What the employer must cover
As soon as you employ staff in Switzerland, you have social obligations. They depend on salary, activity rate, legal form and sometimes your collective employment agreement. A mistake can be costly in back contributions, litigation or benefits you have to pay yourself.
The right approach is to coordinate coverage: accident, illness, professional insurance, long absences, high salaries and executive protection.
Mandatory coverage
- AVS/AI/APG/AC: basic social security contributions for employees.
- LAA professional accidents: mandatory for all employees from the first day of work.
- LAA non-professional accidents: mandatory if the employee works at least 8 hours per week with the same employer.
- BVG: compulsory from CHF 22,680 of annual salary in 2026, depending on age conditions; the employer pays at least 50% of the contributions.
- Family allowances: affiliation according to the canton and the competent fund.
Disease: the risk often underestimated
In the event of illness, the employer must maintain salary for a limited period according to the Code of Obligations, unless equivalent regime provided for by contract, regulation or CCT. Daily sickness benefit insurance is not mandatory at the federal level, but it is very often recommended and sometimes imposed by a collective agreement.
Usual solutions often cover 80% of salary for 720 or 730 days, with a chosen waiting period. They reassure the employee and transform an unpredictable risk into a budgeted expense for the company.
Why add a LAAC?
The compulsory LAA is solid, but it remains capped: the maximum insured gain is CHF 148,200 per year. In principle, it pays 80% of the insured salary from the third day. Supplementary accident insurance can improve benefits, cover salary above the ceiling, aim for 100% of salary, provide better death and disability capital or improve hospitalization conditions.
LPP pension provision and framework plans
The pension fund is a powerful HR tool. Beyond the legal minimum, you can reduce the coordination deduction, better insure part-time work, increase the employer share, cover high salaries or create a specific plan for executives and directors.
A better BVG plan can be seen on the pension certificate. It can make the difference in attracting and retaining key profiles, especially in professions where talents compare social benefits.
Things to check in your business
- Are your part-time employees correctly covered by LPP?
- Are salaries above CHF 148,200 protected in the event of an accident?
- Does your CCT require loss of salary health insurance?
- Does the IJM waiting time correspond to your financial capacity?
- Do your executives have sufficient death and disability benefits?
- Are employee exits well managed: LAA by agreement, vested benefits, HR information?
The benefits for the company
- Reduce the financial risk linked to long absences.
- Improve employer attractiveness without relying solely on gross salary.
- Simplify HR management with consistent coverage.
- Avoid gaps between LAA, IJM, LPP and supplementary insurance.
- Give employees understandable and reassuring protection.
Our support
Finwise audits your employee coverage, checks your obligations, compares LAA, LAAC, IJM and LPP, then offers you a clear architecture. We look at both the employer cost and the actual protection for employees.
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