Where do I start with household help in Switzerland?
Start with one question: does someone already work for you? If not yet, Helpore Flex lets you try Helpers by the hour, with no subscription. If yes, Helpore Admin runs the payroll in your name, or Helpore Admin Light prepares it while you register and pay. The three questions below name your guide.
Find your guide in three questions
All answers at a glance
The guide for each kind of help
- Our home: Cleaning and housekeeping
- Our children: Childcare
- An older person: Senior home help and companionship
- Something else: How to register household help in Switzerland
The plan for each situation
- Nobody yet, now and then: Helpore Flex. For help now and then, Helpore Flex fits: Helpers by the hour, with no subscription.
- Nobody yet, regularly: Helpore Flex. While you look for one person, Helpore Flex fits: try Helpers by the hour, then keep the one you trust with Helpore Admin Light or Helpore Admin.
- Someone already, now and then: Helpore Admin. Your household is the employer, even for a few hours: Helpore Admin runs the payroll for you, Helpore Admin Light prepares it while you register and pay, and your guide shows every step if you do it all yourself.
- Someone already, regularly: Helpore Admin. Your household is the employer of the person who works for you regularly: Helpore Admin runs the payroll for you, Helpore Admin Light prepares it while you register and pay, and your guide shows every step if you do it all yourself.
I already have a cleaner. How do I register them and run the payroll?
Your household is the employer, so the duties are yours whichever way you run them: register with the compensation office of your canton, take out accident insurance, pay at least the minimum wage that applies, and settle the wage and the contributions every month and at the end of the year. You can do all of it yourself. With Admin Light, Helpore prepares the registration pack, the monthly figures, the payslips and the annual documents, and you submit and pay. With Admin, you pay one monthly QR invoice, and Helpore registers the employment, runs the payroll and passes the wage, the contributions and the premiums on in your name, under your power of attorney. The table below shows who does what.
Who can run the payroll for my nanny or carer?
The same rules apply to a nanny, a babysitter or a carer for an older relative. When your household employs them directly, your household is the employer, whether the wage is hourly or monthly: Admin runs the payroll in your name, or Admin Light prepares it for you to file and pay. When an agency or a care service employs them and invoices you, that company is the employer, not you. Some cases have their own rules: a young babysitter who earns very little may be exempt from AHV, an au pair is paid partly in board and lodging, and live in care has rules on rest and on paid presence time. Helpore does not calculate board and lodging as part of the wage today. Read the childcare guide or the senior help guide before you start.
| Question | Doing it yourself | Admin Light | Admin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who is the employer | Doing it yourselfYour household | Admin LightYour household | AdminYour household |
| Who prepares the contract, the registration and the monthly figures | Doing it yourselfYou write the contract, fill in the registration and work out the wage and contributions every month | Admin LightHelpore records the terms you confirm and prepares a contract template for you and your Helper to print, the registration pack, the monthly wage and contribution figures, the payslips and the annual documents | AdminHelpore prepares the registration, the monthly payroll, the payslips and the annual documents, and if you want one, a contract template for you and your Helper |
| Who checks the figures before anything is filed or paid | Doing it yourselfYou | Admin LightYou check what Helpore prepared before you submit or pay | AdminYou check the month's payroll invoice, line by line, before you pay it |
| Who submits to the compensation office and the insurer | Doing it yourselfYou | Admin LightYou, with the prefilled pack and the portal links | AdminHelpore, in your household's name, under your signed power of attorney |
| Who pays the wage, the contributions and the premiums | Doing it yourselfYou pay each one | Admin LightYou pay each one from your own account. No money runs through Helpore | AdminYou pay one QR invoice a month. In your name, Helpore sends the Helper the net wage and pays the rest to the offices and the insurer, keeping nothing |
| What it costs you besides the employment costs | Doing it yourselfNothing but your time | Admin LightCHF 15.90 a month or CHF 154.80 a year | AdminCHF 23.90 a month or CHF 238.80 a year |
Hiring help at home in Switzerland is common and entirely legal, but paying cash without declaring it is not. As soon as you pay someone who works in your private household, you take on employer duties toward the Swiss social-insurance system, and household wages must be reported from the very first franc. The good news: the framework is well defined, and for typical part-time help there is a simplified route. Below is the full picture, followed by what changes canton by canton and service by service.
Are you a household employer?
If you decide what work is done, when and how, and you pay the person directly, you are almost certainly the employer, not a customer buying a service. This is true even for a few hours of cleaning a week. Using an agency that employs the worker is different; this guide is about directly engaging someone in your home, which is what most cleaners, nannies and carers in Switzerland are.
