The Federal Council was previously of the opinion that asylum procedures abroad were not feasible for both legal and practical reasons. 

The background to the Federal Council’s considerations is the EU asylum reform. This project envisages asylum procedures at the external borders of the Schengen area. 

Caroni justified his postulate with the fact that more and more countries and the EU are working on reforms to carry out asylum procedures closer to the countries of origin of the refugees. The report should also address the expulsion of deportees to third countries. 

The Senate will discuss the deportation of Eritreans with rejected asylum applications to a third country again in the spring. Parliamentarian Petra Gössi issued a motion calling for a corresponding transit agreement to be concluded. The Federal Council would have to find a suitable third country. 

A transit agreement negotiated with Senegal around 20 years ago, which has never been put into force, would serve as a model. The Federal Council opposes this demand. According to its explanations, the agreement with Senegal would have allowed transit for a maximum of 72 hours. 

During this time, identification and travel documents should have been obtained from the local consular representation of the home country. If the onward journey to the home country could not be organised, Switzerland would have been obliged to take back the people in transit. 

According to the Federal Council, cooperation with Eritrea has improved and the number of Eritreans obliged to leave the country has decreased slightly. While 309 people were still in this situation by the end of 2022, the number had fallen to 278 by the end of 2023.  

The Federal Council also stated that there were fewer asylum applications from Eritrea. It wants to continue to focus on cooperation with the countries of origin. 

The Senate already adopted a similar proposal last June. However, the House of Representatives rejected it by a narrow majority last December. 

Translated from German by DeepL/mga

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