Further development of the compulsory service system
Armed Forces and the civil protection service have been finding it increasingly difficult to recruit enough personnel and retain them in the long term. Under SEPOS’ lead, short- and medium-term measures to improve the supply of personnel have been drawn up in consultation with the Armed Forces and the concerned federal departments.
The compulsory service system determines who is required to serve which type of service – whether in the Armed Forces, civil protection service or civilian service. Men are generally required to serve in the military service; those unable to do so for conscientious reasons may serve in the civilian service instead. Anyone who is unable to serve in the military service for medical reasons is assigned to the civil protection service.
For some time now, both the Armed Forces and the civil protection service have been finding it increasingly difficult to recruit enough personnel and retain them in the long term. However, without sufficient personnel numbers, key tasks – ranging from defence and civil protection to disaster relief – cannot be carried out sustainably. Ensuring the supply of personnel for the Armed Forces and civil protection is therefore a key security policy challenge.
The Federal Council has tasked the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport DDPS, in collaboration with the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research EAER, to identify possible solutions. Under SEPOS’ lead, short- and medium-term measures to improve the supply of personnel have been drawn up in consultation with the Armed Forces, the Federal Office for Civil Protection, the Federal Office for Civilian Service within the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport, and the Intergovernmental Conference on Issues relating to Military, Civil Protection and Fire Services. This includes, for example, the drafting of the Federal Council dispatch on the Civic Duty Initiative, which proposed a general compulsory service for Swiss men and women for the benefit of society, which was however rejected by voters.
Simultaneously, SEPOS is working with the relevant federal agencies to examine whether and how the whole compulsory service system can be further developed so that it continues to meet security policy requirements while taking account of societal developments and needs. In the summer of 2025, Parliament decided to introduce a compulsory service for security – a merger of civilian and civil protection service, which the DDPS had examined as a possible option for further developing Switzerland’s compulsory service system.