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Downward trend Number of asylum seekers in Switzerland drops to eight-year low

The number of asylum seekers in Switzerland is dropping, precipitating the closure of cantonal and communal asylum centres.

Empty beds Swiss asylum costs rise by 60% per person

Switzerland’s asylum centres were only half full last year, but the cost per asylum seeker was 60% over the budget.

Immigration Dozens of asylum seekers posed a threat, says intelligence service

Switzerland’s Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) flagged 38 asylum seekers as potential security threats last year.

The political debate

Crowd innovation Vote on fresh ideas to tackle immigration policy

By Urs Geiser

How to break a perceived stalemate in Switzerland’s immigration policy? More than 100 ideas gathered in a crowd-sourcing project are awaiting the ...

Slow return Sending rejected asylum seekers home

When a request for asylum is rejected, the applicant is supposed to leave the country straight away. Not everybody does, and there are vast ...

The Mediterranean Sea: a mass grave The struggle to identify drowned migrants

By Stefania Summermatter

Three years after the migrant boat tragedy in Lampedusa, in which 366 people drowned, relatives are still trying to identify dead bodies to ...

Fact check Are most asylum seekers economic migrants?

By Geraldine Wong Sak Hoi with input from Duc-Quang Nguyen and Stefania Summermatter

As voters prepare to vote on reforms to Switzerland’s asylum law on June 5, the conservative right Swiss People’s Party has insisted that most ...

Working visit Justice minister defends asylum reforms as EU leader takes interest

Europe has taken an interest in Switzerland’s asylum reforms, with a European Union leader examining the system which will soon put to a vote ...

Workplace integration Apprenticeships for refugees get a reboot

By Veronica DeVore

After testing the waters a decade ago, Switzerland wants to give refugees access to its apprenticeship system with a new national initiative.

Year in review 2015: when the wave of migrants reached Europe

By Duc-Quang Nguyen and Stefania Summermatter

Which countries have been most affected by the influx of migrants and refugees? What impact would quotas have? The answers in a series of ...

See in other languages: 9

Asylum lottery Six graphs to understand the migration phenomenon

By Duc-Quang Nguyen and Stefania Summermatter

Every day, thousands of refugees and migrants are crossing European borders, searching for protection or a better life. It is posing an ...

See in other languages: 9

Fleeing danger Asylum by the numbers

Europe has seen an influx of asylum seekers due to global political unrest, notably the Arab Spring. As the Swiss prepare to vote on stricter ...

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