Leaving Switzerland from Zurich: apartment & household checklist
When you move abroad, three deadlines collide: your lease, your deregistration and the date the apartment must be empty. This timeline keeps them in order.
Last reviewed: 27 September 2026
3+ months before
- Check your lease. For apartments, the statutory notice is three months to a locally customary termination date (Art. 266c OR); your contract may set longer periods.
- Leaving earlier? You can return the apartment before the notice period ends if you propose a solvent replacement tenant who is acceptable to the landlord and willing to take over the lease on the same terms (Art. 264 OR).
- Decide what goes with you, what you sell and what gets cleared.
4–6 weeks before
- Send photos of good furniture to second-hand shops – pick-up slots can take a couple of weeks.
- Get two or three quotes if you want a clearance company; compare what's included (disposal, cleaning, VAT).
- Book final cleaning, ideally with a handover guarantee.
2–4 weeks before
- Reserve a parking space for the van if needed: at least 7 working days ahead in a blue zone, 3 in a white zone.
- Deregistration: in the City of Zurich you can report your departure abroad at the earliest 30 days before you leave – online via the city's contact form, with a signed deregistration declaration.
- Contact the city tax office: when you move abroad, your tax liability in Zurich ends and all taxes, including provisional ones, become due.
Last week
- Clearance: empty every room including cellar and attic. Electronics go back to shops for free.
- Cleaning, then the handover with the landlord. Read the handover report carefully before signing.
- Hand over all keys and get a written confirmation.
After moving out
- If you haven't yet: report your departure within 14 days of moving out.
- A deregistration confirmation costs CHF 20. The city also issues residence certificates, useful for closing contracts abroad.
The clearance itself
Where furniture can go, what the city charges and what clearance companies cost is covered in our guide to apartment clearance in Zurich.