Tenancy Termination - Zürich

Very Important – stay on the safe side!

To be on the safe side, do not terminate your old tenancy until you have received definitive written confirmation of your new accommodation. You must terminate your tenancy in writing. All you have to do is send a simple, signed letter to the management agency or landlord by registered mail. Make sure that you observe the notice period and termination date.

Notice period

The notice period is usually specified in the rental contract. If there is no contractually agreed notice period, a period of three months applies for flats and single-family properties.

Termination date Possible termination dates are also specified in the rental contract. If no dates have been agreed, the standard local termination dates shall apply. In the city of Zurich, there are only two possible termination dates in the year: 31 March and 30 September. Some cantons also offer 30 June as an additional termination date, while others allow tenancies to be terminated at the end of any month except December.

Ordinary termination

Ordinary termination is when you adhere to the notice period and termination date stated in the rental contract. Please note that your notice of termination must be received by the property owner or manager before the notice period expires. Information leaflets and sample letters for ordinary termination are available from the Swiss Tenants’ Association (German).

Extraordinary termination

Extraordinary termination occurs when you wish to terminate your tenancy outside of the specified notice period and/or irrespective of the ordinary termination date. In this case, you must suggest a suitable replacement tenant to the landlord. This new tenant must be financially solvent and prepared to take over the rental contract under the same conditions. The landlord also needs to be given enough time to consider and agree to the suggested new tenant - one month will usually suffice. Once a new tenant has signed the new rental contract, you – as the current tenant – shall be released from your payment obligation from the date on which the new tenant starts paying rent. Also in this case, it is important to terminate your tenancy in writing. If you do not find a suitable new tenant, your tenancy shall be terminated with effect from the next termination date, which means that you will be obliged to continue paying rent until that date. Step-by-step instructions on how to undertake an extraordinary termination are available from the Swiss Tenants’ Association (German). Züriclean is a leading, professional cleaning company in Switzerland with English-speaking staff. We do handover cleanings, final cleanings, end-of-tenancy cleanings, end-of-lease cleanings, with a handover guarantee and we stay with you at the handover. We help you also for the German translation at the handover. Please visit our homepage for furthur informations.

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