Replacement tenant: leaving a Swiss lease early
Yes, you can move out before your termination date: propose a replacement tenant to the landlord who is solvent, acceptable to them and willing to take over your lease on the same terms (CO Art. 264). If the landlord turns down such a person, you owe no rent from the planned takeover date.
Updated 12 min read
Landlord’s review period · replacement tenant
That is how long the landlord may usually take to check your candidates. Professional managers should need 10 to 20 days; the owners’ association names about a month.
What is a replacement tenant?
A replacement tenant (Nachmieter or Ersatzmieter) is a person you propose to the landlord to take over your lease before the next termination date. The law calls this early return of the property (CO Art. 264). Colloquially it is called an “ausserterminliche Kündigung”, but legally it is not a notice at all (canton of Bern). It also works before the end of a fixed-term lease.
Without a replacement you are bound by the notice period and termination date: at least three months to a date in your lease or a local-custom date (CO Art. 266c). The guide “Ending your lease” explains how that works.
When must the landlord accept a replacement tenant?
Under CO Art. 264 para. 1 you are released from your obligations if the person you propose meets three conditions:
- Solvent: they can pay rent and service charges in full and on time. The rule of thumb: the rent is no more than a third of their net income (Zurich courts, HEV Schweiz). Debt-collection entries or loss certificates count against them.
- Acceptable: they can be relied on to use the flat as the lease intends (Federal Supreme Court, BGE 119 II 36). The landlord may not ask more of them than they asked of you (Swiss Tenants’ Association, HEV Schweiz).
- Same terms: they take over the lease unchanged: same rent, same rooms, same use. Someone who wants a lower rent or other terms is not a valid proposal (HEV Schweiz).
The landlord can’t be forced to sign: they may choose someone else. But if they reject a person who meets all three conditions, you are released from the day that person would have taken over (BGE 134 III 267, as summarised by the Zurich courts). The same applies if the landlord doesn’t respond, asks the replacement for a higher rent or offers them only part of the flat. CO Art. 264 also binds housing cooperatives; in a flat share, the remaining flatmates may be stricter, but not turn everyone down (Swiss Tenants’ Association).
What may the landlord refuse, and what not?
Reasons for a no: justified or not?
| Reason | Rejection justified? | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Debt-collection entries, loss certificates, or rent well above a third of income | Yes | HEV Schweiz, Zurich courts |
| Candidate wants a lower rent or other terms | Yes, not a valid proposal | HEV Schweiz |
| Use doesn’t fit, e.g. five people in a small studio | Yes | Canton of Bern |
| A single person in a flat let expressly as a family home | Yes | HEV Schweiz |
| Stricter requirements than for you | No | Tenants’ Association, HEV Schweiz |
| Foreign nationality as such | No | Tenants’ Association |
| On social assistance, with the social office confirming the rent | No | Tenants’ Association |
| Landlord wants to renovate, move in or raise the rent | No, you are released anyway | Tenants’ Association, Zurich courts |
| Landlord prefers their own candidate who moves in later | Allowed; the gap is theirs to bear | Tenants’ Association |
How long may the landlord take to check?
As long as a proper check takes. For flats, according to the Zurich courts, that is normally 10 to 30 days. The Tenants’ Association expects 10 to 20 days from professional managers, while private landlords may take up to 30 days. HEV Schweiz names one month as the prevailing legal opinion, less for professional managers. The more complete the documents, the shorter the check.
The landlord may also require the handover to fall at the end of a month (HEV Schweiz). So plan like this: target date at a month-end, candidates reported at least a month before.
Replacement tenant or notice: what is the difference?
Ordinary notice and early return compared
| Ordinary notice | Early return with a replacement | |
|---|---|---|
| Law | CO Art. 266a and 266c | CO Art. 264 |
| When you are out | On the termination date, at least 3 months later | As soon as the replacement takes over |
| Form | In writing, signed by hand | In writing by registered mail recommended |
| Who finds the next tenant | The landlord | You |
| Rent until | Termination date | Takeover, at the latest the next termination date |
| Your risk | None | If the person pulls out, you keep paying |
How do I find a replacement tenant? Step by step
- Tell the landlord. Write by registered mail that you want to leave early, on which date, and that you are looking for a replacement. Keep a copy and the postal receipt. Ask for their application form.
- Note the terms. Write down the net rent, service charges, the earliest takeover date and what comes with the flat (cellar, parking space on a separate contract?). These are exactly the terms the replacement takes over.
- Advertise and spread the word. An online listing, notices in shops, schools and at work, word of mouth (Tenants’ Association). The more candidates, the better.
- Hold viewings. Show the flat and say openly what it costs and what the lease provides. Anyone who first hears of defects or higher service charges from the landlord will pull out.
