Accommodation, education and acquisition
According to the government's accountability report, over 15 new properties were made available for the accommodation of refugees in the reporting year. This means that by the end of 2024, over 75 properties were available for the accommodation of asylum seekers. Furthermore, a procedure was initiated to provide new collective accommodation for 2025. The Foreigners and Passport Office (APA) and the Refugee Aid Association (FHL) received additional resources to ensure the accommodation and care of asylum seekers and people in need of protection. In addition, various civil society initiatives were set up to support refugees, such as the SKS-Integrationshilfe association.
At the end of 2024, 147 children seeking protection were either enrolled in their own classes with intensive German as a second language courses or in regular schools. In addition, a specific offer for children and young people from Ukraine was set up with the "Learning Hub" in order to integrate them into regular classes as quickly as possible. In December 2024, 153 of all people supported by Refugee Aid were in gainful employment, 139 of whom were in need of protection from Ukraine. The employment rate for persons in need of protection from Ukraine was around 32% at the end of 2024.
Overall, the VMR considers the situation of asylum seekers and refugees in Liechtenstein to be very good. Regular exchanges with FHL, Amnesty and APA indicate no need for action with regard to accommodation or the care situation. The total of four consultations with persons with a refugee background (asylum seekers, protection seekers, recognized refugees) by the OCR did not reveal any aspects of concern in terms of human rights. No measures were necessary in any of the four cases.
In principle, the high employment rate is a positive development. It has been shown time and again that the possibility of being able to work from day one has proven its worth. On the one hand, this creates structure and, on the other hand, the people receiving support can live as autonomously as possible, as provided for in the Asylum Act. However, there are also obstacles. For example, the wage concession leads to less motivation to work. At the same time, training is sometimes not recognized. The "refugee wage" has also not yet been introduced across the board and is not widely known.
In view of the large number of people in care, the VMR considers the principle of equal treatment to be important. Asylum seekers as well as temporarily admitted persons and persons in need of protection from Ukraine are accommodated and cared for in accordance with the Asylum Act. They should therefore be treated equally, taking into account their individual circumstances. Giving preference to a certain group of persons would violate the principle of equal treatment and could lead to problems in accommodation and care.