Parliament Act (ParlA)
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Chapter 1 Federal Council Bills
Art. 141 Dispatches on bills
1 The Federal Council shall submit its bills to the Federal Assembly together with a dispatch. 2 In the dispatch, the Federal Council shall provide justification for the bill and if necessary comment on the individual provisions. In addition, it shall explain the following points in particular, on condition that it is possible to provide a substantial amount of information thereon: the legal background, the consequences for constitutional rights, compatibility with superior law and the relationship with European law; abis. the use of Switzerland’s room for manoeuvre in adopting international law; ater. the observance of the principle of subsidiarity in the allocation and performance of state tasks and the impact of the bill on communes, towns and cities, urban agglomerations and mountain areas; aquater. any examination of time limit on the bill; b. the delegation of powers provided for in a draft act; c. the points of view debated in the preliminary stages of the legislative process an
Para. 2 let. abis — Inserted by No I of the FA of 15 June 2018, in force since 26 Nov. 2018 (AS 2018 3461; BBl 2017 6797, 6865). Para. 2 let. ater — Inserted by No I of the FA of 15 June 2018, in force since 26 Nov. 2018 (AS 2018 3461; BBl 2017 6797, 6865). Para. 2 let. aquater — Inserted by No I of the FA of 15 June 2018, in force since 26 Nov. 2018 (AS 2018 3461; BBl 2017 6797, 6865). Para. 2 let. f — Amended by No I of the FA of 15 June 2018, in force since 26 Nov. 2018 (AS 2018 3461; BBl 201
Art. 142 Budget, updates and the state accounts
1 The Federal Council shall submit to the Federal Assembly: a. the draft for the Federal Budget; b. the drafts for the ordinary updates and additional credits, two months prior to the start of the session in which they are to be considered; c. the state accounts, every year two months prior to the start of the session in which they are to be considered. 2 It shall accept the drafts for the budget as well as the accounts of the Federal Assembly, the federal courts, the Federal Audit Office, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, the Supervisory Authority for the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland and the FDPIC without modification and incorporate them into its draft budget and the state accounts. 3 The Federal Supreme Court is responsible for presenting the draft budget and the draft accounts of the federal courts to the Federal Assembly. The Administration Delegation of the Federal Assembly is responsible for presenting the draft budget and accounts of the Federa
Para. 1 let. a — Amended by Art. 65 No 1 of the Financial Budget Act of 7 Oct. 2005, in force since 1 May 2006 (AS 2006 1275; BBl 2005 5). Para. 2 — Amended by No I of the FA of 21 March 2025 (Submission of Procedural Requests and Parliamentary Initiatives), in force since 8 Sept. 2025 (AS 2025 530; BBl 2024 1799, 2462). Para. 3 — Third sentence inserted by Annex 1 No II 12 of the Data Protection Act of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Sept. 2023 (AS 2022 491; BBl 2017 6941). Para. 3 — Amended by
Art. 143 Financial Plan
1 The Financial Plan covers the three years following the year to which the budget relates. 2 The structure and content of the Financial Plan combine the legislative planning with the financial planning (integrated legislative and financial planning). 3 The Federal Council shall submit the financial plan together with the draft budget to the Federal Assembly for its attention in the form of a simple federal decree. 4 The Federal Assembly may add mandates for an amendment of the financial plan to the simple federal decree. 5 The Federal Council normally fulfils these mandates in terms of the draft budget for the year after the following year.
Art. 143 — Amended by Annex No 1 of the FA of 26 Sept. 2014 (New Management Model for the Federal Administration), in force since 1 Jan. 2016 (AS 2015 1583; BBl 2014 767).
Art. 144 Annual objectives and annual report of the Federal Council
1 The Federal Council gives notice of its annual objectives for the next year by the start of the final ordinary session of the year. These objectives must be coordinated with the legislature plan. 2 The Federal Council shall submit to the Federal Assembly the reports on the conduct of its business in the previous year two months before the start of the session in which they are to be considered. 3 In its annual report, the Federal Council presents the main aspects of its activities during the financial year. It provides information on whether the main annual objectives for the financial year have been achieved, on the implementation of the legislature plan and of the legislative programme and on the status of the indicators relevant to the general assessment of the situation and the verification of the achievement of objectives. It must justify any divergences from the planned objectives as well as any unplanned activities.
Para. 3 — Amended by No I of the FA of 22 June 2007 (Legislature plan), in force since 1 Dec. 2007 (AS 2007 5231; BBl 2006 1837, 1857).
