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Claiming back a rent deposit from landlord or bank, in French (Switzerland)
Switzerland · in French · for tenants
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This document is in French
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Made for use in Switzerland
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For tenants in Switzerland who have left their flat: the letter claiming back the rent deposit (Art. 257e of the Code of Obligations, CO). You pick the addressee: the landlord or the régie, asked to give the bank its consent, or the bank directly once a year has gone by since the lease ended without the landlord pursuing a claim through debt enforcement or a court action. It gives the bank, the account, the amount, your IBAN and a reply date. Print, sign and send by registered post. In French.
- Made for use in Switzerland
- Last updated November 4, 2026
Published byDocMuse
When to use this document
- You handed back your flat in Switzerland and the rent deposit is still blocked at the bank.
- The move-out inspection went fine, but the régie will not sign the release of the deposit.
- Your former landlord has gone silent since you moved out a long time ago.
- You want to ask the bank directly to pay you the money in your deposit account.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Tenant
- Tenant's address
- Recipient
- Recipient's address
- City
- Date
- Address of the property
- Date of the contract
- Date of termination
- Handover date
- Addressee and request: the landlord's consent, or the bank after one year
- Bank
- Number of the account or deposit holding the rent deposit
- Deposit amount
- IBAN
- Deadline
- Closing formula (in French): “mes” if one person signs, “nos” if several sign
Common questions
- For how long can a landlord in Switzerland keep the rent deposit blocked?
- The bank pays the deposit out only with both parties' agreement, on a payment order (commandement de payer) not opposed, or on an enforceable judgment (Art. 257e para. 3 CO). So after the move-out inspection, ask the landlord's consent first. If within a year of the lease ending the landlord has not pursued any claim against you through debt enforcement or a court action (an application to the conciliation authority is enough for that), you can require the bank alone to repay you; the letter's second option is for that.
- Which papers go to the bank after the one-year period has run?
- This letter with the bank option chosen, a copy of the lease or the deposit certificate, and proof of the date the lease ended, such as the notice, the landlord's confirmation or the move-out inspection report. Check whether the bank has its own form. If the landlord started debt enforcement or a court action within the year, even only by applying to the conciliation authority, the bank will not pay on your request alone.
- Do Vaud and Ticino have their own rent deposit rules?
- Yes. In Vaud, the binding rental rules (RULV, Art. 2) require a landlord paid in cash to put it within ten days on a savings book in the tenant's name; withdrawals need both signatures or a court decision, and with no court action within a year of the tenant leaving, the deposit is released by law. In Ticino, the act of 24 June 2010 requires cash to be placed within 10 days at a bank with its seat or a branch in Ticino (art. 6), and the tenant may draw the interest alone (art. 8).
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
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