Poll: Most of Switzerland wants to limit immigration

Tue, Apr 18th 2023

More than 60% of Swiss residents want to restrict immigration. Immigration is likely to be the most important issue to Swiss voters during the federal elections later this year.

An SVP poster at the Zurich train station reads “Uncontrolled naturalization? No” (Keystone SDA).

About two-thirds (62%) of Switzerland is in favor of limiting immigration, according to a survey. Previous polls have already indicated that immigration will likely be the top issue guiding voters this fall during the federal elections.

More on the survey

Tamedia Group surveyed 50,000 residents and found that across political parties, Swiss residents were largely in favor of immigrations restrictions.

About 93% of those polled who identified as “right-wing” voters said they were in favor of immigration limits. About 70% of “centrists” also were in favor. More than half (51%) of “left-wing” voters said they wanted immigration limits.

Those surveyed who lived in urban areas and had university degrees were less likely to be in favor of immigration restrictions. Meanwhile, those with lower levels of education were more likely to be in favor of them. Residents across all socioeconomic levels were in favor of immigration controls.

A poster protesting mass immigration outside the village of Fischbach in 2011 (Keystone SDA).

The non-Swiss perspective

About 25% of Swiss residents do not have Swiss citizenship.

The number of permanent foreign residents living in Switzerland has increased sharply in just the last year. About 81,000 more people have immigrated to Switzerland than those who have left Switzerland in 2022. The demand for workers is what has driven the rise, according to the federal government.

Among non-Swiss residents who were surveyed in the poll, those who had been dwelling in Switzerland the longest were the most likely to be in favor of immigration limits. Among those who had only been in Switzerland for five years or less, 47% were in favor of restrictions. And of foreigners who were born in Switzerland, 67% are in favor of immigration restrictions.

Overall, demographic factors is why the Swiss view immigration critically, according to local newspaper Tages-Anzeiger.

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Poll: Most of Switzerland wants to limit immigration

Poll: Most of Switzerland wants to limit immigration

More than 60% of Swiss residents want to restrict immigration. Immigration is likely to be the most important issue to Swiss voters during the federal elections later this year.

More on the survey

The non-Swiss perspective

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