The number of immigrants in Switzerland without a legal residence permit has continued to drop over the past few years, according to the Swiss Border Guards.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch/ug
العربية
ar
تراجع قياسي لعدد حالات الهجرة غير الشرعية إلى سويسرا
The national law enforcement agency said it recorded 16,563 cases in 2019, down from 27,300 in 2018 and 48,830 the year before.
The overall number of illegal stays has plummeted by nearly 75% since 2015, according to the news agency, Keystone-SDA.
Immigrants from Nigeria made up the biggest group last year, ahead of citizens from Albania, Algeria, Gambia and Morocco, according to data published by the Federal Customs Administration on Wednesday.
In comparison, illegal immigrants from Eritrea topped the list in 2016.
Most people (6,489) without a legal residence permit in Switzerland were picked up while travelling on trains, nearly 5,500 in road vehicles, about 950 on planes and almost 20 on boats trying to cross the border.
Last year, the security forces also arrested 405 suspected human traffickers, most of them Syrians, Turks and Swiss.
This content was published on
Switzerland and Italy have begun joint border patrols following a deal aimed at combatting illegal immigration between the two neighbouring countries.
Geneva decides not to remove controversial memorials
This content was published on
The city of Geneva has presented an action plan regarding a series of controversial local statues and monuments of historical figures linked to racism, colonialism or slavery.
University of Lausanne calls for end to pro-Palestine sit-in
This content was published on
The pro-Palestinian occupation continues at the University of Lausanne (UNIL). On Monday evening, a group of students refused to agree to the deadline set by the rectorate.
Ukraine peace conference should include Russia, says Chinese ambassador
This content was published on
China supports a peace conference on the Ukraine war that would see equal participation of all parties, says Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui.
This content was published on
A majority of Swiss citizens have open attitudes towards various infertility treatments, including even egg donation, which is currently prohibited.
Reports of Swiss cyber fraud almost doubled in six months
This content was published on
The head of the new Federal Office for Cybersecurity (FOC), Florian Schütz, has presented a new strategy after just over four months in office.
Ecological status of Swiss streams insufficient according to study
This content was published on
Pesticide use and obstructions of waterways have a particularly negative impact on sensitive organisms, completely absent in 70% of streams analysed.
Train line between Brig and Domodossola interrupted
This content was published on
One day after a derailment approximately 15 kilometres from the Swiss border, BLS is running buses for passengers between Preglia and Domodossola, in Italy.
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.
Read more
More
Switzerland sees influx of Guinean asylum seekers
This content was published on
A total of 339 Guineans filed official requests for asylum in Switzerland between January and March 2017, a 280% increase on the same period last year. Neighbouring Germany recorded 1,275 Guinean asylum seekers, an even bigger rise of 600% for the first quarter of 2017 compared with 2016. During the same period, 1,100 people from…
This content was published on
Around 3,500 undocumented migrants living in Geneva are expected to be regularised under the ‘Papyrus’ scheme launched in 2015.
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.