Step 1: Register with your cantonal compensation office
Household employers register the employment with the AHV compensation office (Ausgleichskasse / caisse de compensation) of their canton of residence, and contributions are due from the very first franc of household wages: there is no lower limit. The exact office and any registration deadline are set at cantonal level, so confirm them with the office responsible for where you live (or let Helpore Admin do the registration in your name).
Step 3: Insure against accidents (UVG)
Every employee, including household staff, must be covered by accident insurance under the UVG. Occupational-accident cover applies to all staff, and non-occupational-accident cover is additionally required for anyone working 8 hours or more per week for the same employer. This cover is a mandatory part of compliant household employment.
Step 4: Check occupational pension (BVG) eligibility
Occupational pension (BVG, the second pillar) becomes mandatory once the yearly wage from one employer exceeds CHF 22’680. Below it, no BVG applies. Above it, contributions are calculated on the coordinated wage: the yearly wage minus CHF 26’460, at least CHF 3’780 and at most CHF 64’260. Retirement credits rise with age, and the employer pays at least half (Federal Act on Occupational Old Age, Survivors' and Invalidity Pension Provision (BVG) Art. 2 para. 1; Art. 7 para. 1; Art. 8 para. 1, 2; Art. 16; Art. 66 para. 1; Ordinance on Occupational Old Age, Survivors' and Invalidity Pension Provision (BVV 2) Art. 5).
Step 5: Withholding tax (Quellensteuer), where it applies
If your employee is taxed at source (typically foreign nationals resident in Switzerland without a settlement (C) permit, and certain non-residents) the employer deducts withholding tax from the wage and settles it with the cantonal tax authority. Swiss citizens and C-permit holders are taxed in the ordinary procedure instead. Tariffs are set per canton, so there is no single national rate; under the simplified settlement procedure the tax is discharged at a flat 5% (below).
The simplified settlement procedure (a shortcut for small wages)
For small wage bills, the simplified settlement procedure (vereinfachtes Abrechnungsverfahren) lets a household employer settle social contributions and tax once a year with the compensation office, with income tax discharged at a flat 5% of gross. It is available when each employee earns no more than CHF 22,680 a year and the employer's total household payroll is no more than CHF 60,480 a year. The employee receives a certificate for their tax return and the income is not taxed again in the ordinary procedure, which is exactly why it suits occasional household help.
Step 6: Proper pay, holiday pay and payslips
Household staff are entitled to proper pay, paid holiday and a written payslip for every wage payment. Holiday is taken as time off with the wage paid on. Only with an hourly wage and irregular hours may it be paid as a supplement on each hour (8.33 % for 4 weeks, 10.64 % for 5 weeks until the 20th birthday), and only if the supplement is shown in the contract and on every payslip. In the ordinary settlement procedure the employer also issues the annual wage statement (Lohnausweis, form 11); under the simplified procedure the compensation office confirms the tax instead. With Helpore Admin, Helpore produces the payslips and the Lohnausweis in your name; with Admin Light, Helpore prepares the figures and you issue them.
What a household employer actually pays: an example
Take a cleaner in Zurich at CHF 30.00 an hour for 4 hours a week: CHF 520.00 wage, CHF 43.32 holiday pay (8.33 %) and CHF 2.03 for public holidays (0.39 %) make CHF 565.35 gross a month. With CHF 44.95 employer contributions and CHF 2.85 for accident insurance, your household pays CHF 613.15 a month.
The compliance checklist at a glance
- 1
Register the employment
Sign up the household employment with your cantonal compensation office: wages count from the first franc.
- 2
Settle social contributions
Withhold the employee share at each pay and pay AHV/IV/EO (5.3 % each), ALV (1.1 % each) and the family allowance contribution.
- 3
Arrange accident cover
Take out UVG accident insurance for the worker.
- 4
Check BVG and Quellensteuer
Check whether the occupational pension (above CHF 22’680 a year) and source tax apply.
- 5
Pay correctly and document it
Pay at least the floor that applies, pay holiday as the law requires and hand over a payslip with every wage payment.
Official sources
Built on these official sources.
Informationen zum NAV Hauswirtschaft
SECO, published 01.01.2026.
Merkblatt 2.01, Lohnbeiträge an die AHV, die IV und die EO
Informationsstelle AHV/IV, published 01.01.2026.
Merkblatt 2.06, Hausdienst, Ziff. 9
Informationsstelle AHV/IV, published 01.01.2026.
Merkblatt 2.07, Vereinfachtes Abrechnungsverfahren für Arbeitgebende
Informationsstelle AHV/IV, published 01.01.2026.
