Skip to content
Care & family

Caring for a relative in Switzerland: how you get paid, and what the AHV credits you

Yes, you can be paid for caring for a relative, usually as an employee of their household or of a Spitex. Separately, the AHV credits CHF 45'360 per year to your pension account if the person receives a helplessness allowance, and your employer owes you up to 10 paid days a year. The check shows in one minute what applies to you.

September 23, 20267 min read
You care for a relative

Wage

if you are employed

by the person's household or by a Spitex, with AHV

Pension credit

CHF 45'360 per year

in your AHV account, if the person receives a helplessness allowance

Time

up to 10 paid days

per year from your own employer, more for a seriously ill child

These do not exclude each other: many people get two or all three.
Check

What am I entitled to?

5 questions, answers with francs and the official link.

1. Who do you care for?

2. How close do you live?

3. Does the person receive a helplessness allowance?

5. Do you also work?

Getting paid for care: the 4 ways

Who pays you decides everything else: whether you have an employment contract, whether AHV and pension fund run alongside, whether you are insured in an accident. The most common and most flexible way is the first one: the person you care for employs you, like any other caregiver.

Who pays you?

  1. 1.The person's household

    Employer
    The person you care for (or their representative)
    Money comes from
    Their income, savings, the helplessness allowance
    For your AHV
    Wage with AHV from the first franc, UVG, BVG from CHF 22'680

    Needs an employment contract and registration with the compensation office.

  2. 2.A Spitex

    Employer
    A Spitex organisation
    Money comes from
    Health insurance (basic care), plus canton or commune and a share paid by the person
    For your AHV
    Wage with all social insurances through the Spitex

    Basic care only, such as washing and dressing. Care assistant course in the first year. Not every Spitex offers this.

  3. 3.The IV assistance contribution

    Employer
    The person with a disability
    Money comes from
    IV (assistance contribution)
    For your AHV
    Wage with AHV and UVG

    Excluded: spouses and partners, parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren. Siblings are possible.

  4. 4.A cantonal allowance

    Employer
    Nobody, it is not employment
    Money comes from
    Canton or commune
    For your AHV
    Flat payment without a contract

    Only in some cantons, each with its own conditions.

On top, whatever the wage: the AHV care credit of CHF 45'360 per year.

Way 1 works like this: the person, or whoever represents them, signs a care employment contract with you, registers you with the compensation office and insures you against accidents. It is legal and builds your own AHV record instead of leaving gaps. The registration step by step is on Registering a caregiver.

Where the money for the wage comes from: the person's pension and savings, their helplessness allowance, which they can use freely, and, if they receive supplementary benefits (EL), partly the refund of illness and disability costs (Art. 14 ELG). Whether and how much of that also covers care by relatives is up to each canton: ask the EL office.

Married couples are a special case: spouses owe each other support (Art. 159 ZGB). An employment contract between spouses for care is unusual. Check it with the compensation office first.

The AHV care credit: CHF 45'360 per year for your pension

No cash in hand, but a higher pension later: for every year you care for a relative who receives a helplessness allowance, the AHV adds an extra income of CHF 45'360 when it calculates your pension, three times the minimum annual pension. If you cut your hours to care, this closes part of the pension gap.

You are entitled if all of this applies:

  • The person receives a helplessness allowance from the AHV, IV, accident or military insurance, of any degree.
  • They are your parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, spouse, parent-in-law or stepchild, or they have lived in the same household with you for at least 5 years.
  • You live no more than 30 km away or can reach them within 1 hour, on at least 180 days a year.
  • You are between the year after your 17th birthday and the year before your retirement age.
  1. 1

    Register every year

    For the previous year, with form 318.270, at the cantonal compensation office where the person you care for lives. Up to 5 years back.

  2. 2

    Noted in your AHV account

    The years are recorded. The AHV works out the amount only when you retire.

  3. 3

    A higher pension

    Each year adds CHF 45'360, spread over all your contribution years. That raises your average income.

Example: 10 years caring for your mother

Average incomeCHF 30'240plus credit: 10 × CHF 45'360 ÷ 44 yearsCHF 10'309
Pension without creditCHF 1'588per month
Pension with creditCHF 1'817per month

+ CHF 229 per month, for life

Simplified: single, full contribution period (scale 44), today's amounts from fact sheet 3.01. For married people the credit is split in half, among several carers it is shared. It only counts up to the maximum pension.

Two things are often missed: the credit is only granted on application, every year again. And for years in which you have children of your own under 16, you get the equally high child-raising credit instead, not both.

The credit does not replace contributions. If you give up your job to care, you keep paying AHV as a non-employed person, at least CHF 530 a year, or you get contribution gaps. Exception: your spouse works and pays at least CHF 1'060 a year.

Cantonal allowances for family caregivers

Some cantons pay caring relatives an allowance directly, without employment. Amounts and conditions vary a lot. We checked these on the cantons' official pages:

  • Fribourg · Indemnité forfaitaire

    CHF 35 per day

    For relatives who give a dependent person regular, substantial and lasting help at home. The communes pay, a district commission decides. Apply through the district's health network (réseau santé).

