Organisations helping foreigners in Switzerland: asylum, permits, undocumented people, who to contact in your canton

SFH/OSAR, HEKS/EPER, Caritas, the Swiss Red Cross, the Centres sociaux protestants, CCSI: who helps foreigners in Switzerland free of charge with asylum, permits, healthcare without papers or poverty, and why the right contact depends on your canton.

Espero AKPOLI

Founder · Compatri, the social network for diasporas

Information checked on 2 November 2026.

You are a foreigner in Switzerland and need free help: an asylum application, a permit about to expire, no papers, no insurance, a scattered family. The most solid organisations helping foreigners in Switzerland are the Swiss Refugee Council (SFH, OSAR in French), HEKS (EPER in French), Caritas, the Swiss Red Cross, the Centres sociaux protestants (CSP) and, in Geneva, the CCSI. But Switzerland is federal: your contact depends first on your canton. This guide tells you who does what, for whom, where, and links to each organisation's contact page.

In an emergency: 112 (European emergency number), 144 (ambulance), 117 (police). All three calls are free according to the Federal Office of Communications. To talk to someone in a crisis, La Main Tendue (Dargebotene Hand) answers on 143.

Organisations helping foreigners in Switzerland: the overview

Organisation	What it does	For whom	Where	Link
SFH/OSAR (Swiss Refugee Council)	General legal information on asylum, lists of legal advice offices	People seeking protection, volunteers, professionals	All of Switzerland (head office in Bern)	osar.ch
HEKS (EPER)	Legal advice and representation in asylum matters	Asylum seekers, refugees, rejected applicants	Aargau, both Basels, Solothurn, Eastern Switzerland, Zurich and Glarus, Vaud (SAJE)	heks.ch
Centres sociaux protestants (CSP)	Legal questions, asylum, permits, social help	Anyone, regardless of nationality	Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Bern-Jura	csp.ch
CCSI	Reception and information, children without legal status, permits, social insurance	Migrants in Geneva, with or without status	Geneva	ccsi.ch
Caritas	Free social counselling, debt advice, low-cost shops, legal advice depending on the region	People in financial or social difficulty	Regional Caritas organisations nationwide	caritas.ch
Swiss Red Cross	Tracing missing relatives, care for undocumented people (canton of Bern), family reunification	Separated families, people without a permit	All of Switzerland, cantonal branches	redcross.ch
SEM (public)	Decides on asylum applications, publishes cantonal addresses	Every foreign national	Federal government	sem.admin.ch
Cantonal integration services (public)	First information, advice, language courses	Newcomers	Every canton	kip-pic.ch

All these bodies guide, inform or defend. None issues a permit: that decision stays with the cantonal migration office or the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM).

Why everything depends on your canton

The Confederation sets the main rules and the SEM handles asylum applications. But your permit, your social assistance and your first language courses fall to the canton where you live. Each canton has its migration office: the SEM publishes the list by canton. Each canton also designates a service in charge of integration.

The organisations follow the same map. The Centre social protestant exists only in French-speaking Switzerland and Bern-Jura. HEKS runs legal offices in some cantons only. Caritas works through regional organisations. So before you travel, check that the organisation covers your canton. For the settling-in steps themselves (registering with the residents' office, B permit), read our guide arriving in Switzerland: registration, B permit, health insurance.

Asylum application: free legal protection

According to the SEM, all asylum seekers are entitled to a free legal adviser and legal representative during the procedure in the federal centres. This representative explains the procedure, accompanies you to hearings and can prepare an appeal. They come from an organisation independent of the authorities, mandated for this purpose.

When your case moves to the extended procedure and you leave the federal centre, the SFH says you must turn to a legal advice office designated by the canton. The SFH publishes the list of these offices and of the legal protection contacts in the federal centres, from its legal protection page. It also sets out the limits: family reunification, or a rejected applicant on emergency aid, are not covered by this funding.

The specialised offices you will meet most often:

HEKS: legal advice offices for asylum seekers in Aargau, Basel, Solothurn, Eastern Switzerland, Zurich and Glarus. In Eastern Switzerland, HEKS also provides legal representation in the federal centres on behalf of the SEM.
SAJE (Service d'aide juridique aux exilé-e-s), part of HEKS in the canton of Vaud: information, advice and representation for people who have applied for asylum and do not yet hold a B permit.
CSP Geneva, Refugee service: legal defence and social support during the asylum procedure. The service describes itself as free and works by appointment.
CSP Neuchâtel, migration sector: free legal consultations on the asylum procedure, for asylum seekers, provisionally admitted people and refugees.

The SFH also runs a general legal information line. It does not handle individual cases: for your file, the legal office is what counts.

Residence permits, renewal, family reunification

Outside asylum, permit questions (renewal, change of status, family reunification, keeping a permit after a separation) go to the organisations' legal services.

