Handover and return inventory: protecting your rights as a landlord
At the end of the lease, the tenant must return the property in the condition resulting from its use in accordance with the contract (art. 267 para. 1 CO). The tenant is liable for damage that exceeds normal wear and tear, but not for age-related depreciation. This still has to be proven. The burden of proving the damage lies with the landlord, and the law requires the landlord to give the tenant immediate notice of defects on return, failing which the tenant is released for apparent defects (art. 267a para. 2 CO), hidden defects remaining chargeable provided they are notified immediately after discovery. This guide is written for the landlord who wants a handover and return inventory that holds up before the conciliation authority: what gives it its evidential weight, how to apply depreciation, and how to retain amounts from the rent deposit within the statutory time limit.
Updated 07.2026
The procedure in four steps
- 1Draw up the handover inventory and set the reference condition
The handover inventory sets the reference condition that will make it possible, at the end of the lease, to establish that a defect did not exist when the tenant moved in. Proceed room by room, record each item precisely, and support the written record with dated photographs. Have the document signed by both parties, date it, and give each party a copy. Without this jointly signed record, the burden of proving the damage, which lies with the landlord, becomes very difficult to discharge in practice.
- 2On return, inspect in the tenant's presence and give immediate notice of defects
When the property is returned, the landlord must check its condition and give the tenant immediate notice of any defects for which the tenant is liable (art. 267a para. 1 CO). An apparent defect that is not reported immediately, in practice at the key handover or within two to three working days after it, can no longer be charged to the tenant (art. 267a para. 2 CO). Draw up the return record on the same day, list each defect in it, and have it signed: this dated and signed document is the proof that immediate notice was indeed given.
- 3Distinguish normal wear and tear from damage, then apply depreciation
Wear resulting from use in accordance with the contract and from the passage of time, that is age-related depreciation, remains the landlord's responsibility and cannot be charged. Only damage that exceeds such use is chargeable to the tenant, and only up to the residual value of the item, calculated on the basis of its service life. Reference is made to the applicable joint life-expectancy tables (as a guide, paint and carpets are in the order of ten years). An item whose service life has been reached has a residual value of zero.
- 4Draw up the deposit statement, retain only what is justified, and act within the year
The landlord retains from the rent deposit only the amounts justified by the return record and its itemised claims, supported by residual values. Failing the tenant's agreement, the bank releases the funds to the landlord only on the basis of a court judgment, an uncontested payment order, or an agreement between the parties. Above all, if the landlord has asserted no claim in court or through debt enforcement within one year of the end of the lease, the tenant may demand the return of the deposit (art. 257e para. 3 CO), regardless of the merits of the claim. Keep an eye on this date.
1.The legal weight of the inventory: immediate notice, or the tenant is released
art. 267a paras. 1, 2 and 3 COThe law makes the return of the property a decisive moment. The landlord must check the property and give the tenant immediate notice of any defects for which the tenant is liable. In the absence of immediate notice of apparent defects, the tenant is released from all liability for those defects, even if they are real and were caused by the tenant.
The return record, signed on the day the property is handed back and listing the defects, is precisely the proof that this immediate notice was given. A hidden defect, not detectable on return, remains chargeable to the tenant provided it is notified immediately after its discovery.
2.Normal wear and tear versus damage: depreciation and residual value
art. 267 para. 1 CO · joint life-expectancy tablesThe tenant is liable for damage, not for wear resulting from the passage of time and from use in accordance with the contract. Even where the tenant has genuinely damaged an item, the tenant does not owe the price of a new one: the tenant owes the value the item still had on the day of the damage, its residual value, calculated on the basis of its service life according to the joint life-expectancy tables.
Claiming the price of a new item without deducting depreciation, or charging for a complete renovation for a localised item of damage, is an abusive claim that is systematically reduced in conciliation. If the item's service life has been reached, the residual value is zero and the tenant owes nothing.
3.The sealed and verifiable inventory: reinforced evidence
art. 267 and 267a CO · evidential toolA paper record can be altered after the fact, its date can be disputed, and the landlord's copy may diverge from the tenant's. As soon as a dispute arises, the debate shifts to the integrity and the priority in time of the document.
imoz generates a sealed inventory: a time-stamped content fingerprint is affixed to the document, and a public URL, /verify, lets anyone, with no account, check its integrity and its date. An inventory that has been falsified, altered after the fact, or backdated becomes detectable. The seal proves when the document existed and that it has not been altered; it does not replace the tenant's signature, which alone attests that notice of the defects was given, and comes in addition to an inventory drawn up jointly, not in its place. In this way, the date of the handover inventory and the existence of the return record become provable and difficult to challenge as to their integrity and priority in time.
