Terminating a Sublease in Switzerland: Notice Periods, Official Form & Letter

Notice Periods for Subleases: 2 Weeks or 3 Months?

"Two weeks to the end of the month" is how many people count. It is not what the law says. CO Art. 266e lets you terminate a furnished room with two weeks' notice, but to the end of a one-month rental period, not of a calendar month (There is no official English version of the Code of Obligations; wording paraphrased by ConvivaPlus.) The rhythm is set by the tenancy, not the calendar: a rental month that starts on the 15th ends on the 14th of the following month.

The notice period in Switzerland does not depend on whether you are a "subtenant"; it depends on what you are renting. The Code of Obligations draws a clear distinction between furnished rooms and unfurnished living spaces. And this is precisely where most mistakes are made.

A furnished room (i.e. a room with a bed, wardrobe, and table, typical in flatshares) falls under this short 2-week period. The bar is low, but the timing has to be right to the day: the deadline depends on the day you moved in, not on the calendar month.

For unfurnished flats (including rooms without the landlord's own furniture), CO Art. 266c applies: the notice period is 3 months to the locally customary date or, where there is no local custom, to the end of a three-month rental period. Which date that is, the law does not say: local custom decides.

What many people don't know: the sublease agreement can set a longer notice period or a different termination date, which CO Art. 266a expressly allows. If the contract says “3 months” for a furnished room, the 3 months apply, not the 2 weeks. Read the contract first, then the law. This guide is part of our termination letter hub, where you can also find templates for sublease agreements, employment contracts and insurance.

Flatshare Models in Switzerland: Who Gives Notice to Whom?

You have no contract with the property owner, and yet they may call you to order directly. Under CO Art. 262 para. 3, the landlord may address the subtenant directly to make them use the flat only as the main tenant is permitted to. What the landlord cannot do is give you notice: there is no contract between you.

Who gives notice to whom depends on the flatshare model. Three variants are common in Switzerland. Check whose name is on your contract and read your row.

Official Form: When Is It Required?

The furnished-room exception that many count on is not in the law. CO Art. 266l covers residential and commercial premises: both sides must give notice in writing, and the landlord must use a form approved by the canton (There is no official English version of the Code of Obligations; wording paraphrased by ConvivaPlus.) Without it, the notice is void under CO Art. 266o, even if everything else is correct.

For subleases the following applies: if the main tenant gives notice to the subtenant, they are the "landlord" and must use the official form, for a furnished room just as for a flat. If the subtenant gives notice to the main tenant, a signed letter is enough, but it must be in writing.

The official form varies by canton. In Zurich it is called "Mitteilung einer Kündigung der vermietenden/verpachtenden Partei von Wohn- und Geschäftsräumen" and is available as a PDF from the Zurich courts. Berne, Basel, Lucerne: every canton has its own form, and the canton finder below links each one. The letter generator further down writes only the cover letter, the form for your canton goes with it.

17 cantons offer their form as a download.

A plain email or WhatsApp message does not do it: the written form requires a handwritten signature (CO Art. 14) or a qualified electronic signature. Send a signed letter by registered mail so you can prove receipt. The matching termination templates are on this page, as Word and PDF.

Termination Letter Generator: Template in 4 Languages

A registered letter that is never collected still counts as delivered. If no one is home to take it, a collection slip goes into the letterbox. From then on, the notice counts as received as soon as it can be collected at the post office: on the day of the slip if the recipient can be expected to collect it straight away, otherwise as a rule the following day (BGE 140 III 244 consid. 5.1). Leaving the letter at the post office therefore does not delay the notice. A special rule with a seven-day collection period applies only to rent increases and payment reminders (CO Art. 269d and 257d).

If you give notice as the main tenant, your letter is only half the termination: the cantonal form belongs with it, for a furnished room just as for a flat. The generator below builds your letter from your details, the termination date and the handover date, in German, French, Italian or English, to copy or as a PDF.

Templates for standard tenancies, employment contracts and insurance are on our termination letter hub page.

Cantonal Specifics: Zurich, Berne, Geneva & More

One day late costs up to 6 months' rent in Zug, at most 2 in Appenzell Ausserrhoden. No federal law mentions 31 March: for flats, CO Art. 266c refers to the locally customary date and only where there is no local custom to the end of a three-month rental period (There is no official English version of the Code of Obligations; wording paraphrased by ConvivaPlus.) The date that can decide half a year's rent is not written in any article, but in local custom.

Miss 30 September in Zug and you pay 6 more months. In Appenzell Ausserrhoden you wait at most 2 months, because every month-end counts there except the end of December. The column “How long you keep paying if you miss the date” in the canton finder below shows it for every place where the date is officially set.

