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Leaving a rented flat early with a replacement tenant, in French (Switzerland)
Switzerland · in French · for tenants
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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.
- Made for use in Switzerland
- Last updated November 4, 2026
Published byDocMuse
When to use this document
- You have to leave your flat in Switzerland before the lease ends and do not want to pay rent to the very end.
- You have found someone willing to take over your lease and want to put that person forward to the landlord.
- The régie is slow to answer about the person who wants to take over your flat.
- A new job is waiting for you soon in another Swiss town and you want to move out between the usual termination dates.
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 the early return of the flat
- Replacement tenant: name, current address, telephone, occupation (each person)
- Deadline
- Contact phone
- Correspondence address
- Closing formula (in French): “mes” if one person signs, “nos” if several sign
Common questions
- On what grounds can a Swiss landlord turn down a proposed replacement tenant?
- Only for a reasonable motive, if the person is solvent and ready to take over the lease on the same terms, at the same rent and for the same duration (Art. 264 para. 1 CO). The landlord may vet the file like any application and has reasonable time for it. Include from the start what régies normally request: the application form, a recent extract from the debt enforcement register and proof of income.
- Does Vaud add its own rules to leaving a flat early?
- Yes. Vaud's binding rental rules (RULV, Art. 34; not for subsidised flats whose rent is controlled) spell out Art. 264 CO: you tell the landlord in writing the date you will return the flat and present at least one solvent tenant ready to take over the lease on the same terms from that date; a landlord with well-founded objections must give the reasons without delay; and you must give at least one month's notice for the 15th or the end of a month. The landlord never has to sign with the person you propose, but you are then released.
- How much rent is owed after leaving a Swiss flat early with no suitable replacement?
- Rent until the lease expires or until the next contractual or statutory termination date (Art. 264 para. 2 CO). The landlord must deduct the expenses saved and whatever is earned, or deliberately not earned, by letting the flat to someone else (Art. 264 para. 3 CO). Once you have presented an acceptable replacement, you are released even if the landlord chooses not to take that person, from the day that person could take over, once the landlord has had reasonable time to check them; the rent runs until then.
- Is ordinary notice still worth sending when a replacement tenant is proposed?
- It is not a legal requirement, but it is the safe course: if no one takes over, ordinary notice ends the lease on the next termination date at the latest, which caps the rent owed. Send the tenant's notice ending the lease alongside this letter, signed by every tenant and by registered post, and keep copies of both and the postal receipts.
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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