Switzerland defines criteria for limiting immigration; foreign trains will use Swiss rail system; and more news in our roundup on Thursday.
Bern defines criteria for limiting immigration from the EU
The Federal Council announced on Wednesday how it intends to activate the safeguard clause — which has long been a bone of contention between Bern and Brussels — to cap immigration from the European Union.
As a reminder, EU nationals enjoy free access to Swiss work and residency. The safeguard clause, on the other hand, enables Switzerland to temporarily restrict the free movement of persons if immigration causes serious economic or social difficulties.
The Federal Council will set thresholds for immigration from the EU, the number of cross-border commuters, unemployment, and the rate of social assistance use. When one of these thresholds is exceeded, the government will consider whether to activate the clause.
READ ALSO: How Switzerland must amend its immigration clause to comply with EU
Switzerland to open its railway infrastructure to foreign trains
As part of the new Swiss-EU package, the Federal Council has negotiated with the European Union the opening of international passenger rail transport.
However, European railways that wish to offer services in Switzerland are required to comply with the Swiss legislation on working hours, vacations, as well as social benefits; they must also pay industry-standard wages on Swiss sections of the route.
Additionally, according to a government press release on Wednesday, they will be obliged to apply the Swiss fare system, for example by recognising the general season ticket and the half-fare.
The directive also defines the procedures for monitoring the provisions and punishing violations.
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Reports of increase in ticket thefts from SwissPass accounts
According to SwissPass Alliance, hackers managed to log into some customer accounts to purchase tickets without their knowledge.
As a result of these actions, the company has said that security will soon be enhanced to prevent further hacking: starting in mid-May (that is, now), new accounts on new devices will be required to use two-factor authentication to purchase a ticket.
A security code sent by email will also be required to log in to the account.
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Blame it on Trump: Economic slowdown may be on the horizon
The US president has caused a break in global trade with the introduction of far-reaching tariffs, according to a study published by UBS Bank this week.
This will lead to a significant slowdown in the global economy.
But there is some good news as well: there are no signs of a global recession.
Nevertheless, growth in Switzerland is expected to be just 1 percent in 2025 and 1.2 percent in 2026.
These figures are well below the long-term trend. As a result, the unemployment rate is expected also rise to over 3 percent.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at news@thelocal.ch
