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Criminal penalties in Switzerland
Checked in October 2026 against the Schweizerisches Strafgesetzbuch (SR 311.0), version of 1 January 2026, on Fedlex.
These are statutory ranges for a first offence, from the least to the most the law allows. A court decides the actual sentence in each case. We read the code in its original language and give the offences in plain English, with the legal term where it helps. For anything that matters, rely on the code itself. Not legal advice.
How Switzerland sets penalties
- A prison term (Freiheitsstrafe) lasts at least three days and at most 20 years, or for life where the law expressly says so (art. 40). Where an article says 'not less than five years', the limits are therefore 5 and 20 years.
- Offences are divided by their penalty. A 'Verbrechen' is punishable with more than three years' prison. A 'Vergehen' is punishable with up to three years' prison or a fine (art. 10).
- Many offences allow a fine (Geldstrafe) instead of prison. A fine is counted in daily rates, and each rate depends on the offender's income. The amounts are not shown.
- The court sets the penalty by the offender's guilt, taking into account the seriousness of the harm or danger to the protected interest, the offender's motives and aims, and their personal circumstances (art. 47).
- The German text is the authoritative one. Drunk driving is in the Road Traffic Act, which we have not read, so it is left out of this table.
Death penalty: No. The death penalty is abolished, and the Federal Constitution (Article 10) forbids it.
Read the Switzerland legal-system profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
First-degree murder
Life imprisonment, or at least 10 years
Mord (murder: an especially unscrupulous killing) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 10 years (up to 20 years if a fixed term is chosen)
- Most
- Life imprisonment (lebenslängliche Freiheitsstrafe)
Mord is a killing by an especially unscrupulous offender: the motive, the purpose or the manner of execution is especially reprehensible.
Second-degree murder
At least 5 years (up to 20 years)
Vorsätzliche Tötung (intentional killing) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 5 years
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Vorsätzliche Tötung, an intentional killing without the particular features of the other homicide offences, is the basic offence and the closest to second-degree murder.
Voluntary manslaughter
Up to 3 years (killing by negligence, or at the victim's request) up to 1 to 10 years (Totschlag)
Fahrlässige Tötung (killing by negligence) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Tötung auf Verlangen (killing at the victim's serious and insistent request, from honourable motives such as compassion) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Kindstötung (a mother killing her child during or just after birth) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Totschlag (killing in an excusable violent emotion or under great mental strain) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 10 years
Totschlag (art. 113) is Switzerland's offence for a killing in an excusable violent emotion or under great mental strain. It is the nearest equivalent of voluntary manslaughter.
Robbery
6 months to 10 years (Raub) up to at least 5 years (life-endangering or cruel)
Raub (theft with violence against a person, a threat of present danger to life or limb, or after making the victim unable to resist) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 6 months
- Most
- 10 years
Raub carrying a firearm or other dangerous weapon (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Raub as a member of a gang, or showing special dangerousness in the way it is done (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 2 years
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Raub that endangers the victim's life, seriously injures them or treats them cruelly (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 5 years
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Burglary
Up to 3 years (Hausfriedensbruch) up to 5 years (Diebstahl), and 6 months to 10 years if by trade or in a gang
Hausfriedensbruch (unlawfully entering a house, flat, closed room or fenced yard, or staying after being told to leave) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
On the complaint of the person entitled.
Diebstahl (taking another's movable thing to appropriate it and enrich oneself unlawfully) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 5 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Diebstahl by trade, as a member of a gang, with a firearm or other dangerous weapon, or otherwise showing special dangerousness (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 6 months
- Most
- 10 years
Switzerland has no offence named 'burglary'. Entering a home, an enclosed room or a fenced yard unlawfully is Hausfriedensbruch (on complaint), and the theft is charged as theft. A professional or gang theft carries a higher scale.
Arson
At least 1 year (Brandstiftung), at least 3 years where life is endangered knowingly
Fahrlässige Verursachung einer Feuersbrunst (causing a fire by negligence) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 1 year
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Up to 3 years or a fine if life or limb is endangered by negligence (art. 222(2)).
Brandstiftung (intentionally causing a fire to another's detriment or creating a public danger) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Brandstiftung where the offender knowingly endangers the life and limb of people (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 3 years
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Where only slight damage results, Switzerland allows up to 3 years or a fine (art. 221(3)).
Aggravated assault
Up to 3 years or a fine (einfache Körperverletzung) up to 1 to 10 years (schwere Körperverletzung)
Einfache Körperverletzung (simple bodily harm: harming a person's body or health in another way) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Prosecuted on complaint, but ex officio where the offender used poison, a weapon or a dangerous object (art. 123(2)).
Schwere Körperverletzung (grievous bodily harm: endangering life, mutilation, permanent incapacity, or lasting serious disfigurement) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 10 years
Rape and sexual assault
Up to 3 years (sexual assault) up to 1 to 10 years (rape by coercion), and at least 3 years if cruel or armed
Sexueller Übergriff (a sexual act against a person's will) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 3 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Sexuelle Nötigung (coercing a sexual act by threat, violence or psychological pressure) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 10 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Vergewaltigung (intercourse or a similar penetrating act against a person's will) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 5 years
Vergewaltigung by coercion (threat, violence, psychological pressure, or making the person unable to resist) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 10 years
Vergewaltigung by coercion, committed cruelly or with a dangerous weapon or object (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 3 years
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Since the 2024 reform, Swiss law treats a sexual act or intercourse 'against a person's will' as an offence, without requiring force. Coercion by threat, violence, psychological pressure or making the person unable to resist carries a higher scale.
Kidnapping
Up to 5 years or a fine (Freiheitsberaubung) up to life (hostage-taking in the gravest cases)
Freiheitsberaubung und Entführung (unlawfully arresting or holding a person, or abducting them) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 5 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
The same where a person who cannot judge or resist, or is under 16, is abducted.
Qualifizierte Freiheitsberaubung (to obtain a ransom, with cruel treatment, lasting more than ten days, or seriously endangering the victim's health) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
Geiselnahme (hostage-taking: depriving a person of liberty to compel a third party to act, omit or endure) (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- 1 year
- Most
- 20 years (the longest fixed term, art. 40)
At least 3 years if the offender threatens to kill, seriously injure or treat the victim cruelly. Life imprisonment is possible in especially grave cases, namely where many people are affected.
Embezzlement
Up to 5 years or a fine (Veruntreuung) up to 10 years (by an official, guardian or professional)
Veruntreuung (appropriating an entrusted movable thing, or using entrusted assets unlawfully for oneself or another) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 5 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Prosecuted on complaint where it is against a relative.
Veruntreuung by a member of an authority, an official, a guardian, a professional asset manager, or in the exercise of a licensed profession or trade (Verbrechen (felony: more than 3 years))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 10 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Forgery
Up to 5 years or a fine
Urkundenfälschung (forging or falsifying a document, using a genuine signature to make a false one, or falsely recording a legally relevant fact) (Vergehen (misdemeanour: up to 3 years or a fine))
- Least
- No minimum term set by the statute
- Most
- 5 years
- Fine
- A fine (Geldstrafe) may be imposed instead of prison
Compare with: France, Russia, Algeria, Morocco, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Italy, Japan, Turkey, England and Wales, Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, India, China.