Art. 145 Procedure for the annual report
1 The President of the Confederation is responsible for presenting the report of the Federal Council on the conduct of its business to the Assembly, unless the standing orders of the councils provide otherwise. 2 The Federal Assembly shall approve the report by means of a simple Federal Decree.
Para. 1 — Amended by No I of the FA of 3 Oct. 2008 (Annual Report of the Federal Council), in force since 1 March 2009 (AS 2009 697; BBl 2008 1095, 1105).
Art. 146 Legislature plan
1 At the start of each legislature period, the Federal Council shall submit to the Federal Assembly a dispatch on the legislature plan and a draft simple federal decree on the legislature plan. 2 The simple federal decree shall define the policy guidelines and objectives of the legislature plan and assign to these the legislation of the Federal Assembly that is planned and the additional measures required to achieve each of these objectives. 3 In the dispatch on the legislature plan, indicators shall be assigned to the objectives that allow the achievement of the objectives to be verified. The dispatch shall also contain an analysis of the situation that is based on the indicators. In addition, it shall provide a summary of all the draft legislation that the Federal Council plans to submit to the Federal Assembly during the legislature period (the legislative programme). 4 The dispatch shall present the legislature financial plan. This shall set out the financial requirements for the l
Art. 146 — Amended by No I of the FA of 22 June 2007 (Legislature plan), in force since 1 Dec. 2007 (AS 2007 5231; BBl 2006 1837, 1857).
Art. 147 Procedure for the legislature plan
1 The two councils shall consider the legislature plan in two successive sessions. 2 The standing orders of the councils may provide that: a. a council, in considering the legislature plan, decides only on proposals and minority proposals made by the committee responsible for the preliminary examination; and b. other persons entitled to submit proposals must submit their proposals to this committee before the start of the detailed discussion of the federal decree.
Art. 147 — Amended by No I of the FA of 22 June 2007 (Legislature plan), in force since 1 Dec. 2007 (AS 2007 5231; BBl 2006 1837, 1857).
Art. 148 Further plans and reports
1 In addition to the plans and reports required by the law, the Federal Council may submit further plans and reports to the Federal Assembly for its information or attention. 2 It may submit to the Federal Assembly the objectives or conclusions of significant plans or reports in the form of the draft of a simple federal decree or federal decree. 3 The Federal Council shall submit a regular report to the Federal Assembly on Switzerland’s foreign policy. 3bis It shall report regularly to the Federal Assembly on the achievement of the strategic goals laid down for the units that have become autonomous in accordance with Article 8 paragraph 5 of the Government and Administration Organisation Act of 21 March 1997. 3ter Once the European Commission’s legislative proposal for the multiannual financial framework of the European Union has been made available, the Federal Council shall submit a planning report to the Federal Assembly on all its intended associations with the programmes and agenc
Para. 3bis — SR 172.010 Para. 3bis — Inserted by No I 1 of the FA of 17 Dec. 2010 on the Participation of the Federal Assembly in the Management of Autonomous Units, in force since 1 Jan. 2012 (AS 2011 5859; BBl 2010 3377, 3413). Para. 3ter — Inserted by No I of the FA of 22 Dec. 2023 (Planning Report), in force since 1 June 2024 (AS 2024 200; BBl 2023 1081, 1482).
Art. 149 Submission of dispatches and reports by the Federal Council
1 The Federal Council shall submit its dispatches and reports to the Parliamentary Services fourteen days at the latest before the meeting of the committee responsible for the preliminary examination. 2 The Parliamentary Services shall pass on to the assembly members documents submitted by the Federal Council and by the Federal Administration for the attention of the Federal Assembly or of its committees.
Chapter 2 Procedural Relations between the Committ
Art. 150 General rights to information
1 The committees and the sub-committees appointed by them are, for the fulfilment of their duties, entitled: a. to invite the Federal Council to attend meetings in order to provide information and to request reports from the Federal Council; b. to obtain documents from the Federal Council for inspection; c. to question persons in the service of the Confederation with the consent of the Federal Council. 2 They have no right to information: a. from the joint reporting procedure or the deliberations in Federal Council meetings; b. that is classified as secret in the interests of state security or the intelligence services or the disclosure of which to unauthorised persons may be seriously detrimental to national interests. 3 They shall take appropriate precautions to ensure the preservation of secrecy. They may in particular provide that information that is subject to official secrecy in terms of Article 8 is passed on to only one sub-committee. 4 In the event of any disagreement between
Para. 2 let. b — Amended by No I of the FA of 17 June 2011 (Specification of the Information Rights of the Supervisory Committees), in force since 1 Nov. 2011 (AS 2011 4537; BBl 2011 1817, 1839).