Salaire minimum genevois, montant et calcul du salaire minimum (CTT-EDom art. 10)
État de Genève, OCIRT, published 01.01.2026.
Informationsstelle AHV/IV, Kantonale Ausgleichskassen
The list of the cantonal compensation offices, where a household registers as an employer.
Read on 02.09.2026.
Guides by canton
Minimum wages, withholding-tax handling and family-allowance rates differ by canton. Pick yours:
Guides by type of help
The same framework applies to every role, with a few service-specific points:
Video guides
Short, step-by-step walkthroughs of the Helpore basics.
The Swiss household alphabet
AHV, ALV, UVG, BVG, FAK, NAV. One page per term, in plain words, with the 2026 figures and what each one means if you employ someone at home.
Helpore compared with the other options
Agencies, payroll services and job boards each solve part of the problem. One page per option, with what changes for you and for your Helper, every fact sourced and dated.
Frequently asked questions
Do I really have to register a cleaner who only comes a few hours a week?
Yes. In a private household, AHV contributions are due from the first franc. One exception: a person up to the year they turn 25 who earns at most CHF 750 a year with you, unless they ask to contribute. The simplified settlement procedure makes small jobs easy: it is open when each person earns at most CHF 22’680 a year and your household's total payroll is at most CHF 60’480 a year (Ordinance on Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (AHVV) Art. 34d para. 2 let. a; Federal Act on Measures to Combat Illegal Employment (BGSA) Art. 2 para. 1; Federal Act on Direct Federal Taxation (DBG) Art. 37a para. 1; Federal Act on the Harmonisation of Direct Taxes of the Cantons and Communes (StHG) Art. 11 para. 4).
What happens if I pay cash and don't declare it?
The wage then stays off the AHV account of the person you employ. The compensation office claims the contributions for past years with interest, and an employer who does not register can be prosecuted. If an accident happens without insurance, the substitute fund of the accident insurance pays the benefits and charges you substitute premiums (Federal Act on Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (AHVG) Art. 30ter para. 1; Art. 16 para. 1; Ordinance on Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (AHVV) Art. 39; Art. 41bis para. 1 let. b; AHVG Art. 87; Federal Act on Accident Insurance (UVG) Art. 73 para. 1; Art. 95 para. 1; Art. 112 para. 1 let. a). Registering with the compensation office of your canton is the compliant route. If you choose Helpore Admin, Helpore registers the employment in your name under your signed power of attorney, and your household stays the employer.
Who pays the social contributions: me or the worker?
Both. Employer and employee each pay 5.3 % for AHV/IV/EO and 1.1 % for ALV. You withhold the employee share from each wage and pay the total to the compensation office. As the employer, you also pay the family allowance contribution your canton sets (Federal Act on Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (AHVG) Art. 5 para. 1; Art. 13; Art. 14 para. 1; Federal Act on Invalidity Insurance (IVG) Art. 3 para. 1; Federal Act on Compensation for Loss of Earnings (EOG) Art. 27 para. 2; Unemployment Insurance Act (AVIG) Art. 3 para. 2, 3; Family Allowances Act (FamZG) Art. 16).
Does Helpore do all of this for me?
Your household stays the employer in every case. With Helpore Admin, Helpore prepares a contract if you want one and, under your signed power of attorney, files the registration and declarations, arranges the insurance you choose and produces the payslips and the annual Lohnausweis in your name. With Admin Light, Helpore prepares the calculation and the documents, and you file and pay yourself. To find someone new, choose a Helper through Helpore Flex.
Let Helpore take on the administration
Your household stays the employer. With Helpore Admin, under your signed power of attorney, Helpore registers the employment and runs payroll, insurance and documents in your name. With Admin Light, Helpore prepares the calculation and the documents, and you file and pay yourself.
Step 2: Pay social-insurance contributions
On the gross wage, employer and employee each pay first-pillar contributions: old-age and survivors' insurance, disability insurance and income compensation (AHV/IV/EO) at 5.3% each, 10.6% combined, plus unemployment insurance (ALV) at 1.1% each, 2.2% combined, on wages up to CHF 148,200 a year. The employer also pays a family-allowance contribution (FAK), which each canton sets itself and which runs from 1.025 % to 2.75 % at the cantonal funds, plus a small administrative-cost contribution. The employer withholds the employee's share from the wage and pays the combined amount to the compensation office. Two exemptions exist: wages up to CHF 750 a year for employees under 25 are exempt unless the employee asks otherwise, and retired employees have an AHV allowance of CHF 1,400 a month (CHF 16,800 a year).