Anyone who obtains such a loan deliberately based on false information or fails to comply with the above-mentioned restrictions on the use of funds may be fined up to CHF 100,000.
In view of the fact that these loans are simply obtained (at least up to the amount of CHF 500,000), there is a certain risk of abuse. Against this background, the Federal Council has instructed the Federal Department of Finance to examine options for reviewing the criminal and/or liability provisions. In particular, there is the possibility that, under certain conditions, corporate bodies may also be prosecuted in the event of an abusive application for credit or use of funds.
In practice, fines will probably only be imposed if the loan cannot be repaid in the future. In this case, it should be checked whether the information in the application was correct and whether the funds are also being used in accordance with the restrictions mentioned. If this proves not to be the case, fines could be levied and liability risks of corporate bodies would continue to exist (after a possible tightening of these provisions).