Switzerland is experiencing another influx of migrants
The State Secretariat for Migration of the Confederation presented an interim result of the migration crisis that has engulfed Europe, publishing detailed statistics for the past year. According to this data, in 2015, 39523 people applied for asylum in Switzerland, 15758 (or 66.3%) more than the previous year. The peak of activity was in November, when 5691 asylum applications were registered. Switzerland has not seen such an influx of migrants since the Kosovo crisis, SEM emphasizes.
In total, twice as many foreigners applied for asylum in European countries last year – their number reached 1.4 million people. At the same time, Switzerland's share in this figure compared to 2014 decreased from 3.8% to 3%. However, in terms of the ratio of applications to population, Switzerland remains above the average, with 4.9 requests per 1,000 local residents (i.e., this indicator was 4.9% in 2015 and 2.9% in 2014). On average in Europe, the ratio reached 2.6%, while in 2014 this figure was 1.2%.
The leaders in terms of the number of applications relative to population were Hungary (19.7%), Sweden (16.6%), Austria (10.2%), Norway (6.3%), Finland (6.1%) and Germany (5.3%). However, these figures should be interpreted with caution, warns SEM: refugees who arrived in Hungary in most cases continued their journey to other countries, while Germany has not yet properly processed all migrants who reached its borders by the end of the year.
Switzerland as a final destination has not yet fallen into the preferences of refugees who began arriving in Europe last autumn via the so-called 'Balkan route'. At the same time, it is among the main receiving countries for those who used the 'Mediterranean' migration route. Among them are Eritreans, who by the end of 2015 remain the main group of applicants hoping to receive asylum in Switzerland. The number of applications submitted by them increased by 44% and reached 9966, with the peak activity in June and July of last year, while in December only 170 Eritreans applied for asylum in Switzerland.
In second place in 2015 unexpectedly came Afghans (7831 applications, +948.3% compared to 2014). The sharp influx of this category is explained by changes in the asylum procedure in neighboring Germany, which simplified the process only for people from Syria and Iran. However, quite a few Syrians also applied for asylum in Switzerland: in 2015, their number increased by 24.2% and reached 4745 people. In fourth place are Iraqis (2388 applications, +557.9%). The increase in the flow of refugees from these three countries is linked to the intensification of the 'Balkan route', notes SEM.
The top five refugee-supplying countries to Switzerland in 2015 included Sri Lanka (1878 applications, +47.1%). This is due to a change in practice when considering applications from that country after two Sri Lankans, whom the Confederation had denied asylum in 2013, were arrested upon arrival home.
In addition to the countries listed, asylum seekers in Switzerland last year included people from Somalia (1253 applications, +54.1%), Nigeria (970 applications, +6.8%), Gambia (968 applications, +151.4%), Iran (623 applications, +270.8%), Ethiopia (599 applications, +73.1%), China (586 applications, +54.2%), Kosovo (566 applications, +39.8%) and Albania (451 applications, +252.3%). The relatively small number of applicants from Kosovo and Albania compared to other European countries is explained by a trend in recent years indicating that people from these countries rarely reach Switzerland, which has tightened requirements for them and deports them under an accelerated procedure.
Let us add that in 2015 the chances of obtaining refugee status in Switzerland were 25.1% (this is the so-called 'recognition rate'). Approximately 8,500 dossiers were refused consideration by the country's migration authorities (most such cases concern the procedure according to which the application of a candidate should be processed by the first country of the Dublin Agreement on their route). More than 10,000 requests were rejected, and about 8,000 people received temporary asylum.