Why Switzerland is piloting a 24-hour asylum procedure for North Africans
A fast-track decision-making procedure is being tested in Zurich for asylum-seekers from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. What’s behind its introduction? On Wednesday the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper revealed that a pilot project was launched on November 13 in Zurich to fast-track decision-making on certain asylum claims. More specifically, applications made by nationals from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya will be dealt with in 24 hours. The Zurich pilot is expected to run until the end of February 2024. False claims Over 20% of asylum-seekers come from these North African countries, but only around 2% of these are recognised as refugees in Switzerland. According to the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM), one reason for the low acceptance rate is that people from other North African countries falsely list Libya as their country of origin to improve their chance of being accepted. Around 10% of asylum claims made by Libyans in Switzerland result in refugee status.