Practical Information

Asylum Seekers

The Swiss government’s web site states, “Any person who is threatened or persecuted in their home country in accordance with criteria recognised under international law will be granted asylum in Switzerland.” While this may be true, the Swiss have clamped down recently in order to stem the growing tide of asylum seekers to the country. The revised Asylum Act went into effect on January 1, 2008.

Application for asylum may be submitted either orally or in writing to a Swiss mission abroad, a frontier post, or at the customs post of a Swiss airport. The applicant must provide the Swiss authorities with their identity and proof of identity, along with an account of the reasons why the applicant wishes asylum from their home country. The Federal Office for Migration will process all applications.