The Swiss voice in the world since 1935
Top stories
Stay in touch with Switzerland

Over 50,000 denied entry to Switzerland since borders tightened

closed border
A closed border between Germany and Switzerland at Weil am Rhein. Keystone / Georgios Kefalas

Since first restricting border crossings on March 13, Swiss customs officers have turned away some 56,000 people, they said on Sunday.

Confirming figures first reported in the Le Matin Dimanche newspaper, the Federal Customs Administration (FCA) also said they have been issuing an average of 150 fines per day to those contravening the new border rules.

Such instances include continuing to go cross-border shopping, damaging barriers at the borders, or crossing at unauthorised points.

Though they did not give precise numbers on the numbers of fines issued for each infraction, an FCA spokeswoman told the Keystone-SDA agency that the number of fines for having crossed the border to go shopping were much fewer in the southern canton of Ticino – where Italian rules on entry are very strict – compared with the French-bordering canton of Geneva.

On March 13, the Swiss government limited land border crossings from Italy, a move it then extended to Germany, France, Austria, Spain, and later the entire Schengen region.

Currently, only Swiss citizens, Swiss residents, cross-border workers, and those coming to Switzerland on business can enter the country by land.

The FCA says it expects a sharp increase in border traffic from Monday, as the country enters the first stage of its coronavirus exit strategy. In preparation, five border points in canton Geneva, which had been closed so as to funnel traffic through fewer and bigger crossings, were reopened last week.


PLACEHOLDER

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

Corruption: Switzerland must provide better protection for whistleblowers

More

Switzerland must better protect whistleblowers, says OECD

This content was published on Switzerland must step up its anti-corruption efforts and provide better protection for whistleblowers while increasing fines for guilty firms, an OECD anti-bribery group says.

Read more: Switzerland must better protect whistleblowers, says OECD
Trust in news in Switzerland is on the rise again

More

Trust in Swiss news is rising, Reuters report shows

This content was published on Trust in the news has increased in Switzerland, according to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2025. Almost half (46%) of adults who took part in a recent survey said they generally trusted Swiss news, up 5%.

Read more: Trust in Swiss news is rising, Reuters report shows
TX Group discontinues print version of "20 Minuten"

More

20 Minuten: last Swiss free daily to stop being printed

This content was published on From the end of the year, there will no longer be a daily free newspaper in Switzerland: the TX Group is discontinuing the print version of "20 Minuten". Up to 80 full-time positions are to be cut in the editorial and publishing departments.

Read more: 20 Minuten: last Swiss free daily to stop being printed

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

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.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR