Rental deposit guarantees in Bern

A landlord in Bern may ask for at most three months' rent as a deposit, and it must be placed in a blocked bank account in the tenant's name (Canton of Bern, civil and criminal courts, checked 21 Oct 2026). Once the tenancy has ended, the tenant can ask the bank to release it if the landlord has started neither debt collection nor conciliation within one year (Canton of Bern, civil and criminal courts, checked 21 Oct 2026).

Deposit disputes go first to the Schlichtungsbehörde Bern-Mittelland at Effingerstrasse 34, 3008 Bern. Telephone advice runs on weekday mornings and afternoons, and walk-in advice on Tuesdays from 9.00 to 11.00 and 15.00 to 17.00 (Canton of Bern, civil and criminal courts, checked 21 Oct 2026). A panel of a chair and two lay judges, one from the landlord side and one from the tenant side, hears tenancy cases, and no court costs are charged in tenancy conciliation (Canton of Bern, civil and criminal courts, checked 21 Oct 2026) (ZPO Art. 113, checked 21 Oct 2026). Consultations are held in German, and a person who needs an interpreter brings one (Canton of Bern, civil and criminal courts, checked 21 Oct 2026).

The debt-collection extract that landlords and deposit guarantee providers typically ask for needs an ID document, and an extract about a third person also needs proof of interest such as an invoice or a contract (Canton of Bern, debt-enforcement and bankruptcy offices, checked 21 Oct 2026).

Foreign nationals register at the Einwohnerdienste, Migration und Fremdenpolizei (EMF) at Predigergasse 5, whose counter is open Monday to Friday from 10.00 to 16.00 and until 18.00 on Thursdays (City of Bern, checked 21 Oct 2026). Registration is due within 14 days of arrival, by web form for EU/EFTA citizens and by posted paper form for other nationals (bern.ch, checked 21 Oct 2026). The cantonal tariff lists CHF 25 for entering the registration (Canton of Bern, checked 21 Oct 2026). See registering at your commune.