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Notice ending a flat lease, given by the tenant, in French (Switzerland)
Switzerland · in French · for tenants
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For anyone renting a flat in Switzerland who wants to leave: the notice letter to the landlord or the régie (managing agency), in the written form Art. 266l para. 1 of the Code of Obligations (CO) requires, with three months' notice to the lease's end date or else to a customary date (Art. 266c CO; in Vaud, 1 April, 1 July or 1 October), taking effect on the next date if the chosen one is missed. It has a line for every tenant and one for the express consent of a spouse or registered partner when the flat is the family home (Art. 266m CO), and asks for a move-out inspection and the release of the rent deposit. 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 are moving to another home and want to end your current lease in Switzerland.
- The flat is your family home, so your spouse or registered partner has to sign the notice as well.
- You are taking a job abroad and must hand back the flat you rent in Switzerland by the next end date.
- Your régie in Lausanne or Geneva wants a signed letter of notice sent by registered post.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Tenant
- Tenant's address
- Landlord
- Landlord's address
- City
- Date
- Address of the property
- Date of the contract
- Date of termination
- Canton of the flat: local termination dates (other cantons: the neutral line)
- Family home (married or in a registered partnership): yes or no
- Contact phone
- Correspondence address
- Closing formula (in French): “mes” if one person signs, “nos” if several sign
Common questions
- When does a Swiss landlord have to receive the tenant's notice?
- No later than the day before the three-month notice period starts, or the longer period your lease sets. For notice to 1 April with three months' notice, the landlord must have it by 31 December. A registered letter is treated as received on the first day the post office holds it for collection, normally the day after the collection slip, whenever the landlord actually picks it up, so post it a few days ahead. Notice that arrives too late takes effect on the next relevant date (Art. 266a para. 2 CO).
- Whose signatures does a Swiss tenant's notice need?
- Every person who signed the lease as a tenant. Where the flat is the family home, the notice also needs the express consent of the spouse or registered partner, even if that person is not named in the lease (Art. 266m CO); the letter has a line for that signature. Without it the notice is void (Art. 266o CO). No official form is needed: only the landlord must use the one the canton approved (Art. 266l para. 2 CO). An e-mail does not do; only a qualified electronic signature with a qualified time stamp counts as handwritten (Art. 14 para. 2bis CO).
- Which termination dates apply to a flat in Vaud or Geneva?
- Those in your lease come first. If it sets none, local custom applies. In the canton of Vaud the customary dates are 1 April, 1 July and 1 October, at noon (Art. 35 of Vaud's rental rules, the RULV). Geneva has no local custom (BGE 131 III 566): pick its line. For other cantons, also pick the neutral line and ask the conciliation authority or look on the canton's website. Without local custom, notice runs to the end of a three-month rental period (Art. 266c CO); a furnished room has two weeks to the end of a one-month period (Art. 266e CO).
- Can a tenant in Switzerland move out before the notice date without paying to the end?
- Only by putting forward a replacement tenant who is solvent, whom the landlord cannot reasonably refuse and who will take over the lease on the same terms (Art. 264 CO); otherwise the rent runs until the termination date. A separate letter does this, the early return of the flat with a replacement tenant. Sending ordinary notice to the next date at the same time makes sure the lease ends then at the latest.
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.
Related documents
- Tenant's notice ending a residential lease, in German (Switzerland)
For tenants of a flat in Switzerland: the written notice to the landlord or the managing agency (Art. 266l para. 1 of the Code of Obligations, OR), with three months' notice to the lease's termination date, else to a local termination date (Art. 266c OR), and to the next possible date if the chosen one is missed. It has signature lines for every tenant and for the express consent of a spouse or registered partner where the flat is the family home (Art. 266m OR), and asks for a handover date and the release of the rent deposit. Print, sign and send by registered post. In German.
- Tenant's notice to end a rented flat, in Italian (Switzerland)
For people renting a flat in Switzerland who want to leave it: the written notice to the landlord or managing agency (Art. 266l para. 1 of the Code of Obligations, CO), giving three months' notice to the date in the lease, or else to a local termination date (Art. 266c CO), and taking effect on the following date if the chosen one is missed. Every tenant signs, and where the flat is the family home so does the spouse or registered partner (Art. 266m CO); the letter also asks for a handover date and the release of the rent deposit. Print it, sign it and post it registered. In Italian.
- Tenant's notice to end a residential lease (Switzerland)
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- Leaving a rented flat early with a replacement tenant, in French (Switzerland)
For tenants in Switzerland leaving before the termination date: the letter telling the landlord or the régie that the flat will be handed back early and putting forward a replacement who is solvent and ready to take over the lease on the same terms (Art. 264 of the Code of Obligations, CO). It states the return date and the candidates, asks for an answer by a set date and lists the application papers enclosed. Print, have every tenant sign and send by registered post. In French.
- Early return of a rented flat with a replacement tenant, in German (Switzerland)
For tenants in Switzerland who move out before the termination date: the letter to the landlord announcing the early return of the flat and proposing a replacement tenant who is solvent and willing to take over the lease on the same terms (Art. 264 of the Code of Obligations, OR). It gives the return date and the candidates, sets a date for the landlord's answer and lists the documents enclosed. Print, have every tenant sign and send by registered post. In German.
- Handing back a rented flat early with a new tenant, in Italian (Switzerland)
For tenants in Switzerland moving out before the lease can be ended: the letter telling the landlord that the flat will be handed back early and putting forward a new tenant who is solvent and ready to take over the lease on the same terms (Art. 264 of the Code of Obligations, CO). It states the handover date and the candidates, gives the landlord a date to answer by and lists what is enclosed. Print it, have every tenant sign it and post it registered. In Italian.