How to file an objection to a payment order in Switzerland

The payment order (commandement de payer) is the first official step in debt enforcement. It is issued by the office des poursuites (debt enforcement office) at a creditor's request, without the creditor having to prove that the claim exists. Receiving a payment order therefore does not mean that you actually owe the sum. The Debt Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act (LP) gives you a simple way to block the procedure: the objection.

The deadline is short and mandatory. The objection must be filed within 10 days of the payment order being served (art. 74 al. 1 LP). The deadline starts to run on the day after the document is handed over. If it expires on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, it is extended to the next working day. Once this deadline has passed, debt enforcement can continue and the creditor can request seizure or bankruptcy. Only an impediment that is not your fault, for example a serious illness, allows you to request restoration of the deadline (art. 33 al. 4 LP).

There are three ways to file an objection. You can declare it orally to the officer or postal worker who hands you the payment order, who records it on the debtor's copy. You can also declare it orally at the counter of the debt enforcement office, or send it a letter within the deadline. A registered letter stating the debt enforcement number remains the safest option, because it gives you proof of sending. Even if you have already objected orally, a written confirmation avoids any dispute. On request, the office will give you a free certificate confirming your objection (art. 74 al. 3 LP).

You do not need to give reasons for your objection (art. 75 al. 1 LP). A simple statement such as "je fais opposition" (I object) is enough. If you only dispute part of the amount, you must state the disputed amount precisely; otherwise the objection applies to the full amount (art. 74 al. 2 LP). If in doubt, a full objection is generally preferable. The only notable exception: if you intend to dispute that you have come into new assets after a bankruptcy, you must say so expressly (art. 75 al. 2 LP).

The objection suspends the debt enforcement (art. 78 LP). It is then up to the creditor to act. If the creditor has an enforceable judgment, they can ask the court for definitive removal of the objection (mainlevée définitive) (art. 80 LP). If they hold an acknowledgement of debt signed by you, they can request provisional removal of the objection (mainlevée provisoire) (art. 82 LP). You then have 20 days to bring an action for a declaration of non-indebtedness (art. 83 al. 2 LP). Without a title of this kind, the creditor must bring an ordinary action for recognition of the debt before the civil court (art. 79 LP). The right to request continuation of the debt enforcement lapses, in principle, one year after the payment order was served (art. 88 al. 2 LP).

An unjustified debt enforcement remains visible on your extract from the debt enforcement register, which can cause problems when you are looking for a home or a job. Since 2019, you can ask the office, no earlier than three months after the payment order was served, to stop disclosing the debt enforcement to third parties (art. 8a al. 3 let. d LP). The office then gives the creditor 20 days to prove that they have started proceedings to have the objection set aside. If they do not, the debt enforcement no longer appears on extracts requested by third parties.

Filing the objection itself costs you nothing. The costs of the payment order are advanced by the creditor (art. 68 LP) and are only charged to you if the claim is ultimately recognised. In the event of mainlevée proceedings or a lawsuit, court costs depend on the outcome of the dispute and on the canton.

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