Switzerland targets savings to ease CHF2.5bn deficit

Switzerland will examine ways to save costs in its asylum system. Keystone / Carlo Reguzzi

Expecting a financial deficit of more than CHF2.5 billion, the Swiss government has announced plans on how to reduce asylum costs in the 2025 budget.  

Expenditure related to Ukrainian refugees, who are assigned special protection status S, will remain as an extraordinary expense until 2028, it was announced on Wednesday. 

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The federal budget will record significant deficits over the coming years, the government said in a press release. Spending pressure is particularly pronounced in the areas of social security, the army and asylum. 

The government will study the feasibility of adopting a series of measures to reduce asylum costs in the ordinary budget. Expenditures linked to S status will appear in the extraordinary budget for the fourth consecutive year.  

However, the Federal Council intends to gradually abandon this method. These expenses should be ordinary from 2028. 

The government has taken other preliminary measures with a view to reducing the deficit by more than CHF2billion. In particular, it plans to raise tax on tobacco. 

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