With effect from January 1, 2026, comprehensive amendments to the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO) and the Swiss Civil Code (CC) will come into force following a decision by the Federal Council, significantly strengthening the legal position of builders and property buyers. The amendments relate in particular to the law governing contracts for work and services and the purchase of land for new buildings.
1. Mandatory entitlement to free repair
For buildings intended for personal or family use, an unconditional right to free repairs is enshrined in law. This right applies to both:For buildings intended for personal or family use, an unconditional right to free repairs is enshrined in law. This right applies to both:
- in contract law pursuant to Art. 368 para. 2bis revOR, as well as
- in real estate purchase law pursuant to Art. 219a para. 2 revOR,
insofar as these are new buildings – i.e., buildings that are either yet to be constructed or were constructed within the last two years.
A contractual waiver of this right to rectification is excluded.
2. New regulation of complaint periods – now fixed at 60 days
A key component of the revision concerns the notification of defects. Instead of the previous indefinite obligation to notify defects immediately (according to previous case law, usually between seven and ten days), a fixed period of 60 days will apply in future:
- in the case of obvious defects: from delivery of the work or property,
- in the case of hidden defects: from their discovery.
This deadline is mandatory; a contractual reduction is not permitted. The aim is to avoid the frequent loss of claims that has occurred to date as a result of overly short or unclear complaint deadlines.
3. Securing the limitation period
The five-year limitation period for warranty rights in relation to buildings is expressly enshrined in law by the amendment. Contractual reductions to this period will no longer be permitted in future.
4. Relationship to SIA Standard 118
The provisions of SIA Standard 118 fall short of the new legal provisions in one crucial respect. While the standard previously stipulated that defects must be reported at any time within the first two years, but “immediately” thereafter, the statutory 60-day complaint period of the Swiss Code of Obligations will apply to all contracts concluded from 2026 onwards – even if the SIA standard 118 is included in the contract.
5. Clarification regarding substitute security for a registered builder’s lien – interest for 10 year
According to previous practice, substitute security (e.g., a bank guarantee) to replace the registered builder’s lien was only recognized as sufficient if, like a builder’s lien, it also covered default interest for an unlimited period of time. The revision now clarifies in Art. 839 para. 3 of the Swiss Civil Code that substitute security is also considered sufficient if it:
- the amount of the claim and
- default interest for a period of ten years
covers (clear limitation of the liability period).
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written in January 2026 | Lars Dubach, attorney and notary public