Enforcement hub

Where a Switzerland judgment can be enforced

This page maps enforcement routes for a judgment obtained in Switzerland, depending on where the debtor or the assets sit. It does not name the competent authority for any given route; that is fixed by the applicable procedural rule and is checked case by case. It covers the treaty basis, the limitation period on the underlying claim, and the security a foreign claimant may be asked to post in Swiss proceedings.

Index

Enforcement toward EU member states runs through the Lugano Convention 2007, the main route from Switzerland outward [N020]. Switzerland is not listed among the contracting parties to the Hague 2019 Judgments Convention, so that treaty is not a route from a Swiss judgment at present [N131].

A right confirmed by a judgment carries a ten-year limitation period, and a fresh period starts running from the date the judgment becomes final [N505]. Where the debtor has a foreign domicile, Swiss law allows attachment of assets located in Switzerland, and an application for exequatur can be filed together with the attachment request [N508]. A claimant without domicile or seat in Switzerland can be required to post security for the defendant's costs if the defendant asks [N507]. Documents for use abroad from Switzerland fall under the Apostille Convention, subject to the reservation Switzerland has entered [N404].

For the reverse direction, see enforcing a foreign judgment in Switzerland. For the underlying refusal that usually triggers this question, see non-enforcement of a judgment (O8), and its jurisdiction-specific variant at payment refusal in Switzerland. Asset type changes the route even within the same judgment: see how this plays out for crypto and platform accounts and for foreign real estate. The underlying recognition mechanics are described in cross-border recognition and enforcement, and the jurisdiction profile sits at Switzerland. The full hub is at enforcement.