    Official source ↗

  • Lucerne · Anerkennungszulage

    CHF 800 per year, plus a relief voucher worth CHF 1'200

    The person cared for is an adult, lives at home in the canton of Lucerne and is entitled to a helplessness allowance. The care is unpaid and regular. At most two relatives share the allowance. Apply every year at the WAS Lucerne social insurance centre, not retroactively.

    Official source ↗

  • Glarus · Beitrag für pflegende und betreuende Bezugspersonen

    CHF 500 per month

    On average at least 1 hour of care per day, for more than 2 months, ordered by a doctor. Plus the Red Cross course «Pflegen zu Hause» or equivalent experience. Apply at the Hauptabteilung Gesundheit, for 12 months at a time.

    Official source ↗

  • Basel-Stadt · Pflegebeitrag

    CHF 882 per month without a helplessness allowance, with one a top-up depending on the degree

    Relatives give at least 60 minutes a day of care beyond what is usual for the age, unpaid, with at least 2 daily activities. 1 year of residence in Basel-Stadt, waiting period 60 days. The person cared for applies: at the health department (adults) or education department (children), in Riehen and Bettingen at the commune.

    Official source ↗

  • Ticino · Contributo di sostegno per il mantenimento a domicilio

    up to 75 % of the recognised costs, based on income

    Paid to the person cared for, who can use it to pay their relatives. They need a helplessness allowance (or a pending application) and 3 years of residence in Ticino. Calculated like supplementary benefits. At the Ufficio degli anziani e delle cure a domicilio in Bellinzona.

    Official source ↗

  • Valais · Aide financière individuelle pour les proches aidants

    at most CHF 20 per hour and CHF 6'000 per year

    Only for relatives of adults with a severe disability, through the cantonal disability coordination office. Apply via Emera Sozialberatung (Brig) or Emera Conseil social (Sion). For caring for older people, Valais pays no such allowance.

    Official source ↗

  • Vaud · Aide financière à l'entourage

    depends on the degree of the helplessness allowance, current amount from the CMS

    For relatives who have to give up their job fully or partly to care (Art. 12 LAPRAMS), with a modest household income. Apply through the CMS social worker. Vaud pays no wage for caring relatives, but parents of a child with a disability can get the AMINH (IV office).

    Official source ↗

  • Graubünden · BetreuungsbeitragAdopted, not in force yet

    planned CHF 300 to 600 per month

    Adopted by the cantonal parliament but not in force yet. Planned from 8 hours of unpaid care per week, for more than 2 months, with no income limit. The government sets the start and the exact amount.

    Official source ↗

Your canton is missing? Then we know of no canton-wide allowance there. There are often communal contributions, relief services or advice, though. Ask Pro Senectute (from 60), Pro Infirmis (for a disability) or your commune's social services.

Taking time off: leave to care for relatives

If you are employed yourself, the Code of Obligations protects you: short paid absences for acute situations and, for parents of a seriously ill or injured child, a longer leave paid by the EO.

Leave to care for a relative Art. 329h CO

1 box = 1 day

Up to 3 days per event, at most 10 days a year. Your employer pays your full wage.

Care leave for a seriously ill child Art. 329i CO, EO

14 weeks within 18 months, in one block or day by day. The EO pays 80 % of your wage, at most CHF 220 a day. If both parents work, half each.

There is no statutory leave for caring for a parent over a longer period. If you cut your hours for it, you negotiate with your employer. The care credit absorbs part of the effect on your pension.

How to apply for care leave and what applies to paternity leave is explained in Paternity leave and care leave.

Your relative employs you? Clino handles the paperwork

Clino prepares the AHV registration and walks you through it, creates the payslip every month and the wage certificate at year end. Nothing is charged before day 30.

Try free for 30 days

Frequently asked questions

Can I be paid for caring for my mother?
Yes. The simplest way is for your mother, or whoever represents her, to employ you: with an employment contract, registration with the compensation office and accident insurance. Some Spitex organisations also employ relatives for basic care. The IV assistance contribution does not work for children, because relatives in direct line are excluded.
How much is the care credit worth?
CHF 45'360 per year of care, spread over all contribution years and added to your average income when the pension is calculated. Example: 10 years of care, average income CHF 30'240, full contribution period, single: the pension rises from CHF 1'588 to CHF 1'817 a month.
Do I have to apply for the care credit every year?
Yes. You register it every year for the previous year, with form 318.270, at the cantonal compensation office where the person you care for lives. You can catch up on missed years up to 5 years back, after that they are lost. If several people share the care, the credit is split.
Does a mild helplessness allowance count too?
Yes. The law requires a recognised entitlement to a helplessness allowance, with no minimum degree (Art. 29septies AHVG). If there is no helplessness allowance yet, apply for it first: it also opens the credit.
How many days can I miss work when my mother suddenly needs help?
Up to 3 days per event and at most 10 days a year, on full pay (Art. 329h CO). This applies to family members and to your partner. Usually you hand in a doctor's certificate.
Where can I get relief?
Caring is hard, and nobody has to carry it alone. Relief services, day centres and respite beds give you time. Pro Senectute, Pro Infirmis, your canton's Red Cross and the communes' social services also help with applications such as the helplessness allowance and supplementary benefits.

Sources

Further reading

Salvador Jovells

Salvador Jovells, founder of Clino