The IV assistance contribution reaches 60% more people. How far does it go for household employers?

The rate has not kept pace with cleaning service prices or nominal wages

From 2019 to 2025, the standard assistance rate rose by 6.3%. Over the same years, household cleaning service prices rose by 9.2%, nominal wages by 7.1% and overall consumer prices by 6.1%.

These are movements in different official series. They do not compare service quality or establish what any individual wage should be.

Different funding systems, not equal services

The disability insurance amount supports direct employment by a private household. The health insurance amount contributes to basic care delivered through an authorised home care organisation. It is the current OKP contribution, checked on 6 October 2026.

CHF 52.60 is 46.7% above CHF 35.85, but the figures are not wages, prices or equivalent services. The health insurance amount excludes the patient share and cantonal or municipal residual financing. The organisation also has different staffing, supervision and overhead duties.

Rules for paid relatives are still being debated

The disability insurance assistance contribution currently excludes spouses, registered partners, de facto partners and relatives in direct line from paid assistance.

Parliament still lists initiative 12.409, which would allow some payment for assistance by relatives, in the National Council committee.

Parliament recorded motions 26.3012 and 26.3013 as transmitted to the Federal Council on 29 September 2026. Motion 26.3519, on separate billing for care by relatives, remains in the Council of States committee. These items concern health insurance and home care organisations, not the disability insurance assistance contribution, and they do not establish that the proposed rules are in force.

Other employment costs reduce the available wage

The model isolates costs that can be applied consistently across all 26 cantons. Other costs can lower the base wage the fixed contribution can support.

• Administration charges

  Compensation offices charge employers an administration contribution.

• Accident insurance

  The employer pays the occupational accident premium. Non occupational cover is normally deducted from the employee when applicable.

• Public holidays and sickness

  Applicable public holiday supplements and wage continuation or insurance costs are not estimated.

• Occupational pension

  Costs may apply above CHF 23,040 annual pay in 2027 when the other statutory conditions are met.

Questions answered

Method and limits

Helpore calculated the amount available for gross base pay from the official hourly contribution, a paid holiday provision and selected employer contributions.

1. For 4 weeks of paid holiday, divide CHF 35.85 by the holiday factor and by one plus AHV, IV and EO at 5.3%, unemployment insurance at 1.1%, and the applicable family allowance rate.
2. For 5 weeks, use the corresponding holiday factor. The budgeting provision does not replace the legal right to take holiday.
3. Differences from the same 2026 model use full precision and are rounded once. The increase is 47 rappen in every canton.

Assumptions and limits

• CHF 35.85 is the official rate from 1 January 2027.
• AHV, IV and EO, unemployment insurance and family allowance rates are published 2026 inputs held constant for the 2027 scenario.
• The result is not a legal wage ceiling. It is the amount this model can support before further employment costs.
• An employer may be affiliated with a different family allowance fund, so the applicable rate can differ.
• No new data was collected and no person, office or organisation was contacted.

Download canton data CSVDownload canton data JSONReproduce the calculationMethod and limits

Primary sources

Official decisions, statistics and guidance used in the study.

1. Amounts valid from 1 January 2027Federal Council and Federal Social Insurance Office · Decision of 2 October 2026 and assistance contribution rates
2. Circular on the disability insurance assistance contributionFederal Social Insurance Office · Marginal number 6039 on the flat hourly reimbursement
3. Information sheet 4.14 on the assistance contributionAHV and IV Information Centre · Employer status, included costs and family exclusions
4. Assistance contribution statisticsFederal Statistical Office · Recipients from 2020 to 2025
5. Information sheet 2.01 on salary contributionsAHV and IV Information Centre · AHV, IV and EO rates and administration charges
6. Information sheet 2.08 on unemployment insuranceAHV and IV Information Centre · Unemployment insurance contribution
7. Family allowance types and rates, 2026Federal Social Insurance Office · Cantonal fund employer contribution rates
8. National standard employment contract for domestic workState Secretariat for Economic Affairs · Federal minimum wage for 2026
9. Health insurance contributions for care servicesFederal Office of Public Health · Basic care at home under Article 7a KLV
10. Parliamentary initiative 12.409Swiss Parliament · Official status checked 6 October 2026
11. Motion 26.3012Swiss Parliament · Basic care by relatives and health insurance remuneration
12. Motion 26.3013Swiss Parliament · Quality and planning for care by relatives
13. Motion 26.3519Swiss Parliament · Separate billing for care provided by relatives
14. Key figures 2025IV Office Bern · People settling an assistance contribution in Bern
15. Disability insurance rate historyFederal Social Insurance Office · Standard assistance rate in 2019
16. Consumer price detail resultsFederal Statistical Office · Annual averages for 2019 and 2025
17. Swiss wage indexFederal Statistical Office · Nominal wage index for 2019 and 2025

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