Questions and answers about estates in the event of death
A death involves a large number of organizational issues, both for private and business accounts. Find out how PostFinance protects heirs’ interests, what rules apply to accounts and assets and the conditions under which payments are possible in the event of inheritance. We also inform you what happens to a business account in the event of death and the steps you need to take.
General information on estates
Death certificate (or medical certificate of death): the death certificate indicates the place and date of the death, as well as the particulars of the deceased person. Death certificates show the registry office of the place of death (not the place of residence or place of birth). If no heir’s certificate (see below) is available, please send one of the following documents to PostFinance:
Copy of the death certificate along with a copy of proof of registered marital status (to be obtained from the registry office at the place of birth)
Another official document which indicates the deceased’s family relations, along with copies of the official identity documents of all the persons mentioned there
Heir’s certificate (or inheritance certificate): all persons entitled to inheritance are listed on the heir’s certificate. The heirs require this document to identify themselves to the authorities and third parties. Enquire at the deceased person’s municipality of residence as to which cantonal authority is responsible for issuing the heir’s certificate. Send a copy of this document to PostFinance.
Inheritance power of attorney: the community of heirs can only manage the estate collectively. All the heirs must personally sign each and every order. Alternatively, the community of heirs can issue one or more persons with a power of attorney. This can help reduce the administrative costs and make paying outstanding invoices easier. This is especially recommended for communities of heirs which have difficulties collecting all the signatures, for example if several of the heirs live abroad.
Every financial institution is obliged to check the community of heirs and to protect their interests. For this reason, individual heirs may not be treated preferentially. PostFinance has to check the entire community of heirs. This can only be done with an heir’s certificate. This is to be sent to PostFinance upon request.
An inventory of the estate contains information about the value of the estate. Every heir can demand a document of this type. In certain cantons, an inventory of the estate is created automatically. To this end, the relevant cantonal office requires all the assets and liabilities of the deceased person.
You can ask the PostFinance Estate Competence Center for an account statement at the date of death and, upon request, a mortgage debt overview.You can contact our support team from Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. by calling +41 58 667 98 65.
If you do not possess a power of attorney for an account, send one of the following legitimation documents to PostFinance:
Marriage certificate
Proof of registered marital status (for heirs with statutory entitlement)
Copies of identity documents for all listed heirs.
As far as PostFinance is concerned, each individual heir, as well as the community of heirs as a whole, has the following rights:
the right to be informed (e.g. account statement as at the date of death)
the right to revoke a power of attorney
the right to block the account
These rights are afforded to heirs if they can legitimately prove themselves as such, for example by means of an heir’s certificate. It is fundamentally the heirs’ responsibility to carry out the division of the estate, i.e. to implement the last will of the deceased person and to divide the assets.
Up until the estate, including assets belonging to PostFinance, is divided, the inheritance belongs to all the heirs jointly. The heirs can only control the estate or individual assets jointly and may only grant the right of disposal to one sole heir or third party jointly. The principle of unanimity applies, i.e. each heir must give their consent for each act of disposal, except if an inheritance power of attorney is in place (see above).
When handling a case of inheritance, the following persons can also be employed upon request by the parties involved or by the official office: executor, inheritance administrator, official liquidator.
If the heirs come into an inheritance, the relevant cantonal office will, upon request, provide them with an heir’s certificate. This document allows the heirs to fundamentally control the estate. It can take a long time to draw up the heir’s certificate, and this must also be paid for.
If the deceased person’s account is blocked, payments associated with the succession can be made by a legitimate person entitled to inheritance.
Please send PostFinance the relevant invoice copies, original inpayment slips and a signed order for settlement. You will then receive further instructions.
Account with power of attorney or partner account
If a joint account holder dies, the surviving party cannot convert the partner account into an individual account in their own name. They require a new individual account instead. After opening this account, the balance of the partner account can be transferred to the individual account and the partner account can be closed.
In the event of the death of a contractual partner, all assets and debts (liabilities) are transferred to his heirs. The heirs form a community of heirs and become a contractual partner of PostFinance. Upon the death of the account holder, the community of heirs takes his place legally. The community of heirs is formed by law – without the assistance of the heirs and regardless of whether or not they are aware of the death of the account holder. Every financial institution must protect the interests of the heirs and protect accounts from unauthorized access. Orders and directives must always be in the interest of the heirs. For this reason, PostFinance exercises comprehensive due diligence in respect of all heirs and can block accounts until it can determine who is authorized to access the relevant account.
Powers of attorney for an account fundamentally remain valid after death. This is stated in the PostFinance power of attorney regulations. The following must also be considered:
An heir, the community of heirs, the bereaved spouse or an authorized third party (e.g. an inheritance administrator or a judge) can freeze the account, for example if the division of the estate is disputed.
Based on its legal obligations, PostFinance checks whether or not specific measures are necessary in individual cases (see the question “What special measures can PostFinance take and how are they communicated?”).
PostFinance advises anybody who holds a partner account to also manage their own account and to reciprocally issue a power of attorney. This ensures that the surviving partner can still access their own assets until the division of the estate is complete and is not suddenly left without access to cash.
In the event of the death of a contractual partner, all assets and debts (liabilities) are transferred to the heirs, who form a community of heirs and become a contractual partner of PostFinance. Upon the death of the account holder, the community of heirs legally takes the place of the account holder. The community of heirs is formed by law – without the assistance of the heirs and regardless of whether or not they are aware of the death of the account holder. Every financial institution must protect the interests of the heirs and protect accounts from unauthorized access. Orders and directives must always be in the interest of the heirs. For this reason, PostFinance exercises comprehensive due diligence in respect of the heirs and can block accounts until it can determine who is authorized to access the relevant account.
PostFinance advises anyone who holds a partner account to also manage an individual account and to reciprocally issue a full authorization to this account. This ensures that the surviving person can still access their own assets until the division of the estate is complete and is not suddenly left without access to cash.
Measures are communicated to the bereaved in the “Right of disposal over the account” letter once the death has been processed. This letter explains which documents are required and which measures have been taken with regard to the services (e.g. account restrictions).
In the case of significant assets, access will be only granted to part of the assets despite possession of a power of attorney. This will be communicated in the letter with the following sentence: “You will not be able to access the entire assets until we receive all of the documents.” In such a case, all credits to the accounts will also be blocked until PostFinance receives the required documents. These precautionary measures are taken in order to protect the interests of the heirs.
If PostFinance notifies you that not all assets can be accessed, you can obtain the available balance of the accounts in the following locations:
In e-finance under “Transaction overview”, “Order overview” or “Account transfer”
At Postomats
In the PostFinance App
Via the Estate Competence Center by calling +41 58 667 98 65
The booking balance and therefore the total assets without the blocked amounts can be viewed on the account statement and in the assets view in e-finance.
Business account
The entire assets of a sole proprietorship are included in private assets. The account is treated as a private account.
In accordance with the law, partnerships (i.e. simple partnerships and general partnerships) are closed upon the death of a partner. As the surviving partners often seek to continue the business, however, the company account can be continued at PostFinance, provided that the required documents have been supplied.
The death of an associate or a body of a legal entity does not have any effect on the business account of the legal entity, provided there are other associates or bodies with the corresponding powers of attorney. If you have any general questions, the commercial register or statutory auditors will be able to help.