In Zurich the conciliation authority for tenancy matters sits at the district court, and the official termination form is provided by the Zurich courts (in German). The conciliation authority tells you the customary date for your municipality. Where a canton fixes it officially, it is known: in Zug and Obwalden the dates are 31 March, 30 June and 30 September, and Appenzell Ausserrhoden allows any month-end except 31 December.

The canton of Lucerne has no customary date, so the end of a three-month tenancy period applies (CO Art. 266c). In Vaud conciliation runs through the district prefecture, and in Lausanne, if the lease is silent, the dates are 1 April, 1 July and 1 October. In Geneva the Commission de conciliation en matière de baux et loyers is competent.

For Berne, Basel and every other canton the principle is the same: what counts is the custom where the flat is located, and a date agreed in the contract takes precedence (CO Art. 266a). The conciliation authority where the flat is located will tell you the date for your municipality. The Tenants' Association also advises on subletting.

The 5 Most Common Pitfalls When Terminating a Sublease

Airbnb without permission is not yet grounds for eviction on 30 days' notice. It only becomes so if you carry on after the written warning. Under CO Art. 257f para. 3, the warning comes first: only a tenant who persists afterwards risks extraordinary termination, with 30 days' notice to the end of a month (There is no official English version of the Code of Obligations; wording paraphrased by ConvivaPlus.) A Geneva tenant had offered her flat on Airbnb for more than a year without consent and stopped a few days after the warning. The termination did not stand before the Federal Supreme Court (4A_140/2019). Ordinary termination with notice remains open to the landlord all the same.

1. The cash deposit. The law does not provide for it: under CO Art. 257e, a cash deposit must be placed by the landlord (in a sublet, the main tenant) in a savings or deposit account at a bank in the tenant's name, and for residential premises it may not exceed three months' rent. Without a receipt there will be a dispute: your canton's conciliation authority can help free of charge.

2. Wrong notice period. The room is furnished, but the subtenant gives 3 months' notice. Or the reverse: unfurnished, but only 2 weeks' notice observed. Both cost you: too long wastes weeks, too short pushes back your move-out. The calculator above works out the deadline.

3. No written contract. Verbal sublease agreements are valid but almost impossible to prove in a dispute. Without a contract, it is often not even clear whether the room qualifies as "furnished". Tip: draw up a written contract retrospectively if necessary.

4. Notice given to the wrong person. In a sublease, your notice goes to the main tenant, not the landlord. In a joint tenancy, you all give notice together to the landlord, and the landlord must give notice to every tenant.

5. Forgotten landlord's consent. Under CO Art. 262, the main tenant requires the landlord's consent for subletting. Without this, the main tenant risks termination of their own tenancy agreement. This problem often only becomes apparent when the subtenant gives notice.

The ConvivaPlus Sublet Notice-Period Matrix maps all six common flatshare and sublet scenarios (main tenant→subtenant, subtenant→main tenant, 3-person flatshare, furnished room, couple separation, commercial sublet) to the applicable notice period under CO Art. 266c/d/e. You see at a glance which of the three periods, 2 weeks, 3 months or 6 months, applies to your specific situation, instead of digging through twelve articles of law.

Methodology: the matrix's notice periods come directly from the Code of Obligations (CO Art. 262, 266a–266o, 272–273c), each row with its article, checked against the official wording on fedlex (version of 1 January 2026). The cantonal dates in the finder come from our own dataset: per canton with an official source and check date, wherever the date is officially set.

Rights and Obligations: What Applies After Termination

Even a furnished room in a flatshare can be extended. The subtenant can request an extension if ending the lease would cause them or their family hardship not justified by the landlord's interests (CO Art. 272). It is excluded only in the cases listed in CO Art. 272a, such as rent arrears; there is no exception there for furnished rooms.

The extension ends at the latest with your main tenant's lease. Under CO Art. 273b, a sublease can only be extended for the duration of the main lease (There is no official English version of the Code of Obligations; wording paraphrased by ConvivaPlus.) The same article protects you the other way round if the sublet is only a pretext: where its main purpose is to get around the protection against termination, the subtenant enjoys that protection regardless of the main lease.

After giving notice, you must return the room in the same condition as when you took it over, normal wear and tear excepted. This is precisely where most conflicts arise: at the handover. A handover and return protocol is therefore strongly recommended.

The main tenant may not simply lock out the subtenant or change the locks, even after the notice period has expired. Only a court can have the room vacated: through an eviction request, in clear cases in the fast-track procedure under Art. 257 CPC.

In the case of unjustified termination, the subtenant can challenge it at the conciliation authority within 30 days. To challenge a notice or request an extension, conciliation is mandatory; the court only comes after it. You can find all further templates and model letters in the termination letter hub.