Switzerland may revoke protection status S for Ukrainians
Kyiv • UNN
The Swiss People's Party proposes to revoke the protection status S for Ukrainian refugees, arguing for the stability of some territories in Ukraine. More than 69,000 Ukrainians are in Switzerland with status S, two-thirds of whom depend on assistance.
In Switzerland, politicians are demanding a review of the protection status for Ukrainians. The Swiss People's Party has called on the National Council of the country to completely abolish protection status S for Ukrainian citizens. The initiators appeal to the fact that "a significant part of Ukrainian territory is currently stable and not in the zone of hostilities." This is reported by the publication Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), according to UNN.
Details
As of May 2025, over 69,000 Ukrainians with S status were in Switzerland. Since the beginning of the year, 3,300 new applications for protection have been registered, while about 2,600 people have returned to Ukraine. Despite the increase in employment, two-thirds of Ukrainian refugees still depend on assistance from cantons and municipalities, which provide them with housing and basic support.
Back in 2024, the Swiss parliament supported Esther Friedli's initiative, which provides for limiting the granting of S status to Ukrainians arriving from regions without active hostilities or occupation. These rules do not apply to those who have already received protection. Before the summer parliamentary recess, the Federal Council must approve a list of Ukrainian regions that will be considered safe.
Switzerland is not the only country tightening requirements for Ukrainian refugees. Earlier, Norway recognized 14 regions of Ukraine as safe and obligated their residents to submit separate asylum applications. This approach reduced the number of new applications but did not significantly affect the total number of refugees.
In Switzerland, according to official data, only about 6,400 people arrived from regions that Norway considers safe - including from the Kyiv region, which is currently again under massive shelling.
It is expected that even if S status is limited, the flow of Ukrainians to Switzerland will not significantly decrease, as most arrive from dangerous regions and will be able to claim asylum in other ways. However, this could create an additional burden on the application review system and cause political disputes. At the same time, against the background of a possible new wave of refugees in the event of an escalation of the war in Ukraine, Switzerland's position looks less solidary against the backdrop of more active support for Kyiv from other European countries.
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Reminder
European Union member states agreed to extend temporary protection for refugees from Ukraine, the decision to extend temporary protection will be officially adopted by the EU Council at one of its upcoming sessions.
