Cash payment can be legal. The difference to check is whether the household employment is correctly declared, insured and documented. Compare gross wage and take-home pay using the same tax, holiday and insurance assumptions.
You can prepare now: set your services, gross rate, area and availability, then create your free Helper profile. Helpore takes no fee from your wage; applicable employee deductions remain. Flex booking is not open yet.
What undeclared work means in Switzerland
Cash payment is lawful when the employment is correctly declared. AHV liability starts on 1 January after the seventeenth birthday. In domestic work, the low-pay exception lasts through 31 December of the year the worker turns 25: pay of CHF 750 or less per calendar year and household is exempt unless the worker requests contributions. Above CHF 750, contributions apply to the full liable wage. Older working-age domestic staff are generally liable from the first franc; reference-age rules differ.
Failure to meet required declarations can lead to back payments and penalties. Check the duties that apply to the worker’s age, pay and employment arrangement.
What undeclared work really costs you
- Contribution record and pension. Missing declarations can leave gaps. A full contribution year depends on the complete AHV record; one declared hour does not create one.
- Accident insurance. The household must arrange applicable cover. Failure to insure can create premiums and liability; it does not automatically remove statutory employee entitlements.
- Unemployment benefit. Entitlement depends on the contribution record and other conditions. A missing declaration can complicate proof; one job does not guarantee a benefit.
- Paid holiday. You keep this right even if work is undeclared. Paying a supplement with each wage is a limited exception for qualifying irregular part-time work; it must be identified in the agreement and each payslip.
- Proof of income. Missing wage records can make it harder to document earnings for a flat, permit, credit or benefit application.
- Minimum wage. Failing to declare the employment does not remove applicable wage protection. Check which federal and cantonal rules cover your work.
The honest maths: 25 francs cash against 28 francs declared
For a working-age employee liable to AHV and ALV, CHF 28 liable gross leaves CHF 26.21 after the standard 6.4% employee share. Under the eligible simplified settlement procedure, a further 5% tax leaves CHF 24.81 before any other deductions. A social-only result is not complete take-home pay.
If a lawful holiday supplement is added, it is also liable gross pay. Using the illustrative 8.33% share, CHF 28 becomes CHF 30.33 gross; after 6.4% social contributions and eligible simplified 5% tax, about CHF 26.87 remains before other deductions. Paid leave is the principle; a one-off or hourly label alone does not establish the payout exception.
Cash can be paid for declared work too. An undeclared CHF 25 payment does not remove employment rights or duties. To compare take-home pay fairly, use the same tax, holiday and insurance assumptions.
Minimum wages 2026: nothing below this
The federal domestic-work minimum applies within its scope, generally from an average of five hours a week with the same employer. Geneva has its own domestic-work contract, other cantonal or local rules may be higher, and work mainly involving childcare is excluded from the federal contract. Check the applicable task, canton and contract. Within federal scope, the 2026 gross floors are:
- Unskilled, less than four years of experience: CHF 20.35
- Unskilled with at least four years of experience, or with an EBA: CHF 22.30
- With an EFZ: CHF 24.55
The applicable minimum depends on the work, hours, qualifications, canton and contract. Cantonal wage laws can contain exceptions for domestic employment. Check the rules for your job before agreeing a rate. Our guide on choosing an hourly rate explains how to use the planning examples.
Invoicing households is not the answer
Many people think the solution is their own invoice, cleaning as a self-employed person. In private households that usually does not work: the AHV treats household work as employment, not as self-employment. The household remains the employer, with all the duties. That is exactly why many families keep putting the subject off, and exactly where a model that takes those duties off both sides comes in.
How to work declared without filling in forms yourself
On Helpore it works like this:
- You agree a gross hourly wage at or above the applicable floor. Helpore takes no fee from it; applicable employee deductions remain.
- You choose your services, area and availability. When Flex opens, households can send requests, which you are free to confirm or decline.
- Check the employment documents and duties. Future Flex includes payroll under its required household package. Light and Admin support existing employment with different task divisions. Flex booking is not open yet.
- You receive a payslip you can use for your flat, your permit and your taxes.
Which permit you need is explained in the guide on work permits for cleaning and nanny jobs. The details on deductions and net pay are in take-home pay as a cleaner or nanny, and holiday pay is explained here in detail.
Explore household work by area
Explore the local information for Zurich, Bern, Basel, Geneva, Lausanne and Lucerne, or use the overview for Helpers. These links do not establish current job demand or an available booking. Flex booking is not open yet.
Prepare your next step
Declared employment gives you wage records and the applicable protections. Cash payment can be declared too. Your take-home pay depends on the deductions that apply. Create your free Helper profile to prepare for future Flex requests.
Sources
- AHV/IV leaflet 2.06, domestic work: ahv-iv.ch/p/2.06.e
- Federal Act on Illegal Employment (BGSA): fedlex.admin.ch
- Standard employment contract for domestic work, SECO: seco.admin.ch