Over 37,000 refugees have already come to Switzerland from the Ukraine war. The SEM expects 500 more per day. But it could also be 1500.
the essentials in brief
- The SEM expects fewer than 500 Ukraine refugees a day next week.
- The capacity for taking in refugees can still be expanded.
- If the situation in Ukraine escalates, up to 1,500 refugees could arrive every day.
More than 37,000 refugees from the Ukraine war have already registered in Switzerland (as of yesterday, Thursday). Over 30,000 of them have so far received protection status S.
At the beginning of the war, the authorities in this country had promised that up to 50,000 people from the Ukraine war could be safely taken in. You saw that back in the 1990s during the Kosovo war.
At the beginning of March, the cantons said they were already expecting up to 300,000 refugees to come. So about six times as much as originally thought. At least that’s what Marcel Suter, President of the Association of Cantonal Migration Authorities said.
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Either way, there is no upper limit. Lukas Rieder, media spokesman at the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM), now says to Nau.ch: “There are no quotas – vulnerable people who resided in Ukraine before February 24 receive protection status S in Switzerland.”
More refugees from the Ukraine war only expected if the escalation continues
It is expected that the number of people seeking protection this week will remain below the level of 500 people per day. But: «Depending on the development, it is conceivable that the number will climb back to a range of 500 to 1000 people. If the conflict intensifies sharply, an increase to 1,500 per day would also be possible.” This is the case, for example, with a large-scale Russian advance into central Ukraine.
The range of private accommodation is still large, as Gundekar Giebel from the Bern Health Directorate knows. And these can also be expanded, as he says about Nau.ch.
Does the Ukraine war scare you?
«The potential cannot be fully exploited. If we have a room with four places, but place a family with three people, a so-called loss place remains empty. If the situation requires it, such places will also be occupied in the future.”
According to SEM spokesman Rieder, the mass accommodation could also be upgraded. “A series of army barracks has already been opened. In the meantime, the process of being able to provide additional locations if necessary is being continued in the background.”
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