Switzerland denied protection to many Ukrainians in 2026: among them 123 children

Switzerland denied S status to 286 Ukrainians from western regions, including 123 minors accompanied by legal representatives. The statistics pertain to applications for temporary protection in Switzerland from November 2025 to September 2026. This is reported by RSI, citing the State Secretariat for Migration SEM.

S Status in Switzerland: who was denied in 2025–2026

In eleven months, Swiss authorities rejected the applications of 286 citizens of Ukraine and made decisions regarding their departure. At the same time, during this period, S status was granted to 6599 Ukrainians. Thus, the cited statistics do not indicate a termination of the protection program.

From November 1, 2025, SEM considers the region of the applicant's last residence in Ukraine. Returns are generally deemed acceptable to seven regions: Volyn, Rivne, Lviv, Ternopil, Transcarpathian, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Chernivtsi.

This is the assessment of the Swiss migration authority, not a statement about the absence of threats in these regions. According to SEM, the decision is based on the overall level of violence and the humanitarian situation. Individual Russian strikes alone do not change the classification of the area.

Applications continue to be considered on an individual basis. The regional approach does not apply to people who have already received S status and to cases of family reunification provided by law. It is important to distinguish these rules from other restrictions for new applicants introduced by Switzerland.

Denial of S status: does it mean immediate return

According to RSI, in two cases, SEM recognized the return as inadmissible for medical reasons and allowed temporary stay. There are no details about the diagnoses or other circumstances of these cases in the message.

It is important to distinguish between decisions regarding departure and actual return. The published figures do not confirm that all 286 people have already left Switzerland or were forcibly returned to Ukraine.

The denial can be appealed in the Federal Administrative Court. As explained by UNHCR in Switzerland, the deadlines for this are very short, so after receiving a decision, it is advisable to immediately contact a legal representative. The specific deadline should be verified in the document itself.

A denial of a new application does not equate to the termination of already granted protection or a transition to another permit. In particular, the transition to B permit has separate conditions. The grounds for further stay need to be clarified according to the individual decision and circumstances of the person.