- Collect documents. For each person: the application form, a debt-collection extract and details of income and employer. Have each person confirm in writing that they will take over the flat from date X on the same terms.
- Report the names. Send everything by registered mail with a cover letter to the landlord, stating the takeover date you want. Several candidates at once beat one after another.
- Follow up. After a few days, ask the candidates whether the landlord has been in touch. After about 10 days, ask the landlord in writing to confirm you are released from the lease (Tenants’ Association).
- Hand over. Return the flat cleared and cleaned, hand back all keys and have the handover report signed. Your liability ends only with the return.
Checklist: what you send the landlord
| Document | From | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Cover letter with the takeover date | You | Registered mail; keep a copy and the receipt |
| Application or registration form | Each candidate | The landlord’s form or the Tenants’ Association’s |
| Confirmation “I will take over from … on the same terms” | Each candidate | Signed; does not yet bind them to the lease |
| Debt-collection register extract | Each candidate | CHF 17 at the counter, CHF 18 by post or electronically |
| Income and employer | Each candidate | Usually on the form; payslips only when signing |
| Confirmation from the social office | Only on social assistance | That the rent is covered |
Example: moving out at the end of January instead of March
Your lease allows notice for the end of March, June and September, and your new job starts on 1 February 2027. In mid-November 2026 the next termination date is 31 March 2027 (notice must arrive by 31 December 2026). You now tell the landlord in writing that you are returning the flat as of 31 January 2027, and by the end of December you report two solvent candidates who would take over on 1 February. If one of them signs, you save the rent for February and March 2027. If you find nobody, you pay until 31 March 2027.
What if the landlord rejects an acceptable replacement?
- Ask the landlord for written reasons.
- Have the rejected person confirm in writing that they would have taken over the flat on that date on the same terms. If it failed because of the landlord, for example a higher rent, they should note that too.
- Tell the landlord by registered mail that you will stop paying rent from the planned takeover date because you proposed an acceptable replacement, and stop paying from then.
- If the landlord starts debt collection, be sure to object (Rechtsvorschlag). Or take the matter to the conciliation authority yourself, especially if your deposit is still blocked.
That is the Tenants’ Association’s advice. Get advice first, because in a dispute the conciliation authority decides whether the person was acceptable. In tenancy matters it charges no court costs (CPC Art. 113).
List the flat on Homematch
On Homematch you create the flat as a rental listing: address, rooms and floor area, rent, a title, a description and at least one photo, plus a short video walk-through if you like. One rental listing is free, with no time limit, for as long as it is online; each further one costs CHF 29 for three months (as of November 2026). Once it is live, Homematch shows it to seekers whose feed it fits by budget, rooms, location and commute. Inquiries reach you as messages; nobody sees your email address, and your phone number only if you show it.
- Say in the title or description that you are looking for a replacement tenant, and give the earliest takeover date.
- State the rent exactly as in the lease, net rent and service charges. A replacement on other terms doesn’t help you.
- Check with the landlord first when the flat can be handed over and which form they want.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a replacement tenant in Switzerland?
- A person you propose to the landlord to take over your lease before the next termination date on the same terms. If they are solvent and acceptable, you are released from paying rent from the takeover (CO Art. 264).
- Does the landlord have to accept my replacement tenant?
- They don’t have to sign with them. But if they reject a solvent, acceptable person willing to take over the lease on the same terms, you owe no rent from the planned takeover date. The same applies if they don’t respond or ask for a higher rent.
- How many replacement tenants do I have to propose?
- By law one suitable person is enough, not three (HEV Schweiz, Zurich courts). Because you carry the risk that they pull out, the Tenants’ Association recommends proposing several.
- How long may the landlord take to check a replacement tenant?
- Usually 10 to 30 days, depending on the documents (Zurich courts). Professional managers should need 10 to 20 days according to the Tenants’ Association; HEV Schweiz names about a month. So report your candidates at least a month before your target date.
- Until when do I have to pay rent?
- Until the replacement takes over. If you find nobody, until the next termination date or the end of a fixed term (CO Art. 264 para. 2). Anything the landlord saves or earns from other use in that time must be credited to you.
- May the landlord ask the replacement for a higher rent?
- They may agree a different rent with the new person, who may in some cases challenge the initial rent (CO Art. 270). If your candidate pulls out because of the higher rent, you are released from the planned takeover date (Tenants’ Association, Zurich courts).
- May the landlord charge me a fee for leaving early?
- No. According to the Tenants’ Association, CO Art. 264 governs early return exhaustively: you owe no handling fees, such as CHF 200, and none of the landlord’s advertising costs.
- Can I still propose a replacement after giving ordinary notice?
- According to the Tenants’ Association you no longer have a right to: an ordinary notice cannot later be turned into an early return. Many landlords still accept a replacement, so ask.