Administrative Procedure Act (Switzerland)

Administrative Procedure Act (APA)
Federal Assembly of Switzerland
  • Federal Act on Administrative Procedure (SR 172.021)
Territorial extentSwitzerland
Enacted byFederal Assembly of Switzerland
Enacted20 December 1968
Commenced1 October 1969
Status: Current legislation

The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (German: Verwaltungsverfahrensgesetz, VwVG, French: Loi fédérale sur la procédure administrative, PA, Italian: Legge federale sulla procedura amministrativa, PA), is a Swiss federal law that that regulates the procedures followed by Swiss federal administrative authorities when making decisions that affect the rights of individuals.[1] It was adopted on 20 December 1968 by the Federal Assembly and came into force on 1 October 1969.

The main purpose of the APA is to ensure that administrative procedures are conducted in a fair and transparent manner. This is achieved by establishing clear rules for decision-making, including the right to be heard, the right to access files, and the right to appeal decisions.

Prior to the introduction of the law, the regulation on administrative procedures was fragmented, with many gaps in written law, especially with regard to non-contentious proceedings.[2]

  1. ^ "Fedlex". www.fedlex.admin.ch. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  2. ^ FF 1965 II 1383, Message du Conseil fédéral à l'Assemblée fédérale à l'appui d'un projet de loi sur la procédure administrative (Procédure administrative fédérale), 24 September 1965)