Swiss authorities announce cost-cutting in asylum sector
Swiss Justice Minister Beat Jans (centre) on Wednesday in Bern.
Keystone / Anthony Anex
The government wants to save around CHF700 million ($770 million) by the end of 2028 by better integrating refugees from Ukraine and other countries into the labour market and processing asylum applications more quickly. Further cost-cutting proposals are to follow.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Swiss expenditure on asylum has risen in recent years, and according to the government this trend is likely to continue, particularly in the areas of social welfare and integration. The number of asylum and protection applications is meanwhile unlikely to drop due to the many crisis hotspots around the world.
In an attempt to ensure that costs do not get out of hand, ministers approved a package of measures on Wednesday, one of which is to achieve a net saving of CHF54 million by the end of 2026 by processing asylum applications more quickly.
The government also expects substantial savings to result from measures to improve integration into the labour force, particularly for people with “protection status S”.
Overall it anticipates reduced expenditure to the tune of around CHF650 million by 2028. The justice ministry, which is responsible for this area, is to submit further savings proposals by the end of the year.
Adapted from German by DeepL/dkk/dos
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Most Read Swiss Abroad
More
Swiss politicians concerned by Ukraine peace conference
What measures have been taken to prevent floods in your area?
Have you ever experienced a flood event? Have you witnessed a significant increase in flooding where you live? What measures have been taken in your country to prevent recurrent flooding? Are these measures effective?
Switzerland condemns attempted military coup in Bolivia
This content was published on
The Swiss foreign ministry condemned the attempted coup, as well as any attempt to undermine the lawful government of Bolivia.
Gotthard Base Tunnel on track to fully re-open in September
This content was published on
Rail operations through the vital tunnel will resume in full on September 2, with repair work in the west tube going as planned, Swiss Federal Railways has said.
Swiss Broadcasting Corporation to pull plug on FM radio
This content was published on
Amid a shift to digital and online radio, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation will switch off analogue FM transmitters at the end of December.
Bern and Biel/Bienne enter the Swiss race to host Eurovision 2025
This content was published on
Swiss cities are jostling to host next year's Eurovision Song Contest (ESC): Geneva, Basel, Zurich, and a Bern-Biel joint bid have all thrown their hat in the ring.
Overnight earthquake in Germany felt in large areas of Switzerland
This content was published on
An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.2 on the Richter scale was felt throughout Switzerland during the early hours of Thursday.
Swiss government rejects right-wing population cap initiative
This content was published on
The Federal Council is against a proposal to cap the country’s population at 10 million, saying it jeopardises economic growth and security.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.