Law & inheritance
Disclaiming an Inheritance (Erbschaft ausschlagen)
Also known as: Erbschaft ausschlagen · Ausschlagung · renouncing an inheritance · refusing an inheritance Switzerland
In Switzerland heirs have three months to disclaim an inheritance (Erbschaft ausschlagen) so that they are not personally liable for the deceased's debts. Anyone who sells estate items or has the property cleared before that deadline may be deemed to have accepted the inheritance by implication — and loses the right to disclaim.
The three-month deadline
The deadline is three months. For statutory heirs it starts when they learn of the death; for heirs named in a will, when they receive official notification. The disclaimer is made by declaration to the competent authority — in many cantons the district court (Bezirksgericht) or the municipality.
If the deadline passes unused, the inheritance counts as accepted — with all its assets and all its debts. Where an estate is over-indebted, the heirs are then liable with their own personal assets.
The trap: interfering with the estate
This is the point that matters most for clearances. Anyone who interferes with the estate — taking items away, selling them, giving them away or arranging a clearance — may thereby accept the inheritance by conduct and lose the right to disclaim it.
Purely protective measures are allowed: locking the apartment, disposing of perishable food, looking after a pet, taking in the post. A full clearance is no longer a protective measure.
The public inventory as a middle path
If it is unclear whether the estate is over-indebted, an heir can request a public inventory (öffentliches Inventar) instead of disclaiming outright. The authority then draws up a statement of all assets and liabilities, and the heirs can decide afterwards knowing where they stand. This request is also subject to a deadline — usually one month.
A case from our work
After their father's death, two sons have his apartment cleared and sell a motorcycle in the process. Two months later creditors come forward with claims of CHF 78,000. Disclaiming is no longer possible, because by selling they disposed of estate property. Had they merely secured the apartment and requested a public inventory first, the option to disclaim would have stayed open.
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