The Schweizerisches Handelsamtsblatt is Switzerland's federal official gazette for commercial matters, published by SECO. It is the same publication as the Feuille officielle suisse du commerce (FOSC) and the Foglio ufficiale svizzero di commercio (FUSC). Commercial-register entries, bankruptcies, calls to creditors and debt-enforcement notices take legal effect through publication in it.

Is the SHAB the Swiss commercial register?

No. The commercial register is kept by the cantons and indexed federally in Zefix. The SHAB publishes the entries the register makes, alongside notices from courts and bankruptcy offices. Both use the UID, the Swiss enterprise identification number in the form CHE-123.456.789.

What does the SHAB publish about bankruptcies?

Under its bankruptcy rubric it publishes the provisional bankruptcy notice, the call to creditors, the schedule of claims, suspension for lack of assets, closure of the proceedings and revocation, each under Art. 222 SchKG and its neighbours. Deletions of companies appear under the commercial-register rubric.

Does Prometiam hold Swiss company registry data?

No. Prometiam serves Swiss corporate bankruptcy and dissolution notices through GET /insolvency/search?country=CH. A record is a gazette headline with its date, a link to the notice and the UID where the gazette prints one; notices are not linked to company records because no Swiss company register is held.

What is the SHAB? The Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce explained

The Schweizerisches Handelsamtsblatt (SHAB), Feuille officielle suisse du commerce (FOSC) and Foglio ufficiale svizzero di commercio (FUSC) are one publication under three names: Switzerland's federal official gazette for commercial matters, published by SECO, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs. Commercial-register entries, bankruptcies, calls to creditors and debt-enforcement notices are legally effective once they appear in it. It is not the commercial register itself, which the cantons keep; it is where the register's entries and the courts' and bankruptcy offices' notices are published.

Rubrics, cantons, languages

Every notice carries a rubric and sub-rubric — HR for commercial-register entries published under the Handelsregisterverordnung, KK for bankruptcies published under Art. 222 SchKG, among others — a canton, a publication date and one of the three official languages. A company appears under its UID, the Swiss enterprise identification number in the form CHE-123.456.789, which is the same key used in Zefix and for VAT.

What the bankruptcy rubric publishes

The stages of a Swiss bankruptcy: the provisional bankruptcy notice that tells creditors payments to the debtor no longer discharge a debt, the call to creditors, the schedule of claims, suspension for lack of assets, closure, and revocation. Deletions of companies from the register appear under the register rubric.

Querying Swiss insolvencies from an API

Prometiam serves Swiss corporate bankruptcy and dissolution notices through GET /insolvency/search?country=CH. A Swiss record is a gazette headline: the notice title, its date, a link to the notice, and the UID where the gazette prints one, which is a minority of notices; there is no address text. Notices are not linked to company records, because no Swiss company register is held.

Read the full guide · Get a free API key

Official source: shab.ch (SECO)

How a notice is classified

Rubric	What it carries	Legal basis the notice cites
HR — Handelsregister	Commercial-register entries: incorporations, changes of purpose, seat, directors and capital, mergers, and deletions.	Publication under Art. 9 and Art. 35 of the Handelsregisterverordnung.
KK — Konkurse	Bankruptcies, from the provisional notice through to closure.	Publication under Art. 222 SchKG, the federal debt-enforcement and bankruptcy act.
SB and cantonal rubrics	Calls to creditors, including the liquidation call that precedes a voluntary winding-up, and other debt-enforcement notices.	Varies by notice.

Frequently asked questions

What is the SHAB?: The Schweizerisches Handelsamtsblatt is Switzerland's federal official gazette for commercial matters, published by SECO. It is the same publication as the Feuille officielle suisse du commerce (FOSC) and the Foglio ufficiale svizzero di commercio (FUSC). Commercial-register entries, bankruptcies, calls to creditors and debt-enforcement notices take legal effect through publication in it.
Is the SHAB the Swiss commercial register?: No. The commercial register is kept by the cantons and indexed federally in Zefix. The SHAB publishes the entries the register makes, alongside notices from courts and bankruptcy offices. Both use the UID, the Swiss enterprise identification number in the form CHE-123.456.789.
What does the SHAB publish about bankruptcies?: Under its bankruptcy rubric it publishes the provisional bankruptcy notice, the call to creditors, the schedule of claims, suspension for lack of assets, closure of the proceedings and revocation, each under Art. 222 SchKG and its neighbours. Deletions of companies appear under the commercial-register rubric.
Does Prometiam hold Swiss company registry data?: No. Prometiam serves Swiss corporate bankruptcy and dissolution notices through GET /insolvency/search?country=CH. A record is a gazette headline with its date, a link to the notice and the UID where the gazette prints one; notices are not linked to company records because no Swiss company register is held.