On this page, you will find:
To find organisations working for LGBTQI+ rights, visit our Switzerland LGBTQI+ Resources page.
For Switzerland country of origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents visit our Switzerland COI page.
Refugee protection
Click here to see the numbers and origins of refugees hosted by Switzerland.
The following sections contain information on the most important international treaties and agreements of which Switzerland is signatory, as well as national legislation relevant to the protection of refugees.
Since 1968 Switzerland has been both a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and to its 1967 Protocol. Switzerland has also accepted the UN Statelessness Convention of 1954 but not the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
Switzerland’s national refugee protection is based on the country’s Federal Asylum Act. It provides for the granting of refugee status and temporary protection, as well as the rights and duties of refugees in Switzerland. The State Secretary for Migration (SEM) has the responsibility to process asylum claims and to decide whether somebody is granted protection in Switzerland.
Legal aid organisations
Website
Facebook
Email: cases@advocatesabroad.org
Advocates Abroad is a non-profit organization of field based and remote volunteer attorneys, interpreters, asylum experts providing essential and free legal aid to refugees and asylum seekers without discrimination or compensation. Advocates field attorneys operate throughout Greece, Turkey, and Switzerland – and now Italy. These Advocates attorneys on the ground in Northern Italy are a new and critical addition to European operations. Remote Advocate attorneys are widely diverse in background and placement – these attorneys are qualified in, and based out of, states around the world: the United States, Europe, Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine. Remote attorneys have even provided in person aid to a refugee in need, where geography permitted.
Website
Facebook
Email: info@asylex.ch
AsyLex is a free online legal aid on Swiss asylum law. They provide help and support by assisting you step by step in your asylum procedure. They provde the tools to prepare you for your asylum interview – this includes handouts and templates. Do not hesitate to contact them on Facebook, by email or by using the contact form on their website.
Organisations providing other support to refugees
Website
Facebook
Address: 1, rue de Varembé, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
Tel: +41 (0)2 29 19 10 62
Email: info@icmc.net
ICMC was created in 1951, with a mission to serve the needs of uprooted people: refugees, internally displaced persons and migrants. ICMC is engaged in protection and advocacy for durable solutions for uprooted people. Specific interventions include refugee resettlement; emergency care for the extremely vulnerable (including female-headed households and GBV survivors) and trauma recovery; conflict transformation, community development and economic activity for reintegration of displaced persons; as well as capacity building for local NGOs and government. ICMC has managed projects in nearly 45 countries. Currently, ICMC works in 11 countries directly, and through its network of members in 85.
Zurich Office
Address: Dominik Löhrer, Flurstrasse 50, 8048 Zürich
Tel.: +41 44 454 60 30
Email: info@zbasyl.ch
Opening Hours: Wednesdays from 13:30 to 17:00 (no appointment needed).
HeKS/EPER has many offices throughout Switzerland, which can be found here.
Through its programmes in Switzerland, HEKS/EPER fosters social inclusion for marginalized people, promotes equal opportunity and supports asylum seekers and other socially deprived people with legal advice. HEKS/EPER also sees itself as a driving force in the shaping of public opinion on various development and social policy issues. Through regular campaigns on specific topics, HEKS/EPER promotes and supports awareness-raising in Switzerland regarding development policy issues.
Through its legal advice centres in several Swiss cities, HEKS/EPER ensures that refugees can form a realistic picture of their situation. Lawyers advise asylum seekers throughout their asylum procedure. They file appeals when refugee status is at issue, when there are procedural errors or when a removal order seems unreasonable. When a negative decision is being appealed, the asylum seeker is accompanied and assisted until the final decision is made.
Asylum applications are submitted and examined at federal asylum centres. As a way of monitoring whether procedures are being conducted fairly and in accordance with the law despite the short time-frames, asylum seekers are provided with advice and legal representation. Asylum seekers remain in these centres for the duration of their procedure. HEKS/EPER has been mandated by the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) to provide advice and legal representation as well as interpreting services for procedures taking place in Eastern Switzerland (Altstätten) and North-western Switzerland (Basel).
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Address: Weyermannsstrasse 10, PO Box 8154, 3001 Bern, Switzerland
Tel: +41 (0)3 13 70 75 75 and +41 (0)3 13 70 75 00 (fax)
Email: info@fluechtlingshilfe.ch
The Swiss Refugee Council OSAR is a non-governmental, politically and religiously independent organization. It is the umbrella organisation of Swiss NGOs supporting asylum seekers and refugees. OSAR also organises training courses for lawyers and for the professional staff of legal advice centres.
See website for contact information regarding legal queries. OSAR will answer queries directly or direct you to the relevant NGOs or authorities but OSAR does not handle individual cases of asylum seekers.
Switzerland LGBTQI+ Resources
Find organisations working for refugee LGBTQI+ rights in Switzerland.
Switzerland COI
Find Switzerland Country of Origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents.
We are always looking to expand the resources on our platform. If you know about relevant resources, or you are aware of organisations and/or individuals to include in our directories, please get in touch.
Last updated June 2023