Debt collection enforcement
What is debt collection enforcement and how is it initiated?
Should a monetary debt remain unpaid despite dunning, Swiss law offers the creditor the possibility of validating this debt within a framework of legally prescribed, structured steps (so-called debt collection enforcement procedure). This is based on the “debt enforcement and bankruptcy act” (Schuldbetreibungs- und Konkursgesetz, or SchKG), which describes in detail the individual steps and rules of debt collection with the help of the available institutions and/or authorities (collection enforcement and bankruptcy departments). It is important to note that whether or not a debt is rightful or not is not a matter for the enforcement procedure. This has to be clarified amicably between the parties or, if necessary, through a civil court.
The most important steps in the debt collection enforcement procedure
| Creditor or debt collection office | Collection office / Bankruptcy office | Debtor | Comments |
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| 1.) Submission of collection demand |
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| 2.) Submission of demand to continue |
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| 3a.) Submission of request to sell |
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| 3b.) Submission of bankruptcy demand |
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| 4.) Receipt of certificate of loss |
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Entry in the debt collection register – now what?
The debt collection office at your legal place of residence maintains a debt collection register with relevant status information (so-called debt collection information). If third parties (e.g. landlords, leasing companies, employers) can show they have a rightful interest in such information, they can demand access to the register in order to review a person’s financial situation. This is widely practiced in Switzerland.
Deletion of entry in the debt collection register
Until the legal amendment of the “debt enforcement and bankruptcy act” in 1997, entries in the debt collection register were on no account ever deleted. This meant that unjustified or paid-for collection enforcements always remained accessible in the register. Following the amendment, it is now possible to have entries deleted in justifiable cases. The deletion must however be applied for by the creditor or through a debt collection agency.