Federal Council plans to allocate €300 million investment in Schengen Funds in order to better protect the external borders.
Switzerland will receive about CHF 50 million from the fund for national measures. Such a decision has been revealed through a statement from the fund for national measures by the Federal Council.
The same source said that effective protection of the external Schengen border contributes to security migration management in Switzerland.
“The better the controls at the external borders work, the fewer controls are necessary at the Swiss national borders,” the statement notes.
In addition, the Federal Council stressed that the so-called BMVI fund should help to improve the efficiency of controls and thus the protection of external borders and also reduce illegal entries.
Besides, the Council should provide funds to ease and accelerate regular entries. The embassy said that the 50 million that will benefit Switzerland should be used further to develop the IT systems in the Schengen Zone.
The BMVI Fund serves as the follow-up mechanism to the Internal Security Fund, which expired at the end of 2020. The financial allocation for the entirety of the BMVI Fund was estimated to be at about €6.2 billion for the period from 2021 to 2027.
A year ago, authorities in Switzerland welcomed the further development of the Schengen Information System (SIS), thus aiming to provide additional security for the Schengen Zone while stressing that the country approved its implementation.
Based on the Swiss Federal Council, the implementation in Swiss law at the ordinance level of the newly improved SIS was approved during a meeting held on October 19, 2022. The same stressed that the regulations became effective on November 22, 2022.
“The Schengen states want to improve the Schengen Information System (SIS) in order to optimise security in the Schengen area. The changes strengthen the fight against illegal stay in the Schengen area and cooperation between national security and migration authorities in Europe,” the statement of the Federal Council pointed out back then.
The Council said that following the new ordinance, the migration, as well as other authorities, will be able to have the access rights to wanted entries.
In addition, it was stressed that the alert categories for persons as well as objects were expanded to include those who need protection, too, among others.
The Council also noted that the return decisions and all expulsions are recorded in the SIS. Another change announced by the Council related to the Ordinance on Admission, Residence, and Employment (VZAE).
