This week, an initiative aimed at making it easier to become Swiss cleared the 100,000 signature hurdle required to qualify for a referendum, reported RTS. Non citizens are largely excluded from voting. Some exceptions allow some to vote at a municipal level. Excluding such a significant part of the population from the democratic process is […]
Switzerland’s cross border workers reach record level
At the beginning of the Covid pandemic there was talk of closing Switzerland’s borders. However, it was clear that Swiss hospitals and businesses near Switzerland’s borders would not function without the workers who cross the border daily to work for them, and the notion was dropped. Statistics published this week by the Federal Statistical Office […]
Swiss parliament votes in favour of stricter asylum policy
On 24 September 2024, Switzerland’s parliament voted in favour of several motions aimed at tightening asylum policy. These include moves to remove the right of temporarily admitted asylum seekers to bring their families, and tougher rules for Ukrainians in Switzerland with protection S status, reported SRF. The motion seeking to remove the right of temporarily […]
Switzerland’s population reaches 9 million
Data published this week by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show that Switzerland’s population reached more than 9 million at the end of June 2024. Census data show there were 9,002,763 people permanently residing in Switzerland at 30 June 2024. The FSO has run a population census seven times since 1850, when the total number […]
Swiss want more political action on immigration
A survey report published this week shows that the population of Switzerland increasingly sees immigration as a challenge and desires political action. Overall, while the economic and cultural effects of immigration are viewed positively, the strains on infrastructure, housing and the environment are viewed negatively. In addition, negativity towards immigration is showing among groups that […]
Swiss upper house rejects plan to extend family reunification rules
Currently, under the agreement Switzerland has with the EU/EFTA, EU/EFTA citizens with a legal right to reside in Switzerland can bring their parents to Switzerland. Citizens of Switzerland can only bring parents with EU/EFTA residency. A proposal to extend this right to include the non-EU/EFTA based parents of Swiss citizens was rejected by the Council […]
Swiss population rises by highest level since 1960
At the end of 2023, more than 8.9 million people lived in Switzerland, rising by 147,000 (1.7%) across the year, reported the Federal Statistical Office (FSO). The population rose in all cantons, driven by high levels of immigration, particularly from Ukraine. The last time Switzerland’s population rose so fast was in 1960, wrote FSO. The […]
Switzerland to spend 300 million defending Schengen borders
From 1 August 2024, Switzerland will begin contributing to a fund supporting the protection of the borders of the Schengen zone, a group of European nations with combined land borders of 8,000 km and sea borders of 43,000 km, reported RTS. A total of CHF 300 million has been budgeted to cover the period between […]
European immigration into Switzerland rises by 29%
Data published by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) show a sharp rise in the number of people moving to Switzerland from EU/EFTA nations. In 2023, 68,000 people arrived in Switzerland from EU/EFTA countries to live, the highest number since 2008 when 72,100 arrived. The 2023 figure is 29% higher than the number of […]
Switzerland’s birth rate continues to fall
The number of babies born in Switzerland fell to 80,024 in 2023, a birth rate of 1.33 per woman, reported RTS. As recently as 2021, 89,644 babies entered the world in Switzerland. Between 2021 and 2023, the number has fallen nearly 11%. In 2023, the fertility rate in Switzerland reached an historic low after trending […]
