Swiss household employment
Cross border commuters: employing a Helper who lives abroad
Also written: Grenzgänger, Ausweis G · Frontalier, permis G · Frontaliere, permesso G
Can I employ someone who lives in France, Germany, Italy or Austria, and what changes?
Yes. A citizen of an EU or EFTA state who lives in a neighbouring country and works in Switzerland, returning home at least once a week, holds a cross border commuter permit (Ausweis G, permis G). The employment itself is Swiss: Swiss social insurance, Swiss labour law and the Swiss minimum wage rules of the place of work all apply.
What it means if you employ someone at home
Nothing about the wage floor changes: a commuter working in a Geneva household is owed the Geneva rate. What changes is tax. Withholding tax at source applies, with rates that depend on the country of residence and the canton, and the permit must be in place before the first day. With Helpore Admin, Helpore records the permit, applies the right withholding and files the wage statements in your name. With Helpore Admin Light, Helpore prepares them and you file them yourself.
You are the employer. With Helpore Admin, Helpore prepares a contract if you want one and, under your signed power of attorney, files the declarations and produces the payslip in your name; with Admin Light, Helpore prepares the maths and the documents and you file and pay. Both are optional. You stay the employer in every case and can also do all of this yourself.
The numbers
Where the highest household minimums apply, which is where most commuters work:
- Without a qualification
- CHF 24.59 / hour
- AFP, or four years of experience
- CHF 24.85 / hour
- CFC
- CHF 25.11 / hour
- CFC in horticulture
- CHF 26.78 / hour
Common questions
Does the Helper need a permit before starting?
Yes. The G permit is applied for by the employer with the cantonal migration office before work begins. Helpore prepares the application with the household's details.
Which minimum wage applies, Swiss or the home country's?
The Swiss one, for the place of work. A commuter in Geneva is under Geneva's minimum wage law and its standard contract for domestic work, the CTT-EDom. In Basel-Stadt and in Zurich, the federal NAV sets the minimum wages where it covers the work.