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Resignation letter, in German (Switzerland)
Switzerland · in German · for employees
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Made for use in Switzerland
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A resignation letter for employees in Switzerland, in German: notice ending the employment with the contractual or statutory period (Art. 335c CO), or during probation with seven days or the period agreed (Art. 335b CO), on the date you choose or else the next possible date. It asks for confirmation, a reference (Arbeitszeugnis), the final pay with the salary certificate (Lohnausweis) and settles remaining holiday. The Code of Obligations requires no form, but contracts and collective agreements often do: print, sign and send by registered post or hand it over against a receipt.
- Made for use in Switzerland
- Last updated November 4, 2026
Published byDocMuse
When to use this document
- You have found a new job and want to resign from your current one in Switzerland.
- You are still in your probation period in Switzerland and want to leave quickly.
- You want your resignation to cover remaining holiday, final pay and your reference.
- You need a clear resignation letter in German for your employer in Switzerland.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Employee
- Employee's address
- Employer
- Employer's registered address
- City
- Date
- Notice period: the ordinary period, or during probation
- Date of termination
Common questions
- Does a resignation in Switzerland have to be in writing and sent by registered post?
- The Code of Obligations prescribes no form for notice, but many employment contracts and collective agreements (GAV) require writing. Then sign by hand or with a qualified electronic signature; a plain e-mail is not enough. You have to prove that the notice arrived in time, so send it by registered post a few days before the end of the month, or hand it over and have receipt confirmed on your copy. What counts is when the employer receives it, not the postmark: with one month's notice to the end of March, it must arrive by the end of February.
- What notice period applies when an employee resigns in Switzerland?
- After probation, unless agreed otherwise, one month in the first year of service, two months in the second to ninth year and three months from the tenth, each to the end of a month (Art. 335c para. 1 CO). A contract or collective agreement may set other periods in writing, but only a collective agreement may go below one month, and only in the first year; both sides have the same periods (Art. 335a CO). During probation — the first month, extendable in writing to three at most — the notice period is seven days unless otherwise agreed in writing (Art. 335b CO).
- What am I still owed after resigning in Switzerland, including holiday?
- Your pay up to the last day, an agreed 13th-month salary pro rata, and your holiday: as a rule it is taken before you leave, and only days that can no longer be taken are paid out with the final pay (Art. 329d para. 2 CO). You can ask for a reference at any time (Art. 330a CO), and the letter does. A non-compete agreed in writing survives your resignation, unless the employer gave you good cause to resign (Art. 340c CO).
- What does resigning mean for unemployment insurance in Switzerland?
- If you resign without a new job, unemployment insurance generally treats you as unemployed through your own fault and suspends your entitlement for a number of days (Art. 30 AVIG); the unemployment fund decides case by case, for example where health reasons forced you to leave. Register with the regional employment centre (RAV) as early as possible, at the latest on your first day without work; registration is online at job-room.ch.
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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A resignation letter in French for employees in Switzerland: ends the employment with the contractual or statutory notice period (Art. 335c CO), or during probation with seven days or the period agreed (Art. 335b CO), on the date you choose or else the next possible date. It asks for confirmation, a work certificate (certificat de travail), the final pay with the salary certificate (certificat de salaire) and settles remaining holiday. The Code of Obligations requires no form, though contracts and collective agreements often do: print, sign, and send it registered or hand it over against a receipt.
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