You have decided to employ someone at home the proper way: declared, insured, with a contract and a payslip. The question that follows is practical. How much of the administration do you want to carry yourself, and how much do you want to hand over?
Helpore answers that with three models. They share one principle: the household is the employer, the Helper keeps the full agreed wage, and nothing is hidden. They differ in how the relationship starts and in who does the paperwork. This guide sets out what each one includes, what it costs in 2026, and how to move from one to the next.
The three models at a glance
| Helpore Flex | Helpore Admin Light | Helpore Admin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Trying Helpers, one off and occasional help | A regular Helper, you run the paperwork | A regular Helper, Helpore runs the paperwork |
| How it starts | Search, choose, book online | Contract for a Helper you found on Helpore or bring yourself | Contract for a Helper you found on Helpore or bring yourself |
| What Helpore does | Declares and insures every booked hour, runs payroll for the booking | Contract, monthly wage calculation, registration pack, yearly summary | Everything in Light, plus registering, paying and forwarding for you |
| What you do | Book and pay per booking | Register with the compensation office, pay the wage and the contributions yourself | Pay one monthly invoice |
| Power of attorney | Not needed | Not needed | Yes, one signature at the start |
| Price | CHF 3.50 per booked hour, plus the wage | CHF 15.90 a month or CHF 154.80 a year | CHF 23.90 a month or CHF 238.80 a year |
Helpore Flex: book by the hour, try before you commit
Flex is the marketplace. You search by service and area, read real Helper profiles with verified identity and work eligibility, and book online. Every booked hour is declared Swiss employment: AHV contributions, accident insurance and holiday pay are part of the price you see before you confirm, and the Helper receives a payslip.
The fee is one flat CHF 3.50 per booked hour on top of the Helper's wage. There is no subscription and no minimum, so Flex suits a deep clean before guests arrive, an afternoon of childcare or a few weeks of help after an operation just as well as a weekly slot.
Flex is also how most regular arrangements begin. You try a Helper once, then again, and when you know you have found the right person you keep them. Two things happen at that point. If you set up a recurring weekly series with that Helper, a one time placement fee of CHF 29 applies, and the Flex fees you already paid for that Helper in the last 90 days are credited against it, so a household that tried the Helper a few times usually pays nothing extra. And if you would rather move the relationship to a contract, the booking planner carries the Helper straight into Admin Light or Admin.
Helpore Admin Light: the contract and the numbers, you do the rest
Admin Light is for a household that has, or wants, a regular Helper and is happy to deal with the authorities itself. It is priced for that division of labour: CHF 15.90 a month, or CHF 154.80 a year.
What you get:
- An employment contract that follows the official model contract for household work, with the legal minimum wage checked for your canton, the holiday entitlement, probation and notice periods, and the insurance choices written down. A Helper who is not on Helpore yet is invited by email, creates an account, reviews the contract and signs it.
- A monthly calculation sheet on the first of every month, and immediately when both signatures are in: gross wage, the Helper's deductions, your employer contributions, insurance premiums, the total cost of the month, and a table of who you pay, how much, and by when. The Helper receives a salary statement.
- A registration pack the moment the contract is active: every figure the compensation office asks for, the office responsible for your canton, the deadlines, the accident insurance duty and the list of anything still missing. You submit it; nothing is filed without you.
- Hour changes and holidays handled month by month. You record extra hours, fewer hours or holidays taken, the Helper confirms, and the sheet updates. From eight hours a week the non occupational accident cover becomes mandatory and the sheet says so.
- A yearly summary every January with the figure for the wage declaration.
What stays with you: registering with the compensation office, paying the wage by the 25th, forwarding the contributions when the office invoices you, and taking out the accident policy. Light gives you every number and every date; it never touches your money and needs no power of attorney.
Helpore Admin: everything in Light, and Helpore does the doing
Admin is the complete service, at CHF 23.90 a month or CHF 238.80 a year. It includes everything in Admin Light and adds the part that costs most households the most time: acting.
