What is the residential share in my zone?

That is in your municipality's building and zoning ordinance, and it differs by zone. In the City of Zurich it typically lies between 50 and 90 per cent depending on the zone, and some zones have no requirement at all. The canton's GIS browser shows the zone for your address; the binding answer comes from the building authority, free of charge.

Am I affected if I only let occasionally?

According to the City of Zurich, no. The rules target the permanent commercial short-term letting of entire flats. Anyone letting their own flat while away continues to use it for living. Exactly where the line runs is a question of the individual case — and that is for the building authority, not the platform.

Does this apply outside the City of Zurich?

No. It is city law, based on the city's own building and zoning ordinance. Municipalities around Lake Zurich or in the Säuliamt have their own ordinances and regulate differently — Kilchberg, for instance, prohibited hotel-like operations in purely residential zones in 2026, while other municipalities have done nothing.

The residential share requirement: the rule short-term letting in the City of Zurich runs into

A figure in the zoning ordinance nobody paid attention to — until the Federal Supreme Court held that a permanently short-let flat does not count towards it.

What is the residential share requirement?

The residential share is the minimum proportion of floor area a zone prescribes for residential use. It exists to stop housing in central locations being displaced entirely by offices and commerce. In the City of Zurich, since the Federal Supreme Court judgment of 30 April 2026, a flat used permanently and commercially for short-term letting may no longer be counted towards that minimum residential share.

Why the rule exists

In central locations commercial space yields more than residential space. Without a rule a city would lose flats exactly where demand for them is greatest. The residential share is the answer to that: the zoning ordinance requires a minimum proportion of floor area to serve residential use.

The figure is in the building and zoning ordinance and applies per zone, not per building. In the City of Zurich it typically lies between 50 and 90 per cent depending on the zone; some zones have no residential share requirement at all.

What changed in 2026

On 30 April 2026 the Federal Supreme Court dismissed an appeal against the partial revision of Zurich's building and zoning ordinance, thereby confirming the city's rules. Their core: flats used permanently and commercially for short-term letting may no longer be counted by the city towards the prescribed minimum residential share.

The indirect route is the point. The city does not prohibit short-term letting — it simply no longer recognises it as residential use. In a zone with a residential share requirement that leads to the same result: anyone using a flat that way falls below the prescribed proportion, and the use is therefore no longer permissible there.

According to the city, anyone letting their own flat while away is not affected. The rules target the permanent commercial use of entire flats.

Frequently asked questions

What is the residential share in my zone?: That is in your municipality's building and zoning ordinance, and it differs by zone. In the City of Zurich it typically lies between 50 and 90 per cent depending on the zone, and some zones have no requirement at all. The canton's GIS browser shows the zone for your address; the binding answer comes from the building authority, free of charge.
Am I affected if I only let occasionally?: According to the City of Zurich, no. The rules target the permanent commercial short-term letting of entire flats. Anyone letting their own flat while away continues to use it for living. Exactly where the line runs is a question of the individual case — and that is for the building authority, not the platform.
Does this apply outside the City of Zurich?: No. It is city law, based on the city's own building and zoning ordinance. Municipalities around Lake Zurich or in the Säuliamt have their own ordinances and regulate differently — Kilchberg, for instance, prohibited hotel-like operations in purely residential zones in 2026, while other municipalities have done nothing.

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