FIFTH SECTION
CASE OF B.K. v. SWITZERLAND
(Application no. 23265/23)
 
 
 
 
 
 
JUDGMENT
 
STRASBOURG
2 May 2025
 
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of B.K. v. Switzerland,
The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
 Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström, President,
 Gilberto Felici,
 Kateřina Šimáčková, judges,
and Sophie Piquet, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to:
the application (no. 23265/23) against the Swiss Confederation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on 18 September 2023 by a Kosovar national, Mr B. K. (“the applicant”), who was born in 1989, lives in Massagno, and was represented by Mr C. Jackson, a lawyer practising in Lugano;
the decision to give notice of the application to the Swiss Government (“the Government”);
the decision not to have the applicant’s name disclosed;
the parties’ observations;
the withdrawal of Mr Andreas Zünd, the judge elected in respect of Switzerland from sitting in the case (Rule 28 § 3 of the Rules of Court);
Having deliberated in private on 27 March 2025,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
1. The applicant, a Kosovar national who has lived in Switzerland all his life and suffers from a heart condition, alleged that his three-year expulsion to Kosovo[1] following his criminal conviction violated Articles 8 and 3 of the Convention. 2. Upon his arrival in Switzerland as an infant in 1989, the applicant, along with his parents and siblings, received permanent residency. Born with a heart defect, he underwent life-saving valve implantation in 2009, requiring biannual check-ups to monitor complications. 3. In June 2009 the applicant was convicted of aggravated assault, theft, threats and insults, and a weapons violation, all committed between 2007 and 2008. His sentenced comprised twenty-six months of imprisonment, fourteen of which were suspended, and a probationary period of four years. In 2010 the applicant committed a traffic offence and in 2011 he was convicted of threatening a public official. 4. Following the conviction in 2009, the immigration authorities issued a decision revoking the applicant’s residency permit (“the revocation”). Upon the applicant’s appeal, in which he stated that his expulsion to Kosovo would deprive him of regular complex medical check-ups necessary to monitor his heart condition, in May 2011 the Federal Supreme Court (the FSC), ordered a re-evaluation of his situation. In 2012 the authorities reaffirmed the revocation, which was upheld by the FSC in September 2014. 5. In March 2015, citing a deterioration of his health, the applicant requested a new review of the revocation, which was rejected by the authorities in January 2017. Then in March 2018, upon the applicant’s appeal, the FSC ordered a re-evaluation of the situation of the medical care in Kosovo again, as a result of which the revocation was reaffirmed in March 2009, and a three-year re-entry ban was imposed. 6. In January 2022 the applicant lodged another appeal before the FSC. He contended that the lower courts had disregarded medical evidence indicating that facilities in Kosovo were incapable of performing complex cardiac check-ups and surgery and that they arbitrarily concluded that his condition was stable. He enclosed two medical reports from the University Hospital of Zurich, and an expert opinion by a specialist from Kosovo. 7. The applicant stressed that he was prohibited from engaging in employment since 2009 while his appeals against the revocation were pending. As a result he had no savings to cover medical costs in Switzerland following his expulsion or fund urgent medical care upon his return from Kosovo. In case of a medical emergency, he would be unable to travel to Switzerland or elsewhere in time to receive life-saving treatment. His expulsion would result in the loss of Swiss health insurance, and the re-entry ban could be lifted only upon submission of medical documentation proving the urgency of his treatment, accompanied by an advance payment for medical costs. 8. His criminal convictions had taken place many years ago, and he had been on good behaviour ever since. He had lived in Switzerland all his life and was well integrated; he had a close relationship with his family, all of whom lived there; and he was financially dependent on them due to the lack of authorisation to work. Although he travelled to Kosovo regularly for holidays, he had no family or social ties there. 9. On 8 May 2023 the FSC dismissed the appeal after reassessing updated medical documentation and expert opinions. It concluded that the applicant’s medical condition remained stable, and that adequate basic medical care was available in Kosovo. Although hospitals there could not perform emergency cardiac surgery, the statistical likelihood of the applicant requiring such a procedure was deemed low (0.7%–1% annually). Despite a decline in his health, no acute or life-threatening condition was identified. The FSC determined that his treatment could be managed effectively in Kosovo, where necessary medication was available or could be imported. If surgical intervention became necessary, short-term medical permits could allow treatment in Switzerland. The applicant was in good health overall, without daily life limitations. Despite medical advice against excessive physical exertion, he engaged in intensive physical training several times per week. 10. The FSC further observed that, despite his long-term residence in Switzerland, the applicant lacked social and financial integration. He was not financially self-sufficient, had never been gainfully employed, and his criminal record demonstrated a disregard for the Swiss legal order. His annual travel to Kosovo implied the presence of a functioning social or familial network in the country which would facilitate his re-integration. 11. On 7 July 2023 the applicant submitted a new request for review, arguing that the likelihood of a cardiological emergency had increased. However, on 13 July 2023 the authorities, referencing the FSC’s judgment, maintained that his condition was essentially unchanged and denied his request, noting that it lacked suspensive effect. 12. On 26 July 2023 the applicant departed from Switzerland. His details were entered into the Schengen Information System and he has been prohibited from re-entering the Schengen Area until 26 July 2026.

Outcome for Article 8: violation