What is a domicile address?
A domicile address is the address at which your company can be reached at its registered office. It is entered in the commercial register as the legal domicile.
The legal domicile must consist of a street, house number, postal code, and town. It can either be the company's own address or the address of another person or company, i.e., a c/o-address (Art. 117 Abs. 2 HRegV).
The difference between the registered office and the domicile address is important.
Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
Registered office | The political municipality in which your company is legally located |
Domicile address | The specific address within this municipality at which your company can be reached |
Further address | An additional address, such as a P.O. Box or liquidation address, which does not replace the legal domicile |
The registered office is therefore not registered with a street and house number, but as a municipality. The domicile address is the specific address where the company can be reached at this registered office (Art. 117 Abs. 1 HRegV and Art. 117 Abs. 2 HRegV).
When do founders need a domicile address?
You need a domicile address as soon as your company is entered in the commercial register. Without a legal domicile, the commercial register cannot carry out the entry properly.
This applies in particular to:
LLC: Upon formation, the registered office and the legal domicile are registered (Art. 73 Abs. 1 lit. c HRegV).
AG: In the case of a stock corporation, too, the registered office and the legal domicile are part of the commercial register entry (Art. 45 Abs. 1 lit. c HRegV).
Sole proprietorship: In the case of sole proprietorships, the registered office and the legal domicile are also registered (Art. 38 lit. b HRegV).
Branch offices: They also require a registered office and a legal domicile (Art. 110 Abs. 1 lit. b HRegV and Art. 114 Abs. 1 lit. c HRegV).
In practical terms, for founders this means: Before you prepare the registration, you must know which address you are allowed to use as your domicile address. This address appears in the commercial register and is therefore publicly visible.
Is a private home address sufficient?
Yes, a private home address can serve as a domicile address if your company can actually be reached there and you are authorized to use the address.
This is obvious at the beginning for many sole proprietorships and small LLCs. Nevertheless, you should check three points beforehand:
Lease agreement: Does your lease agreement permit commercial use?
Condominium ownership or house rules: Are there restrictions on business operations, customer traffic, or signage?
Privacy: The commercial register address is publicly accessible.
Legally, the decisive factor is not whether you have daily customer appointments there. What matters is that your company can be reached at this address and that deliveries can be made. A mere mailbox without actual organizational accessibility is not sufficient as a legal domicile.
What is a c/o address?
A c/o address means that your company has its legal domicile with another person or business. This person or business is often called the domicile holder.
Typical examples are:
a fiduciary office
a law firm
a coworking provider with a domicile service
another company
in certain cases, a private individual
If your company uses a c/o address, a declaration from the domicile holder must be submitted with the registration in the commercial register. This confirms that your company is granted a legal domicile at this address (Art. 117 Abs. 3 HRegV).
In the case of the stock corporation, this declaration is explicitly required as a supporting document for formation if a c/o address is used (Art. 43 Abs. 1 lit. g HRegV). The same applies to the LLC according to the corresponding formation provision (Art. 71 Abs. 1 lit. h HRegV).
When does a c/o address make sense?
A c/o address makes particular sense if your company does not have its own offices at its registered office. This is often the case for founders.
A c/o address may be suitable if you:
work remotely
do not want to open your own office yet
do not want to publish your private residential address
want to establish your business in another canton or municipality
want administrative mail to be received professionally
are founding a Swiss company from abroad and need a reachable address in Switzerland
However, the c/o address is not a mere formality. The Federal Supreme Court emphasizes that the legal domicile is the place where a registered company can actually be reached in its municipality of domicile. Anyone who chooses a c/o address must ensure that mail is received there and forwarded internally (BGer 5A_682/2009 E. 4.2.2).
Is a P.O. Box sufficient as a domicile address?
No. A P.O. Box cannot replace the legal domicile.
The legal domicile must be an address with a street, house number, postal code, and town (Art. 117 Abs. 2 HRegV). Although a P.O. Box address can be registered additionally as a further address, it does not replace the domicile address (Art. 117 Abs. 5 HRegV).
The reason is simple: The legal domicile is intended to make your company physically localizable. It is not just about picking up letters somewhere. Authorities, courts, creditors, customers, and contractual partners should know where your company can be reached at its registered office.
What documents can the commercial register require?
The commercial registry office may require different supporting documents depending on the case.
If you use your own address, the commercial registry office can, in case of doubt, request supporting documents, for example:
Lease agreement
Sublease agreement
Proof of ownership
Confirmation from the landlord
If you use a c/o address, you need a declaration from the domicile holder. This confirms that the domicile holder grants your company a legal domicile (Art. 117 Abs. 3 HRegV).
Particularly important is Art. 117 Abs. 4 HRegV: If circumstances indicate that a registered address is actually a c/o address, even though it was not declared as such, the commercial registry office can request either the declaration from the domicile holder or proof of having an own address. This applies, for example, to cases where many companies are registered at the same address or the address is obviously operated by a service provider.
What happens if the domicile address is lost?
If your company no longer has a valid legal domicile, you should act quickly. A missing domicile address is not a minor administrative flaw.
In the case of a sole proprietorship, the commercial registry office can delete the company from the commercial register after a fruitless request in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (Art. 934a Abs. 1 OR). In the case of a branch office with its principal place of business in Switzerland, the law also provides for deletion if a legal domicile no longer exists (Art. 934a Abs. 2 OR).
In the case of commercial companies such as LLCs or stock corporations, a missing legal domicile can become relevant as a deficiency in organization. The commercial registry office will then request the legal entity to remedy the deficiency. If the deficiency is not remedied within the deadline, it refers the matter to the registry court, which will take the necessary measures (Art. 939 OR).
The significance of the legal domicile is also clearly emphasized in case law: The registered office and the legal domicile are central for physical accessibility and as a connection point for legal consequences (BGE 143 I 328 E. 3.5).
What should founders clarify before registration?
Before registering with the commercial register, you should not organize the domicile address at the very end. It is one of the fundamentals of your foundation.
In particular, check:
Which municipality should be the registered office?
Do you have your own premises?
Do you need a c/o address?
Is mail forwarding set up?
Do you want to make your private address public?
If you need support with the topic of incorporation, Jurata is always happy to help: incorporations.
Frequently asked questions about the domicile address
Can I register my LLC at my home address?
Yes, if the LLC can actually be reached there and you are legally allowed to use the address. In the case of rented apartments, you should check the lease agreement and possible approval requirements.
Must the domicile address be in the same canton as the registered office?
The domicile address must be located at the registered office. Since the registered office is registered as a political municipality, the address must be in that municipality (Art. 117 Abs. 1 HRegV and Art. 117 Abs. 2 HRegV).
Is a domicile address the same as a business address?
Often yes, but not always. The domicile address is the legally relevant address at the registered office. In addition, a company can have other addresses, such as a branch, a warehouse, or an additional mailing address.
Can I change the domicile address later?
Yes. A change of the legal domicile must be registered with the commercial register. If you change from your own premises to a c/o address, you generally need a declaration from the domicile holder.