CSP: each French-speaking CSP has a "Questions juridiques" service, which covers residence and work permits among other things. The CSPs point out that most of their services are free.
La Fraternité (CSP Vaud): CSP Vaud's migration service in Lausanne answers questions on arriving in Switzerland, permits, marriage and family reunification, and undocumented situations. It holds collective, anonymous "Info-Conseil Migration" sessions without appointment, also in other towns in Vaud.
CCSI (Geneva): a "Residence permit" consultation exists, but the CCSI says it is temporarily suspended for new people. Its reception desk remains open to everyone and refers to other organisations.
Caritas Geneva: legal advice, help for migrants and interpreting, according to its regional page.

To compare with France or Belgium, see our overview of organisations helping foreigners in Europe and the Americas.

Without legal status: health, children, first rights

In Geneva, the CCSI welcomes migrants with or without legal status. Its "Childhood, education and health" consultation helps families whose children aged 0 to 12 have no permit: access to care, health insurance, childcare, schooling. Its page for people without legal status also refers to the CSP, Caritas Geneva, HEKS drop-in sessions and the Collectif de soutien aux sans-papiers.

In the canton of Bern, the Swiss Red Cross offers medical help to undocumented people, in Wabern and Biel/Bienne, plus a free and anonymous WhatsApp consultation. According to its page, the first appointment costs 10 francs, and what follows is free except dental care. It also helps people take out health insurance. If you live in another canton, the same page points you to a service nearby.

In the canton of Vaud, La Fraternité's Info-Conseil Migration sessions also welcome undocumented people.

Poverty, debt, a scattered family

Caritas: social counselling is free, provided by most regional Caritas organisations, sometimes with one-off financial help. Caritas also offers debt advice and low-price shops. Start with the find help page.
Swiss Red Cross, Tracing Service: it helps families separated by war, exile or migration to find a relative, free of charge. You first phone for an interview. The service warns that it only accepts new requests when it has the time to handle them.
Swiss Red Cross, family reunification: a specialised service informs refugees about the options for bringing their family over.
Cantonal Red Cross branches (Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Valais, Jura, Zurich, Ticino…): each has its own services, reachable from the national website.

Integration, language, work: the public services

Each canton runs a cantonal integration programme (CIP): first information for newcomers, advice, language courses. The kip-pic.ch platform presents them, and the SEM publishes the directory of integration services in cantons and cities. This is the public entry point for French or German courses and guidance towards work.

On the association side, HEKS offers language courses, interpreting and support towards employment. CSP Neuchâtel helps refugees and young migrants into training or a job. If you came to study, our guide studying in Switzerland from Africa completes this picture.

Beware of paid intermediaries

Watch out for scams. A serious organisation never promises you a permit or asylum: the decision belongs to the canton or the SEM. Be wary of anyone who asks for money to "speed up" a file, guarantees a result or calls themselves a lawyer without being registered with a cantonal bar. The organisations in this guide inform for free or almost, and tell you clearly when a service has a cost. If in doubt, ask the CSP, Caritas or your canton's legal office.

Finding your compatriots in Switzerland

An organisation solves a problem. Your compatriots help you with daily life: which office, which health insurer, which neighbourhood. On Compatri, find your country's community in your city: Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich, or all cities in Switzerland. Diaspora pages, such as Cameroonians in Switzerland, lead to the communities. The associations directory lists diaspora associations, and our article on mutual help between compatriots explains how to ask for and offer a hand.

Compatri is not linked to any of the organisations mentioned and does not carry out any procedure for you. Heading to Germany or Austria? Read our guides to organisations helping foreigners in Germany and in Austria.

Sources

Swiss National DayAugust 1

Help for migrants Settling in Newcomers Mutual aid Integration Geneva

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Where can I find free legal help for asylum in Switzerland?

In a federal asylum centre, the SEM says every asylum seeker is entitled to a free legal adviser and representative. After leaving the centre, in the extended procedure, the SFH refers you to the legal advice office designated by the canton and publishes the list. HEKS, SAJE in the canton of Vaud and the CSPs of Geneva and Neuchâtel run such offices.

Which organisation helps undocumented people in Geneva?

The CCSI welcomes migrants with or without legal status and helps in particular families whose children aged 0 to 12 have no permit (care, insurance, school). Its page on people without legal status also refers to the CSP, Caritas Geneva, HEKS drop-in sessions and the Collectif de soutien aux sans-papiers.

Do the Centres sociaux protestants help foreigners who are not Protestant?

Yes. The CSPs describe themselves as private institutions, independent of the public authorities, supporting people in difficulty regardless of nationality or religion. They exist in Geneva, the canton of Vaud, Neuchâtel and Bern-Jura, and say most of their services are free.

How can I find a missing relative from Switzerland?

The Swiss Red Cross Tracing Service helps families separated by war, exile or migration free of charge. It asks you to phone first for an interview, available in several languages. It warns that it only accepts new requests when it has the time to handle them.

Can an organisation get me a residence permit in Switzerland?

No. The permit is decided by the cantonal migration office, and asylum by the SEM. An organisation informs you, helps you build a file or represents you in a procedure, but never promises a result. Be wary of anyone who guarantees it in exchange for money.