As of Monday 67,621 people had been granted special “S protection” status, the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) said. This is an increase of 458 applications compared with the previous week.
The government developed S protection status in the mid-1990s in response to the Balkan wars. The mechanism is intended to enable the rapid admission of a group of refugees, who are thus freed from long asylum procedures, including individual examinations of why they fled their country.
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Switzerland triggers unprecedented special status for Ukrainian refugees
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Victims of the war in Ukraine get a special S permit which Switzerland has never used before.
So far, the S status has been terminated for 5,344 people, the SEM said. The cases of 1,704 people from Ukraine are also being examined to determine whether to terminate their S refugee status.
Switzerland is expecting nearly 50% more asylum applications this year compared with 2021, prompting the construction of new accommodation centres and the support of the army.
Refugee crisis
The estimate of refugee numbers for 2022 has increased significantly since a forecast in October of 19,000 asylum applications and 85,000 Ukrainians on S permits. The SEM said on October 20 that it expected to receive 22,000 refugees by the end of the year, 7,000 more than 2021.
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Huge hike in refugees stretches Swiss resources
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Switzerland expects nearly 50% more asylum applications this year compared to 2021.
Since February 24, more than 7.7 millionExternal link Ukrainians have fled their country for safety across Europe. This represents the largest European refugee crisis since the end of the Second World War.
In Europe, 4.5 million people from Ukraine have applied for official refugee protection status, the SEM wrote, based on data from the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the EU statistics agency Eurostat.
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How the Swiss asylum system works
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Switzerland has a long humanitarian tradition but who can apply for asylum in the country and how?
Swisscom receives greenlight for acquisition of Vodafone Italia
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The takeover of Vodafone Italia by Swisscom is nearing completion. All relevant authorities have now approved the €8 billion (CHF7.45 billion) deal.
Novo Nordisk stock market plunge drags down Swiss device maker Ypsomed
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The Danish pharmaceutical giant, Novo Nordisk, faced setbacks on Friday that weighed on the share price of Swiss injection device manufacturer Ypsomed.
Swiss press react to EU deal with mix of euphoria and scepticism
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Swiss media reaction to the agreement between Switzerland and the EU varies widely. Some are celebrating, while others worry about what is to come.
Swiss Solidarity donations to tackle child abuse top CHF4 million
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Swiss Solidarity, the humanitarian arm of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), has raised over CHF4 million ($4.3 million) to tackle child abuse.
EU Commission president says Swiss-EU deal is ‘historic’ agreement
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At a joint media conference with Swiss President Viola Amherd in Bern, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke of a "day of joy".
Switzerland and EU reach deal on future bilateral relations
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Switzerland and the European Union have announced a political agreement to update their trading relationship after almost a decade of difficult talks.
Swiss migration authorities struggling with ‘overlapping crises’
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The Swiss migration head says federal asylum centres are full and the situation is unprecedented since the Second World War.
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