Housing · rules

The rent deposit in Geneva

Default: median rent of a 3-room home for a new tenant (OCSTAT 2025).

3 months

legal maximum for a homeSource: Swiss Code of Obligations, art. 257e (Fedlex)

1 year

after the lease ends with no claim from the landlord: the tenant can recover the depositSource: Swiss Code of Obligations, art. 257e (Fedlex)

4'827 CHF

maximum deposit for a 3-room home at the median rent (new tenant)Source: OCSTAT 2025 (in French)

Frequently asked questions

What is the maximum rent deposit?

For a home, the landlord cannot require security above three months' rent (art. 257e para. 2 CO).

Where is a cash deposit held?

In a savings or deposit account in the tenant's name at a bank (art. 257e para. 1 CO).

When is the deposit released?

With both parties' agreement, or on the basis of an unopposed payment order or an enforceable judgment. If the landlord has made no claim within a year of the end of the lease, the tenant can ask the bank to release it (art. 257e para. 3 CO).

Renting in Geneva

Sources

General information from the official sources cited. It does not replace the decision of the competent authority.