Can I buy and rent out a holiday home in Switzerland as a person abroad?

Who counts as a person abroad?

The Federal Act on the Acquisition of Real Estate by Persons Abroad (BewG, “Lex Koller”) requires persons abroad to obtain a permit from the canton (Art. 2 para. 1 BewG). Persons abroad include (Art. 5 para. 1 BewG):

• citizens of EU or EFTA states without a lawful and actual residence in Switzerland,
• citizens of other countries who do not have the right to settle in Switzerland,
• companies based abroad or Swiss companies controlled by persons abroad.

Swiss citizens are never persons abroad, even if they live abroad. A permit is also not required, for example, if you buy the property as your main residence at your place of residence (Art. 2 para. 2 let. b BewG), or if you are a legal heir or a close relative of the seller (Art. 7 BewG).

When can you get a permit for a holiday home?

• The canton must provide for this by law, and the property must be in a place designated by the canton to promote tourism (Art. 9 para. 2 and 3 BewG).
• The permit counts towards the canton’s annual quota. A maximum of 1,500 units a year are allowed across Switzerland (Art. 11 BewG, Art. 9 BewV).
• The net living area must generally not exceed 200 m². Outside condominium ownership, the plot must generally not exceed 1,000 m² (Art. 10 BewV).
• If you, your spouse or registered partner, or a child under 18 already owns such a property, you must sell it first (Art. 11 para. 1 BewV).
• Buying a holiday home whose purchase was already authorised for the seller does not currently count towards the quota (Art. 9 para. 4 let. a BewG).

Cantons and municipalities can impose further restrictions, such as a ban on permits or a quota (Art. 13 BewG).

Can I rent out an authorised holiday home?

Yes, but with restrictions. The permit comes with conditions that are recorded in the land register (Art. 14 BewG). These generally include (Art. 11 para. 2 BewV):

• the requirement to use the property continuously for the purpose for which the purchase was authorised, and to obtain permission for any change of use (let. a),
• for holiday homes, a ban on renting them out all year round (let. f).

This does not rule out renting to holidaymakers for part of the year. The BewV does not specify how many weeks you can rent out the property; the condition in your permit applies. The permitting authority checks that you comply (Art. 11 para. 5 BewV). A condition can be revoked for compelling reasons if your circumstances change so that it becomes impossible or unreasonable to comply with it (Art. 14 para. 4 BewG, Art. 11 para. 4 BewV).

Buying a property solely to rent it out is not an exception: commercial letting of residential property that is not part of a hotel or aparthotel does not constitute a permanent establishment (Art. 3 BewV). Separate rules apply to units in aparthotels: at least 65 per cent of the co-ownership shares must be permanently operated as a hotel (Art. 10 BewG).

What does the Federal Council want to change?

On 15 April 2026, the Federal Council opened a consultation on revising the Lex Koller. It ran until 15 July 2026. For holiday homes, it proposes:

• lower annual quotas for the cantons,
• every purchase by a person abroad should count towards the quota, including resales from one person abroad to another,
• these resales should once again require a permit.

There is not yet a dispatch to Parliament. The current law still applies.

What differs between the cantons?

The cantons decide whether and where persons abroad can buy holiday homes: they designate the places, receive their quota and can impose bans (Art. 9, 11 and 13 BewG). The largest annual quotas are in Valais with 330, Graubünden with 290, Ticino with 195, Vaud with 175 and Bern with 140 units. Cantons such as Zurich, Zug, Basel-Stadt and Geneva have no quota at all (Appendix 1 BewV). The Second Homes Act also applies in municipalities where more than 20 per cent of homes are second homes. The Canton of Valais has published a fact sheet on the conditions for holiday homes.

A short summary, not legal advice. The linked official source and your municipality’s rules prevail.