Dangerous asylum seekers continue to remain in Switzerland

Rejected asylum seekers cannot be deported if they risk inhuman treatment in their home countries. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Of the 38 persons whose asylum applications were recommended for rejection by the Swiss Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) in 2017, 34 still remain in the country.

Most of them are still being processed under the asylum procedure, have initiated an appeal against rejection or are subject to a removal enforcement process. The security authorities know their identity and where they are staying, said the Federal Council in response to a parliamentarian’s request for information.

In 2017, the FIS also recommended the rejection of seven naturalisation applications due to security concerns. Of these seven, two were rejected (one is pending before the Federal Administrative Court) and one request was withdrawn. Two cases are still under FIS scrutiny and two others have been able to acquire Swiss citizenship (one in canton Bern and the other in canton Zurich).

In 2018, the Federal Office of Police (fedpol) imposed entry bans on 78 people (compared to 140 in 2017) and expelled five (compared to 13 in 2017).