A., a Sri Lankan national of Tamil ethnicity, applied for asylum in Switzerland on 21 July 2016, alleging that her activities with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and a reported involvement in the death of a police officer would expose her to persecution if returned. The State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) rejected her application for asylum for contradictory and divergent statements and ordered the return to Sri Lanka. A. appealed the decision and explained the inconsistencies in her statements, adding arguments related to her medical condition, as she was paralysed on one side of her body and dealt with mental disorder for which she was prescribed psychiatric treatment.

The Federal Administrative Court (FAC) dismissed the appeal against the negative decision on grounds related to unproven fear of persecution (the applicant left Sri Lanka in 2016, after the end of hostilities between the Sri Lankan army and the LTTE, organisation eradicated since May 2009).

On return, FAC assessed that the applicant lived all her life in Sri Lanka, having the same medical condition and was gainfully employed there, thus proving a significant social network and the return was considered reasonable in her case, as people at risk of social isolation and extreme poverty are not returned. The applicant did not prove she would face a risk of inhuman or degrading treatment upon return within the meaning of Article 3 ECHR. The FAC held, regarding the state of health of the applicant, that the doctor must prepare her for the return and provide the enforcement authorities, if her condition requires, special measures to be organised.

The FAC further underlined that the spread of COVID-19 worldwide cannot prevent the return and cannot be a ground for provisional admission.