4.The rent deposit and the one-year time limit
art. 257e para. 3 COThe landlord may not help itself freely from the deposit: it retains only the amounts justified by the return record. Failing an agreement, the bank releases the funds only on the basis of a court judgment, an uncontested payment order, or an agreement between the parties.
Above all, if the landlord has asserted no claim in court or through debt enforcement within one year of the end of the lease, the tenant may demand the return of the deposit. This one-year time limit operates as a cut-off: many strong cases are lost on this date, not on the merits.
Mistakes to avoid
Without a reference condition that is signed, dated and photographed, the landlord has to prove the initial condition of the property years later, with no enforceable record. As the burden of proving the damage lies with the landlord, this almost always ends in the abandonment of the claims in conciliation. Do it systematically, with a copy given to each party.
A visible defect that is not reported immediately, in practice at the key handover or within two to three working days, can no longer be charged to the tenant, even if it is entirely real and was caused by them (art. 267a para. 2 CO). The return record must be drawn up, itemised and signed on the same day: without it, there is no proof of immediate notice, and so the tenant is released.
The tenant owes only the residual value of the damaged item, calculated on the basis of its service life. Claiming the price of a new item, or charging for a complete renovation for a localised item of damage such as repainting an entire room for a single scratch, is an abusive claim that the conciliation authority recalculates and trims back.
The deposit may be retained only up to the amounts justified by the return record. And if the landlord lets one year pass after the end of the lease with no action or debt enforcement, the tenant may demand that the bank return the deposit (art. 257e para. 3 CO), regardless of the merits of the claim. Itemise the amounts and act within the time limit.
Generate a sealed and verifiable inventory
imoz produces your handover and return inventory, room by room, with dated photographs. Each document is sealed: a time-stamped content fingerprint is affixed, and a public URL, /verify, attests to its integrity and its date. Signed by the tenant on the day the property is returned, this record constitutes immediate notice of the defects; the seal further attests to its integrity and its date, without replacing that signature.
Free, no credit card. Priced per active lease. imoz is a tool that produces a verifiable inventory, it is not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Is a handover inventory mandatory in Switzerland?+
The Code of Obligations imposes no particular form and does not make the inventory formally mandatory. In practice, however, it is indispensable for the landlord: the burden of proving damage caused by the tenant lies with the landlord, and without a handover and then a return inventory that are signed and dated, this proof is very hard to provide. A written record signed by both parties, dated and photographed, is the consistent evidential practice.
What happens if there is no handover inventory?+
Without a handover inventory, there is no reference condition to show that a defect found on return did not exist when the tenant moved in. The landlord, who bears the burden of proof, then has to establish the initial condition of the property with no enforceable record. In conciliation, this most often leads to the claims being abandoned, with any doubt benefiting the tenant.
Can I charge the tenant for a complete renovation or the price of a new item?+
No. The tenant owes only the residual value of the damaged item, calculated on the basis of its service life according to the joint life-expectancy tables (art. 267 para. 1 CO). Claiming the price of a new item without deducting depreciation, or charging for the renovation of an entire surface for a localised item of damage, is an abusive claim that is reduced in conciliation. If the service life has been reached, the residual value is zero.
How long do I have to act on the rent deposit?+
Failing the tenant's agreement, the bank releases the funds to the landlord only on the basis of a court judgment, an uncontested payment order, or an agreement between the parties. And if the landlord has asserted no claim in court or through debt enforcement within one year of the end of the lease, the tenant may demand the return of the deposit (art. 257e para. 3 CO), regardless of the strength of the claim. This is a date to watch closely.
Can a signed inventory be challenged?+
Yes: a paper record can be altered after signing, its date can be disputed, and the two parties' copies can diverge. imoz generates a sealed inventory, with a time-stamped content fingerprint and a public URL, /verify, that lets anyone, with no account, check its integrity and its date. Any falsification, alteration after the fact, or backdating becomes detectable, which closes the debate over the integrity and priority in time of the document. The seal, however, only closes the debate over integrity and date: the assessment on the merits, wear or damage, depreciation, attribution of the damage, remains entirely open in conciliation.
This guide describes the general legal framework governing the return of the leased property and the inventory (art. 267, 267a and 257e CO) for information purposes. It does not constitute individual legal advice. The applicable service lives are set out in the joint life-expectancy table in force at the time of the dispute. For a specific matter, consult a tenancy law professional or the competent conciliation authority.