Paying off a debt-enforcement proceeding: does it erase it?
Updated on 11 July 2026
In brief
No. Paying the debt does not make the debt-enforcement proceeding disappear from the extract: it stays there, marked as "settled", until the creditor withdraws it or five years pass after the proceeding closes (Art. 8a para. 4 SchKG). Payment alone does not oblige the creditor to withdraw it, nor is it enough to obtain non-disclosure (Federal Supreme Court decision ATF 147 III 486). For a clean extract, you have to act: ask the creditor for withdrawal, or invoke non-disclosure if you had filed an objection.
It is one of the most stubborn misconceptions: "I pay, so the proceeding disappears". Unfortunately, no. Here is why, and above all what really works to clean up your extract.
Why paying is not enough
The debt-enforcement proceeding is recorded as soon as the payment order (commandement de payer / Zahlungsbefehl) is issued, regardless of what happens next. Paying extinguishes the debt, but the entry itself remains: your extract will show the proceeding as "settled". The creditor has no legal obligation to withdraw it, even once paid (the withdrawal, Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG, depends on their will alone).
Payment does not open the door to non-disclosure
One might think that, after payment, you can ask the office to hide the proceeding. That is not the case: the Federal Supreme Court held that mere payment does not confer a right to non-disclosure (Federal Supreme Court decision ATF 147 III 486). This route is reserved for proceedings subject to an objection that the creditor has not validly pursued.
What really works
Three routes make it possible to clean up the extract. Withdrawal by the creditor: once paid, they no longer have any reason to maintain the proceeding, and a clear request recalling the payment invites them to withdraw it (Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG) — this is the cleanest solution. Non-disclosure: if you had filed an objection and the creditor did not pursue it, the office stops disclosing the proceeding to third parties (Art. 8a para. 3 let. d SchKG). The running out of the deadline: failing that, the proceeding stops being disclosed five years after it closes (Art. 8a para. 4 SchKG).
And the extract, how to obtain it?
You obtain your extract from the debt-enforcement office (office des poursuites) of your place of residence, for a fee set by federal law: 17 CHF (Art. 12a GebV SchKG), 18 CHF by postal or electronic dispatch. It is this document that a landlord or an employer asks you for — hence the importance of it being clean at the moment you need it.
I have paid, why is the proceeding still visible?
Because payment extinguishes the debt but not the entry. The proceeding stays visible as "settled" as long as the creditor does not withdraw it or five years have not passed since it closed.
Is the creditor obliged to withdraw the proceeding after payment?
No. Withdrawal is voluntary (Art. 8a para. 3 let. c SchKG). But once the debt is paid, the proceeding no longer has any reason to exist: a clear request recalling the payment strongly encourages them to withdraw it.
How much does a debt-enforcement extract cost?
17 CHF at the counter, 18 CHF by postal or electronic dispatch (Art. 12a GebV SchKG), regardless of the number of pages.