Swiss Government to Examine Migrants’ Devices Under New Asylum Law
A significant change in Switzerland’s asylum law will take effect on April 1, 2025, allowing the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) to inspect mobile devices and computers of migrants whose identity, nationality, or travel route is unclear. The goal of this measure is to better verify the personal statements of asylum seekers, particularly those who arrive without identification documents. It is estimated that this will affect 60 to 80 percent of migrants.
The device inspection was decided after years of political debate and will only be permitted if other methods of identity verification are insufficient. Critics, however, see this as a major intrusion into privacy. A pilot study in Vallorbe and Chiasso found that only 15 percent of the examined devices revealed relevant information.
Authorities will gain access to contacts, messages and other stored data if they can contribute to clarifying the identity, but the new regulation does not allow the use of data for criminal investigations, even if it leads to findings of human trafficking or war crimes.
The implementation will be done in a step-by-step process: in a three-month test phase at the federal asylum centers in Basel and Chiasso, devices will be manually analyzed before a software solution is introduced. After three years, the parliament will decide whether the measure will remain in place.
Migrants are not required to hand over their mobile phones, but if they refuse, it could affect their credibility in the asylum process. Relevant data can be stored for up to a year and included in the asylum dossier.
Human rights organizations, such as the Swiss Refugee Council, criticize the measure as disproportionate.