Resettlement

Resettlement is a UNHCR program to relocate particularly vulnerable refugees from their current country of stay to a third country that has agreed to admit them. Beneficiaries will receive refugee status upon their arrival in the resettlement country, and will ultimately be granted permanent residence.

Resettlement is only possible for refugees who are registered with UNHCR and have no option to integrate in their current country of asylum or return to their home country. The number of resettlement places available is very limited. For this reason, only the most vulnerable refugees can be considered for the program.

It is not possible to apply for resettlement program. Eligible refugees are contacted directly by the UNHCR office in the country where they are located. Therefore, it is important to be registered with UNHCR in your current country of residence. Visit the corresponding Help Page to find the contact details of UNHCR local offices.

A fixed selection procedure determines who will be given a place on the resettlement program. UNHCR identifies and then suggests particularly vulnerable individuals for admission to the countries participating in the program. The destination country then decides whom to admit, and this decision cannot be appealed. UNHCR has no influence over this decision.

Given the extremely limited number of places currently available, most refugees cannot benefit from this program, even if they meet all the criteria.

Find out more about resettlement on UNHCR’s website or read UNHCR’s Q&A about resettlement.

Switzerland has regularly taken in refugee groups through resettlement programs. In recent years, the program primarily targeted  vulnerable refugees in Lebanon, Egypt and Türkiye. However, the program was suspended on 1 April 2023 by Swiss authorities due to insufficient reception capacities in Switzerland.

On 30 April 2025, the Swiss authorities have decided to resume their resettlement program. However, there is presently no information available that allows to predict when and how the program will be fully operational again and which countries will be involved. As soon as the program fully resumes, the UNHCR country office in your location (not the UNHCR Office for Switzerland and Liechtenstein) is responsible for determining whether a person or a family can be eligible for resettlement. This Office selects the cases which are submitted  to the Swiss authorities. You will be contacted directly if this is the case.

The final decision on the resettlement of refugees to Switzerland lies exclusively with the Swiss authorities. There is no possibility of appealing this decision. UNHCR has no influence over this decision.

• Read more general information provided by the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM).
• Find out more information on UNHCR’s website (available in French and German).
• Check out the information available by the Swiss Refugee Council (available in French and German).

Switzerland has an established and functioning asylum system in place that provides asylum and integration opportunities for those recognized as refugees or otherwise in need of international protection.

Therefore, UNHCR does not operate a resettlement program to transfer refugees from Switzerland to other countries.

If you wish to leave Switzerland and move to another country, you can contact that country’s embassy or consulate to find out what requirements you must fulfil to obtain a visa.