The Federal Council has extended the protection status S for Ukrainian refugees and the support measures for another year. A lasting stabilization of the situation in Ukraine is not expected in the near future, Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter (58) told the media on Wednesday.
Protection status S will therefore not be revoked before March 4, 2024, unless the situation has fundamentally changed by then. The Federal Council wanted to create clarity for those seeking protection, the cantons, municipalities and employers, he announced on Wednesday.
Support measures are also extended
Last March, the Federal Council activated protection status S for the first time to admit vulnerable people from Ukraine. To date, about 68,000 people have been granted the status.
Also, the specific support measures for people with protection status S are being expanded. The confederation contributes CHF 3,000 per person per year. In addition, the Federal Council has instructed the cantons to adapt the identity cards for persons seeking protection accordingly.
The EU is also expected to extend the protection status until 2024
According to the Federal Council, the extension is also in line with the EU’s approach. In mid-October, they announced that they expected the temporary protection to be extended until spring 2024 due to the current situation in Ukraine.
The protection status S gives a right of residence to those who fled the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine without going through a proper asylum procedure. They can join their family members and are entitled to housing, support and medical care, just like temporarily hospitalized persons.
Protection status S applies until the Federal Council revokes it
Children can go to school. Adults can immediately take up a paid job – as an employee or as a self-employed person. If you have protection status S, you can also travel without a permit.
Protection status S applies until the Federal Council revokes it. That is the case if the situation in Ukraine is stable in the long term. This is a “returned status”.
Protection status S is returnable
The Confederation creates the conditions for a future return and, in cooperation with the countries of origin, the countries of origin, other host countries or international organizations, takes measures to create the conditions for the safe return of persons seeking protection.
The instrument of temporary protection emerged in the 1990s in the context of the Yugoslav Wars, when Switzerland was faced with an influx of people seeking protection. Since the total revision of the Asylum Act in 1998, the protection system has been regulated by law. However, the Federal Council has never used it before. (bgs/sda)