Effective 1 January 2023, the revised Swiss Code of Obligations (CO) provides inter alia for certain new (and more stringent) duties, placed upon the members of the board of directors, regarding the financial condition of a Swiss Corporation (art. 725 et seq. CO). Directors will have to pay close attention to any threat of insolvency (illiquidity) and comply with short and non-extendable deadlines (90 days) when, in cases of over-indebtedness, pursuing restructuring measures in order to avoid filing for solvency proceedings.

1.1 Are there international treaties and/or cross-border instruments applicable?

The restructuring Q&A provides a comprehensive overview of some of the key points of law and practice of restructuring in Switzerland.

1.1 What formal insolvency proceedings are available in Switzerland? 

Contents

Das Kreisschreiben Nr. 5 von 2004 (KS 5 - Umstrukturierungen) der Eidgenssischen Steuerverwaltung (ESTV) wurde nach 18 Jahren berarbeitet und durch das neue Kreisschreiben Nr. 5a (KS 5a) ersetzt, welches per 1. Februar 2022 in Kraft trat. Es regelt auf Bundesebene die Steuerfolgen bei Umstrukturierungen von Personenunternehmungen und juristischen Personen.

Circular Letter No. 5 of 2004 (CL 5 - Restructuring) of the Swiss Federal Tax Administration (FTA) was revised after 18 years and replaced by the new Circular Letter No. 5a (CL 5a), which came into force on 1 February 2022. It regulates at the federal level the tax consequences in the case of restructurings of partnerships and legal entities.

La circulaire n 5 de 2004 (C 5 - Restructurations) de l'Administration fdrale des contributions (AFC) a t remanie aprs 18 ans et remplace par la nouvelle circulaire n 5a (C 5a), qui est entre en vigueur le 1er fvrier 2022. Elle rgle au niveau fdral les consquences fiscales des restructurations d'entreprises de personnes et de personnes morales.

The new company law, which will come into force on January 1, 2023, provides for numerous adjustments and innovations regarding capital loss, over-indebtedness and (in)solvency. In this article of our blog series on the new company law, we shed light on what will have to be taken into account.

Monitoring liquidity

A foreign bankruptcy or insolvency decree has no effects on the debtor’s Swiss assets and on court proceedings against the debtor in Switzerland and a foreign bankruptcy administrator must not act on Swiss soil unless the foreign decree is formally recognized by a Swiss court. Such recognition may be initiated by the foreign bankruptcy administration, any creditor or the debtor itself. This three-step guide describes how a foreign bankruptcy decree can be recognized in Switzerland.

Luc Defferrard and Tervel Stoyanov, Walder Wyss Ltd

This is an extract from the 2022 edition of GRR's Europe, Middle East and Africa Restructuring Review. The whole publication is available here.

In summary