01 · Cooperative
Form a Swiss Genossenschaft for CHF 1,490.
Seven-member minimum, no minimum capital, one-member-one-vote governance under OR art. 828 ff. Right for housing cooperatives, agricultural collectives, consumer cooperatives, and worker-owned businesses.
02 · Defining features
What makes a Genossenschaft a Genossenschaft.
7-member minimum
Swiss cooperative law requires at least 7 founder-members at registration. Members can be natural persons or legal entities. New members can join freely after formation under the articles.
No minimum capital
Unlike GmbH (CHF 20k) or AG (CHF 100k), a Genossenschaft has no statutory minimum share capital. Members may contribute share-capital quotas (Anteilscheine) but the entity itself is not capital-driven.
Democratic governance
One member, one vote — irrespective of capital contribution size. Mandatory under OR art. 885. Suits agricultural, housing and consumer cooperatives where collective decision-making is the operating logic.
03 · Pricing
Flat fee for formation, plus the recurring infrastructure.
| Service | Our fee | Market range |
|---|---|---|
| Genossenschaft formation (incl. notary, HR, articles) | CHF 1,490 | CHF 1,500–5,000 |
| Registered office (Zurich or Zug) | CHF 1,200 / year | CHF 1,400–2,800 |
| Ongoing accounting (active, small) | CHF 1,900 / year | CHF 2,000–5,000 |
| Statutes amendment (post-formation) | from CHF 800 | CHF 1,000–3,000 |
04 · What the fee covers
Articles, deed, registry, governance setup.
- Drafting of cooperative articles (Statuten) reflecting purpose and governance
- Coordination of the constitutive general meeting with all 7+ founder-members
- Notarial deed of formation
- Handelsregister filing in the canton of registered office
- Initial board (Verwaltung) appointments and signing-rights registration
- Drafting of share-capital quota (Anteilschein) template if member contributions apply
05 · Process
Members → articles → constitutive meeting → registration.
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01
Members + purpose
Identify the 7+ founder-members and the cooperative purpose. Confirm Swiss residence requirements (at least one administrator must reside in Switzerland).
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02
Articles
Drafted to OR art. 828 ff standard. Includes purpose, member-admission rules, contribution mechanics, distribution policy, board structure.
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03
Constitutive meeting
All 7+ members sign the articles before a notary. Initial board elected. Capital quotas issued where applicable.
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04
Handelsregister filing
5–15 working days at the cantonal registry. Cooperative is operational on the date of registration.
06 · FAQ
Frequently asked questions.
Why does Swiss cooperative law require 7 founder-members?
The Code of Obligations art. 831 sets the minimum at 7 to distinguish a cooperative from a closely held capital company and to embed the collective-self-help principle into the legal form. The number cannot be reduced post-formation; if membership drops below 7 the cooperative must either restore the count or convert to another form (typically GmbH).
When does a cooperative make more sense than a GmbH?
Cooperatives fit when collective decision-making is the operating principle: housing cooperatives where residents own and manage the property together, agricultural cooperatives where farmers pool processing or distribution, consumer cooperatives, and worker-owned operating businesses. For a profit-maximising operating company with concentrated ownership, GmbH is the better fit. The vote-by-head rule is a feature for cooperatives and a bug for capital-concentrated businesses.
Do members have liability beyond their contribution?
Default rule under OR art. 869: members are liable only with the cooperative's assets. The articles can introduce limited or unlimited additional liability (Nachschusspflicht) of members, but this is rare and must be explicitly drafted. Most modern cooperatives use the default no-additional-liability rule.
How are profits distributed in a cooperative?
Profit distribution is restricted under OR art. 859. Cooperatives can pay limited interest on capital quotas (Anteilscheine), but the bulk of any surplus must either be reinvested in the cooperative purpose, used for member services, or distributed pro-rata to members' use of the cooperative's services (not pro-rata to capital). This reflects the self-help orientation built into the legal form.
Can a foreign person be a founder-member?
Yes. Members can be foreign natural persons or foreign legal entities. The Swiss-residence requirement applies at the administration level: at least one member of the Verwaltung (board) must reside in Switzerland with signing power, similar to AG/GmbH director rules.
How long does cooperative registration take?
Typical timeline 4–8 weeks. Most of the calendar is consumed by drafting articles tailored to the cooperative purpose and assembling the 7+ founder-members for the constitutive meeting. Handelsregister processing itself is 5–15 working days once the notarial deed is filed.
07 · Get started
Tell us the cooperative purpose and the 7+ members.
Send the planned purpose, the founder-member list (names or entity names), and the canton of registered office. We send the document checklist and timeline within 24 hours.