Art. 151 Consultation on ordinances
1 If the Federal Council is preparing an important ordinance, the committee responsible may request that it be consulted with regard to the same. 2 If an ordinance requires to be amended or enacted following the adoption of an enactment of the Federal Assembly, the committee shall decide in the vote on the bill in its entirety whether it wishes to be consulted. 2bis The Federal Council shall consult the relevant committees on the draft ordinances and amendments to ordinances that it issues on the basis of Article 185 paragraph 3 of the Federal Constitution or on the basis of a statutory authorisation to deal with a crisis in accordance with Annex 2. If the draft contains information classified as ‘confidential’ or ‘secret’, it shall inform the Finance Delegation and the Control Delegation instead. 3 The Federal Council shall inform the Federal Assembly of the ordinances that it is preparing.
Para. 2bis — Inserted by No I of the FA of 17 March 2023 (Improvements in the Organisation and Procedures of Parliament, Especially in Crisis Situations), in force since 4 Dec. 2023 (AS 2023 483; BBl 2022 301, 433).
Art. 152 Information and consultation on foreign policy
1 The committees responsible for foreign policy and the Federal Council shall have regular contact with each other in order to exchange views. 2 The Federal Council shall inform the Presiding Colleges of the councils and the committees responsible for foreign policy regularly, comprehensively and in good time of important foreign policy developments. The committees responsible for foreign policy shall also pass on this information to other committees involved in foreign policy related matters. 3 The Federal Council shall consult the committees responsible for foreign policy on important plans, on planned changes to the number of Switzerland’s diplomatic and consular representations abroad, and on the guidelines and directives relating to mandates for important international negotiations before it decides on or amends the same. It shall inform these committees of the status of its plans and of the progress made in negotiations. 3bis The Federal Council shall consult the committees respo
Para. 3 — Amended by Annex No III 1 of the Swiss Abroad Act of 26 Sept. 2014, in force since 1 Nov. 2015 (AS 2015 3857; BBl 2014 1915, 2617). Para. 3bis let. b — Inserted by No I 2 of the FA of 8 Oct. 2004 on the Provisional Application of International Treaties (AS 2005 1245; BBl 2004 761 1017). Amended by No I 1 of the FA of 21 June 2019 on the Authority to Conclude, Amend and Withdraw from International Treaties, in force since 2 Dec. 2019 (AS 2019 3119; BBl 2018 3471, 5315). Para. 3ter — Ins
Art. 153 Rights to information of the supervisory committees
1 In addition to the rights to information under Article 150, the supervisory committees have the right to deal directly with any authorities, offices and other agencies entrusted with the tasks of the Confederation and to obtain the information and documents from them that they require in application of Article 156. They may assign the responsibility for individual investigations to their secretariat. 2 They may obtain information and documents from persons and offices outside the Federal Administration, provided this is necessary for the fulfilment of their supervisory control. Persons outside the Federal Administration who were previously in the service of the Confederation remain subject to Article 156. The right to refuse to testify under Article 42 of the Federal Act of 4 December 1947 on Federal Civil Procedure applies by analogy. 3 They may summon persons required to provide information by means of a ruling issued by the committee president in analogous application of the Artic
Art. 153 — Amended by No I of the FA of 17 June 2011 (Specification of the Information Rights of the Supervisory Committees), in force since 1 Nov. 2011 (AS 2011 4537; BBl 2011 1817, 1839). Para. 2 — SR 273 Para. 3 — SR 312.0
Art. 154 Rights to information of the delegations to the supervisory committees
1 No information may be withheld from the delegations to the supervisory committees. 2 For the purpose of fulfilling their duties, the delegations to the supervisory committees, in addition to the rights to information in terms of Articles 150 and 153, have the right: a. to obtain: 1. minutes of Federal Council meetings, 2. documents that are classified as secret in the interests of state security or the intelligence services or the disclosure of which to unauthorised persons may be seriously detrimental to national interests; b. to question persons as witnesses; Article 153 paragraphs 3 and 4 applies by analogy to summonses and enforced appearances. 3 All Federal Council decisions including the proposals and accompanying reports shall be notified to the Finance Delegation and the Control Delegation as they are made. They shall jointly specify the details on service, inspection and safekeeping.
