Switzerland Invokes Special Residential Status for Ukrainian Refugees

GENEVA – The Swiss government has invoked a special residential status for Ukrainians fleeing the war in their country.

Ukrainians fleeing the war with Russia will be eligible for a permit called “S” protection, a status not granted before, Swissinfo reported, and some questioned why it had not been used before.

This is the first time the Cabinet has decided to apply S protection status, applicable to refugees, although it has existed for over 20 years.

Sarah Progin-Theuerkauf, a law professor from the University of Fribourg, said that Switzerland refused to use it for people fleeing the Arab Spring or the wars in Afghanistan and Syria.

Between 50,000-60,000 Ukrainians could seek protection in Switzerland, Swiss Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter had said on March 16. The government said it had allocated 5,000 places in Swiss federal asylum centers for people fleeing the war.

Private citizens have also offered some 45,000 places in their homes, according to Swissinfo.

According to Progin-Theuerkauf, in the case of the Syrian conflict, security considerations played a role, which is why refugees could not be accommodated in this manner.

In the case of Syria, the Swiss government “preferred to rely on case-by-case procedures to determine who was being persecuted individually, and therefore should be granted refugee status… and who were potential terrorists,” she said.