No Deport for 184 Refugees from Switzerland to Italy

• Italy's immigration Officers stated that the country is currently no longer taking back so-called Dublin refugees due to the high number of Mediterranean refugees.
• Switzerland is currently unable to deport 184 refugees to the southern neighboring countries accordingly and anticipated pressure on the asylum accommodation due to the Italian decision.

     Italy suspended Dublin agreement temporarily

The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) confirmed a report in the "NZZ am Sonntag newspaper" that Italy informed Dublin countries on 5^th of December 2022, about a temporary suspension of Dublin transfers to Italy due to the continuous waves of refugees throughout Mediterranean. As a result, 184 people cannot currently be deported back to Italy for the time being.

According to the SEM statement, Italy is currently recording an unusually high number of landings. The capacities for initial admissions are therefore temporarily overloaded. Dublin refugees are people who have applied for asylum in Switzerland, but for whom Italy would be responsible as the country of entry according to Dublin regulations.

Furthermore, the SEM claimed that 184 refugees are 152 persons from the asylum area and other 32 persons who are illegally staying in Switzerland. Switzerland took note of the information from Italy and canceled some transfers that had already been prepared at short notice, as the SEM continues.

     Pressure on cantonal centers is growing due to suspension in deportment

However, the Swiss authorities assume that “Italy will soon be able to meet its obligations under the Dublin system again”. Transfers based on the bilateral readmission agreement between Switzerland and Italy are not affected by the measure. For the cantons, Italy's step comes at a time when they are already reaching their limits when it comes to accommodating the many asylum seekers. 

"These 184 people block scarce capacities that we would rather use for those seeking protection who can stay here longer," said Florian Düblin, Secretary General of the Conference of Cantonal Justice and Police Directors, in the newspaper report.