Para. 2 let. b — Amended by No I of the FA of 17 June 2011 (Specification of the Information Rights of the Supervisory Committees), in force since 1 Nov. 2011 (AS 2011 4537; BBl 2011 1817, 1839). Para. 3 — Amended by No I of the FA of 17 June 2011 (Specification of the Information Rights of the Supervisory Committees), in force since 1 Nov. 2011 (AS 2011 4537; BBl 2011 1817, 1839).
Art. 154a Effect of investigations by the Control Delegation on other procedures and enquiries
1 Federal disciplinary or administrative investigations relating to persons or circumstances that are the subject of an investigation by the Control Delegation may only be commenced or continued with the authorisation of the Control Delegation. 2 The Control Delegation shall decide on authorisation after consulting the Federal Council. 3 If there is any dispute as to whether authorisation is required, it shall require the consent of two thirds of all the members of the Control Delegation. 4 An investigation by the Control Delegation shall not preclude the conduct of civil or administrative proceedings or of preliminary investigations and court proceedings in criminal cases.
Art. 154a — Inserted by No I of the FA of 17 Dec. 2004, in force since 1 May 2005 (AS 2005 4793; BBl 2004 1469, 1477).
Art. 155 Hearings by delegations to the supervisory committees
1 Before each hearing, it must be established whether a person is to be interviewed as a person providing information or as a formal witness. 2 The formal interviewing of witnesses shall be ordered only if the facts of the case cannot be sufficiently clarified by another means. Any person summoned is obliged to testify. 3 If an investigation is directed solely or mainly towards one person, that person may be interviewed only as a person providing information. 4 Witnesses must be reminded of their duty to give evidence and their obligation to tell the truth, and persons providing information of their right to refuse to give information. The right to refuse to testify in terms of Article 42 paragraph 1 of the Federal Act of 4 December 1947 on Federal Civil Procedure is reserved. 5 In order to maintain a record of the proceedings, the hearings shall be recorded on audio tape. The transcript of the tape shall be signed by the persons interviewed. 6 Articles 166–171 apply in respect of the
Para. 4 — SR 273
Art. 156 Position of persons in the service of the Confederation
1 Persons in the service of the Confederation are obliged to provide information completely and truthfully and to indicate all useful documents. 2 The right to refuse to testify in terms of Article 42 Paragraph 1 of the Federal Act of 4 December 1947 on Federal Civil Procedure is applicable by analogy. 3 Persons in the service of the Confederation may not suffer any prejudice as a result of making truthful statements to a committee. No proceedings may be taken against them based on statements made to a committee without the prior consultation of the committee concerned. 4 Persons in the service of the Confederation in terms of this Act are the personnel of the Confederation and persons who are directly entrusted with public duties on behalf of the Confederation. The nature of their relationship with the Confederation is not decisive.
Para. 2 — SR 273
Art. 157 Opinion of the authority concerned
The authority concerned shall have the opportunity to express its opinion before any supervisory committee or delegation thereof issues a report on deficiencies in the conduct of business or in financial management.
Art. 158 Recommendations to the responsible authority
1 A supervisory committee or delegation may make recommendations to the responsible authority that relate to its mandate in the area of supervisory control. 2 The authority notifies the supervisory committee or delegation of the implementation of the recommendations. 3 The recommendations and the opinion of the responsible authority are made public unless this is contrary to interests that are worthy of protection.
Chapter 3 Representation of the Federal Council in
Art. 159 Participation of the Federal Council in council meetings
1 The head of the department responsible for the field of activity to which the business for consideration belongs shall normally participate in the council meetings. 2 A member of the Federal Council may be accompanied by persons in the service of the Confederation or by experts. By way of exception, such persons may, at the request of the member of the Federal Council, be permitted to speak on matters that require specialist technical knowledge.
Art. 160 Participation of the Federal Council in committee meetings
1 When business is being considered that has been raised by the Federal Council or with regard to which it has expressed an opinion, a member of the Federal Council normally participates in the committee meetings. 2 The members of the Federal Council may with the agreement of the committee president be represented by persons in the service of the Confederation. 3 The members of the Federal Council and their representatives have the right to be accompanied by an expert.
Art. 161 Participation of the Federal Chancellor
The Federal Chancellor is responsible for matters relating to the business of the Federal Chancellery in the Assembly and in the committees.