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In this article, I explain how the landlord can proceed if the tenant does not pay his rent.
Payment of rent, local custom in Geneva
According to the general terms and conditions, rules and customs in the rental sector applied in the canton of Geneva, the rent, the heating account payments and the other accessory charges must be paid monthly in advance to the landlord's account.
Reminder fees of at least CHF 30.00 plus VAT may be charged to the tenant for each justified reminder or notice of default.
1st reminder
If the landlord notices that the rent is not paid on time, he sends the tenant a reminder. In my opinion, it would be excessive to immediately send a reminder with threats to a tenant who has previously always paid the rent on time. It can happen that a tenant has not renewed a standing order or has simply forgotten to pay the rent, or that he has not entered a bank order correctly.
2nd reminder
If the landlord has not collected the amount owed despite a first reminder, he can send a second reminder with or without a threat of termination.
Reminder with threat of termination
The landlord should not wait too long to send the tenant a reminder with a threat to demand the quarterly advance payment and a reminder with a threat of termination. The procedures are lengthy and time is running out. The longer he waits, the greater the loss if he cannot collect the arrears.
Reminder letter to threaten quarterly advance payments
The landlord sets the tenant a deadline for payment of 10 days and threatens him that if this deadline expires without payment, he will demand quarterly payments in advance from the following month. If the payment has not been made after the deadline, the landlord writes to the tenant that he will now claim the quarterly advance payments of rent and accessory charges.
Reminder with threat of termination
Rental agreement for residential or commercial premises
Pursuant to Art. 257 d of the Swiss Code of Obligations, the landlord sets the tenant a payment deadline of 30 days in writing and threatens that if the deadline set expires unused, the tenancy will be terminated with 30 days' notice to the end of a month. In the case of married or registred partnered couples renting a family dewelling, the reminder with threat of termination must be sent to each partner in a separate envelope.
Other tenancy agreements (parking spaces, etc.)
For other tenancy agreements, the payment period is at least ten days and in the event of non-payment within the time limit, the landlord may terminate the contract with immediate effect.
Early extraordinary termination of lease
Extraordinary notice of termination must be served on the tenant using the official form "Avis de résiliation du bail en cas de mise en demeure" (notice of termination of lease in case of threat of termination) approved by the Geneva State Council. In the case of married or registred partnered couples renting a family dwelling, the notice of termination must be sent to each spouse by separate letter.
Evacuation procedure for non-payment
If the tenant does not return the premises at the end of the lease, the landlord can initiate eviction proceedings for non-payment, direct enforcement and a request for payment. Under the Swiss Code of Civil Procedure, if the facts are not in dispute or can be proved immediately and the legal situation is clear, summary procedure is admissible and conciliation is not required. In this case, the lawyer or qualified property manager sends the evacuation request to the Geneva Rent Court (Tribunal des baux et loyers).
Summons from the rental court
The rental court orders the parties to appear in person. The tenant may produce receipts for the payment of rent.
Art. 30 of the Law on the Application of the Swiss Civil Code and Other Federal Laws in Civil Matters (LAAC), procedure in case of evacuation of a dwelling, Geneva law LAAC doesn't existe in English, translation from French to English with DeepL without guarantee:
"1. When it hears a tenant's request for evacuation, the Tribunal des baux et loyers shall order, within the limits of Article 254 of the Code of Civil Procedure of 19 December 2008, the personal appearance of the parties. It shall undertake all useful conciliation measures, in particular to encourage the conclusion of agreements to make up the arrears and to put the tenant on probation with a view to withdrawing the notice of termination.
2. He may, with the agreement of the parties, reconvene them in the presence of representatives of the housing department and representatives of the social services.
3. When it is called upon to rule on the enforcement of a judgment to evacuate a dwelling, it shall sit in the presence of its representatives.
4. After hearing them and the parties, it may, on humanitarian grounds, stay the execution of the eviction judgment to the extent necessary to enable the tenant or tenant-tenant to be rehoused.
5. In the latter case, the law on the responsibility of the State and the communes of 24 February 1989 shall apply. The right of recourse of the State against the tenant or tenant-keeper for sums paid by the State is reserved.
It is therefore the tenancy court that decides, and on the express request of a party it can itself directly order enforcement measures.
Enforcement of the evacuation
If the court orders the tenant to vacate his or her dwelling immediately and the tenant does not comply with the judgment, a bailiff will take over the enforcement.
Debt enforcement procedure
Parallel to the evacuation proceedings, the landlord can initiate debt enforcement procedure against the tenant.
Landlord's special lien (business premises)
If the tenant rents a business premises, the landlord may additionally assert the special lien as security for rent for the previous year and for the current six-months period. The landlord has a special lien applies on chattels located on the leased premises and either used as fixtures or required for the use of the premises.
The landlord’s special lien also extends to property brought onto the premises by a sub-tenant to the extent that he has not paid his rent.
Goods not subject to attachment by creditors of the tenant are not subject to the lien.
If the tenant intends to remove the objects located in the rented premises, the landlord may, with the assistance of the competent authority, retain such objects as are required to secure his claim. Objects removed surreptitiously or by force may be returned to the rented premises with police assistance within ten days of their removal.The landlord of a business premises can therefore request the debt collection office to take the inventory and exercise this right of lien by means of a debt collection for the realisation of a lien.
My recommendations
If you are a landlord, you can reduce the risk by carefully checking the applications of potential tenants before signing a lease.
If you are a tenant with financial problems, contact the property manager as soon as possible to make an agreement to pay off the arrears, and if you cannot make up the arrears, contact the social welfare office, which in Geneva is the Hospice Général.
I hope you never have to face eviction proceedings.
© Author Esther Lauber, Real Estate Trustee with Advanced Federal Diploma of Professional Education and Training, real estate agent, property broker and manager in Carouge Geneva, Geneva, speaks German, French and English
Translated by Esther Lauber from French or German into English and partially translated with DeepL and correction by Esther Lauber, legal terms from federal laws translated by Esther Lauber with the help of the systematic federal law collection (especially the paragraph on Landlord's special lien). In case of doubt, the French version applies to translations of Geneva laws and otherwise the French or German version.
More information that may be of interest to you:
Notice of termination of the lease by the landlord using the official form required in Geneva
Property management - litigation and legal assistance
Termination of the commercial lease