Debt enforcement over health-insurance premiums: understand and act
Updated on 17 July 2026
In brief
Unpaid health-insurance premiums are the most common cause of debt-enforcement entries in Switzerland. The law obliges your insurer to act: after a written reminder and a formal demand with a 30-day deadline, it must start enforcement proceedings (Art. 64a KVG). As long as the arrears are not fully paid, you cannot switch insurers. And once paid, the entry does not disappear from your extract: it stays visible for up to five years unless the insurer withdraws it (Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG) — something you request in writing.
A forgotten premium bill, a few difficult months, and the enforcement notice arrives — often faster than for any other debt. It isn't harassment: it's the mechanics of the law. Here is how it works, and above all how to get a clean extract back.
Why health insurers file so quickly
Art. 64a KVG imposes a strict procedure on your insurer: when a premium or cost-sharing amount goes unpaid, it sends a written reminder, then a formal demand with a 30-day payment deadline. If the arrears are not settled in time, the insurer is obliged to start debt-enforcement proceedings — it is not a commercial choice but a legal duty. That is why health-insurance enforcement is so common, even for modest amounts.
While arrears exist, you are tied to your insurer
Another effect of Art. 64a KVG: switching insurers is impossible as long as premiums, cost-sharing amounts, default interest and enforcement costs are not fully paid. If the proceeding ends in a certificate of loss (acte de défaut de biens), the canton takes over 85% of the claim — but the debt does not disappear: you remain the debtor. Since 1 January 2024, however, children who come of age are no longer liable for premiums their parents failed to pay during their minority.
Paying alone does not erase the entry
Many people learn this at the worst moment, while flat-hunting: settling the arrears extinguishes the debt, but the entry stays on the register, visible for up to five years after the proceeding closes (Art. 8a para. 4 SchKG). The insurer has no obligation to withdraw it, and the Federal Supreme Court confirmed that payment alone does not open the non-disclosure route (BGE 147 III 486). Without a step on your side, the entry keeps weighing on your applications.
Cleaning your extract once the premiums are settled
The most effective route is a withdrawal request: once the arrears are paid, you ask the insurer in writing to withdraw the proceeding at the debt-enforcement office (Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG). A withdrawn proceeding is no longer disclosed to third parties. A clear letter recalling the payment and citing the legal basis puts the odds on your side. Failing that, the five-year period remains. And to avoid the next one: contact your insurer at the first difficulty (payment plans are possible) and check your entitlement to cantonal premium subsidies.
Can my insurer stop me from switching?
Yes, as long as the arrears are not fully settled — including premiums, cost-sharing, default interest and enforcement costs (Art. 64a KVG). Once everything is paid, switching becomes possible again at the ordinary dates.
I paid my premiums late: does the entry disappear?
No. It stays visible for up to five years after closure, unless the insurer withdraws it (Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG). Payment alone does not open non-disclosure either (BGE 147 III 486). Hence the value of a written withdrawal request.
Is my adult child liable for our unpaid premiums?
No. Since 1 January 2024, children are no longer liable, once of age, for premiums and cost-sharing amounts their parents failed to pay during their minority.