Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Are you retired? If so, from this December you will receive a 13th-month pension from the Swiss old-age and survivors’ insurance. Now, a parliamentarian is calling for Swiss citizens living abroad to be excluded from these payments.
And what do you think: is screen time among schoolchildren aged between eight and 12 increasing or decreasing? You’ll find the answer in today’s briefing.
The 13th old-age and survivors’ insurance pension will be paid out for the first time in December 2026 – including to pensioners living abroad. A parliamentary motion has now caused a stir: it calls for Swiss citizens living abroad to be excluded from the 13th monthly payment.
To finance the 13th monthly pension payment, VAT is set to rise: the standard rate from 8.1% to 8.5%, and the special rate for accommodation from 3.8% to 4%. However, those living abroad do not pay Swiss VAT and therefore do not contribute to financing the 13th pension.
Didier Calame from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party has taken this as the basis for a parliamentary motion: only recipients resident in Switzerland should receive the pension supplement, Cash reported today. Asked about the proposal by Swissinfo, the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) responded with the following statement: “In principle, the OSA opposes cuts to benefits for Swiss citizens living abroad.”
During the parliamentary debates on funding, parliament had already raised the question of who should contribute to financing the additional pension. However, the issue was not explored in greater depth. A vote on the necessary VAT increase will take place on November 29, 2026. If voters say no, the question of funding will arise again – although the 13th pension will still be paid out. If they say yes, the higher rates are expected to apply from 2028.
At its meeting today, the Swiss government discussed the exceptional heatwave and drought affecting Switzerland. Its assessment found that additional funding is needed in the short term to help forests adapt to climate change and support affected farms.
The government is therefore proposing that parliament increase the 2027 forestry budget by CHF17.5 million ($21.74 million). From 2028 onwards, the environment, transport, energy and communications ministry will be able to request the same amount in additional funding each year. A one-off additional sum of CHF54 million is to be made available in 2026 for operational aid under the Agriculture Act to bridge liquidity shortfalls caused by the drought.
At the same time, the environment ministry has been tasked with monitoring developments in collaboration with other departments and assessing by the end of October whether further measures to combat heat and drought are needed.
On this basis, the government intends to carry out a comprehensive review in autumn 2026 and decide on any further steps. In the meantime, plans include organising a round-table discussion on agricultural issues and reviewing the further development of the existing drought platform. The government had recently come under criticism for cutting funding intended to ensure the long-term viability of Switzerland’s forests.
The number of asylum applications in Switzerland continues to fall. In the first half of 2026, fewer than 10,000 applications were registered – the lowest figure since 2022. The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) therefore expects around 22,000 applications by the end of the year, rather than the 26,000 originally anticipated.
Applications from Afghanistan, Turkey and Eritrea have fallen particularly sharply. The SEM cites changes in migration routes as one reason: fewer people are travelling along the Central Mediterranean and Balkan routes. At the same time, applications from Ukrainians for protection status S are also declining. Around 12,000 applications are expected in 2026 – some 900 fewer than the previous year.
At the same time, the number of returns is increasing. Forced returns rose from 1,654 in 2021 to 2,400 in 2025. The government says it favours voluntary returns because they are quicker and more cost-effective.
As part of its 2027 asylum strategy, the SEM is also planning a security package to tackle criminal asylum-seekers, as well as preliminary procedures for applications that are manifestly unfounded. The focus is, among other things, on people from countries with very low protection rates. The new procedure could affect around 20% of applications, although legal questions remain unresolved. At the same time, the SEM emphasises that 96% of people in the asylum system behave appropriately.
Bye-bye, social media: primary school-aged children are increasingly turning away from TikTok and Instagram. Social media use among eight- to 12-year-olds has halved since 2020, according to a survey of 10,000 children and young people in education.
The monitoring report by the Swiss Coordination Centre for Educational Research does not comment on the reasons behind this. However, one of the study’s lead researchers believes it reflects a broader trend: Swiss parents have become more aware of the issues and are beginning to restrict their children’s access to social media, the researcher told the Tages-Anzeiger.
The study also found that social media remains more popular among secondary school pupils. However, even in this group, scrolling has decreased slightly since the last survey, albeit only marginally.
Finally, the survey revealed that girls and young women take a significantly more critical view of learning with digital tools than boys and young men. The Tages-Anzeiger quotes one of the two study leaders as saying that this affinity for technology ultimately also influences career choices.
Translated from German, sub-edited by Alexandra MV Andrist/ts
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