Under a one time power of attorney, Helpore registers the household with the compensation office, pays the Helper's net wage on the 25th, and forwards the contributions, the insurance premiums and, where a Helper is taxed at source, the tax to the cantonal tax office. You receive one invoice a month for the total employer cost, with the payslip that itemises every deduction and a list of exactly what Helpore forwards on your behalf. The household remains the employer; Helpore acts as its paying agent, in its name and on its account.
Admin is the right choice when you want the arrangement to run without you thinking about deadlines, or when the numbers get more involved: a Helper taxed at source at the ordinary cantonal tariff, a pension fund affiliation, several Helpers, or a household that crosses the simplified settlement ceiling during the year.
The rules that run underneath all three
Some of the rules are the same whichever model you choose, and it helps to know them.
The household is the employer. For work in a private home, Swiss law treats the household as the employer. Helpore never employs your Helper and never takes a share of the wage. Its income is the Flex fee, the Light or Admin subscription and, where it arranges insurance offers, a disclosed commission.
Every hour is declared. Contributions to AHV, IV, EO and ALV, the family allowance fund, occupational accident insurance and, from eight hours a week, non occupational accident insurance apply in every model. Flex builds them into the booking price; Light shows them on the sheet; Admin pays them for you.
The simplified settlement procedure. Small household wages can be settled once a year with the compensation office, with a flat 5 percent tax deducted at source that is final. The ceiling is CHF 22,680 per employee per year and CHF 60,480 for all the household's employees together. Light and Admin check both ceilings every month, counting your other Helpers and the wages you declare for staff outside Helpore, and switch a month to the ordinary rules when a household crosses them.
Holidays are time off. The law gives every employee at least four weeks of paid holiday a year, five until the age of 20, and the cantonal standard contracts often grant more with age. Light and Admin track the days taken and the balance, pay out an untaken balance when the contract ends, and only allow holiday pay to be included in the hourly wage where the cantonal rules permit it.
Which model for which situation
- You want help this month and are not sure yet who. Flex. Book, try, decide.
- You found a Helper on Flex and want them every week. Set up the weekly series in Flex, or move to Admin Light or Admin. Your trial bookings count towards the placement fee.
- Someone already helps in your home and nothing is declared yet. Admin Light or Admin. Enter their details, they sign, the registration pack is ready the same day.
- You are comfortable with forms and bank transfers and want the lowest fixed cost. Admin Light.
- You want it done, not explained. Admin.
- Your Helper is an EU or EFTA citizen without a permit. Any model, within the 90 day rule. Helpore counts the days across bookings and contracts and tells you when the notification is due.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Helpore Flex, Helpore Admin Light and Helpore Admin?
Flex is booking by the hour with every hour declared and insured. Admin Light is a contract plus the monthly numbers for a regular Helper, with the household registering and paying itself. Admin is Light plus Helpore registering, paying and forwarding under a power of attorney.
How much does each model cost?
Flex: CHF 3.50 per booked hour on top of the wage, plus a one time CHF 29 placement fee when a Helper found on Helpore becomes a regular arrangement. Admin Light: CHF 15.90 a month or CHF 154.80 a year. Admin: CHF 23.90 a month or CHF 238.80 a year. Helpers never pay.
Can I start with Flex and switch later?
Yes. Flex fees paid for the same Helper in the last 90 days are credited against the placement fee, and the booking planner carries the Helper into the Light or Admin setup.
Which model is right for someone who already helps in my home?
Admin Light or Admin. Both work for a Helper who is not on Helpore yet: you enter their details, they are invited, they sign.
Is the household still the employer in every model?
Yes, in all three. Helpore prepares the paperwork and, in Admin, acts for the household under a power of attorney.
What does the simplified settlement procedure have to do with the models?
It is the once a year settlement with a flat 5 percent tax for small household wages, up to CHF 22,680 per employee and CHF 60,480 per household. Light and Admin check the ceilings every month and switch to the ordinary rules when a household crosses them.