Switzerland to change rules for granting protection to refugees from Ukraine. Residents of certain regions will be able to receive it
The Swiss authorities are going to change the approach to providing protection to citizens of Ukraine who were forced to leave their homeland due to full-scale military aggression by russia. Soon, residents of certain Ukrainian regions will be able to apply for assistance.
The Swiss television and radio company SRF reported this yesterday, June 24.
At the moment, it does not matter from which region Ukrainian citizens who want to receive protection status in Switzerland come.
The situation may change soon. In December 2024, the parliament adopted a decision according to which assistance to Ukrainians will be provided according to the "Norwegian model".
Previously, Norway divided Ukraine into safe and dangerous regions.
According to SRF, the Swiss government is likely to adopt this classification. The changes may only affect Kyiv, Norway considers only the capital city to be dangerous, and Switzerland may extend this classification to most of the region.
The restrictions on granting protection status depending on the region were requested by the parliamentary party SVP.
Pascal Schmid, responsible for granting protection from the SVP, previously expressed agreement with the Norwegian model.
"I do not understand why the Federal Council has not yet introduced such necessary restrictions that apply to those who really need protection," SRF quotes him as saying.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, in September 2024, the Swiss government extended the validity of temporary protection status for refugees from Ukraine. Ukrainians can receive asylum until 2026.