Switzerland’s justice and police minister Beat Jans travelled to Munich on 26 September 2026 for the second Munich Migration Meeting that brought together interior ministers from 18 European countries and representatives of the European Commission. Speaking on behalf of the non-EU Schengen member, the Federal Councillor stressed that the credibility of Europe’s new Migration and Asylum Pact will hinge on whether the promises made on paper now translate into quicker, predictable procedures on the ground. Jans highlighted three Swiss priorities. First, asylum decisions must be taken more rapidly so that people in need of protection can integrate into the labour market sooner, while those without a right to stay are removed promptly. Second, the EU-wide “Dublin” transfers need to function again after years of paralysis; Switzerland is already piloting the new accelerated border procedures and wants its partners to do the same. Third, return operations should be underpinned by “equal-footing partnerships” with source countries that combine incentives such as vocational training with readmission obligations. He explicitly backed Germany’s proposal to give the EU border agency Frontex a 24-hour “rapid reaction” capability for large-scale arrivals. For internationally mobile companies the message is two-fold. If the pact delivers, Schengen external borders are expected to become more predictable, reducing the risk of ad-hoc internal border controls that complicate business travel to and from Switzerland. At the same time, Switzerland’s call for more legal migration channels for qualified workers signals that Bern will continue to use its national quota system proactively to compete for global talent even while enforcing tougher rules on irregular migration. On the margins of the meeting Jans met his Austrian, Danish, Greek and UK counterparts. The Swiss and Austrian ministers agreed to examine joint police-and-customs cooperation centres at their common border, while discussions with the UK focused on mutual recognition of security-cleared carriers—a topic of particular interest to multinational firms that shuttle staff between Zurich and London. Industry associations such as Swissmem welcomed the minister’s stance, noting that a stable Schengen framework is “a prerequisite for the seamless movement of engineers and service technicians that our export sector relies on”. However, NGOs cautioned that accelerated procedures must not come at the expense of due-process safeguards. The Federal Department of Justice and Police will report back to the Federal Council in November on whether additional legislative changes are needed to implement the pact domestically.
