2026 thresholds for household staff: 22'680, 60'480 and the 5%
Three numbers decide how you settle your household employee's payroll: CHF 22'680 per person, CHF 60'480 per household and the 5% flat tax. Here is what each limit regulates, since when it applies and what happens when you cross it.
Up to CHF 22'680 annual wage per employee and CHF 60'480 total payroll across the household, you may settle under the simplified procedure — with a 5% flat withholding tax for everyone. At CHF 22'680 the BVG pension obligation also starts (from age 25). As of 1.1.2026: values unchanged since 1.1.2025.
- CHF 22'680 per year and person: cap for the simplified procedure — and the BVG entry threshold at the same time
- CHF 60'480 per year: maximum combined payroll of all employees in the household
- 5% withholding tax: flat rate for every employee in the simplified procedure, whatever their permit
This applies when
You employ a cleaner, nanny or carer in your private household and want to know which procedure applies and when the pension fund becomes mandatory.
All 2026 thresholds at a glance
All values are annual and apply across Switzerland. They are measured against the AHV-relevant wage (see below), not just the amount paid out.
| Figure | What it regulates | In force since | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| CHF 22'680 per year | Maximum annual wage per employee under the simplified settlement procedure | 1.1.2025 (unchanged in 2026) | BGSA Art. 2 para. 1 lit. a |
| CHF 22'680 per year | BVG entry threshold: from this annual wage the pension fund becomes mandatory (from age 25, per employer) | 1.1.2025 (unchanged in 2026) | BVG Art. 7 |
| CHF 60'480 per year | Maximum combined annual payroll of all employees of one household (simplified procedure) | 1.1.2025 (unchanged in 2026) | BGSA Art. 2 para. 1 lit. b |
| 5 % | Flat withholding tax under the simplified procedure — for every employee, whatever their permit; the tax is settled definitively with it | 2008 (unchanged) | BGSA; DBG Art. 37a |
For a start partway through the year, the compensation offices currently handle it inconsistently — ask your Ausgleichskasse.
Source: clino.ch — 2026 thresholds for household staff in Switzerland. Figures last verified on 17.07.2026.
The key rates alongside
| AHV/IV/EO (employee and employer, each) | 5.3 % |
| ALV (each side) | 1.1 % |
| Occupational accident BU (employer only) | 0.505 % |
| Non-occupational accident NBU (employee, from 8 hrs/week) | 1.432 % |
| BVG coordination deduction | CHF 26'460 |
| BVG: maximum insurable wage | CHF 90'720 |
Why 22'680 appears twice in the law
CHF 22'680 is no coincidence of two laws: for the cap of the simplified procedure, the BGSA explicitly borrows the threshold amount from BVG Art. 7 — the same figure that serves as the entry threshold into the pension fund. When the BVG amount rises, the procedure cap moves with it automatically.
In practice: as long as an employee's annual wage stays below CHF 22'680, you can settle under the simplified procedure and no BVG obligation exists. Above it, the ordinary procedure applies and, from age 25, the pension fund becomes mandatory. The BVG threshold counts per employer.
CHF 60'480: the household total
The second limit does not count per person but per household: the wages of all employees combined must not exceed CHF 60'480 per year. The amount equals twice the maximum annual AHV old-age pension, which is why it is always adjusted together with the pension.
Even if every single employee stays below the per-person cap, the sum of all wages can exceed the household total — and then the simplified procedure is no longer available for the entire household.
The 5% flat tax
Under the simplified procedure you, as the employer, withhold a flat 5% tax from the wage — for every employee, including Swiss citizens and C-permit holders. The compensation office forwards it to the tax authority, and with that the wage is definitively taxed: no entry in the tax return, no recalculation.
That is not how the ordinary procedure works: there, only employees without a settlement permit (e.g. permit B, L, F or G) pay withholding tax, and at their canton's tariff instead of the flat rate.
What counts as wage?
All limits are measured against the AHV-relevant wage. Besides the cash wage, that includes the in-kind wage for board and lodging (CHF 990 per month for live-in staff), the holiday supplement on hourly pay, and the public-holiday indemnity. If you only compare the amount paid out, you underestimate the relevant wage.
Downwards, by the way, there is no de-minimis line: in a private household the wage is AHV-liable from the first franc. The CHF 750 per year exemption applies only to employees under 25.
What happens above the limits?
If the wage exceeds one of the limits, you switch to the ordinary settlement procedure, and from CHF 22'680 a year the pension fund becomes mandatory on top. No drama, but more admin — these articles cover the details:
- Simplified or ordinary procedure? The comparison
- The BVG obligation for nannies and household staff
- All 2026 payroll deductions in detail
- The downsides of the simplified procedure
Whether your household still sits below every limit is what the eligibility check for the simplified procedure tells you in two minutes. What employment actually costs under each procedure is worked out by the household-help cost calculator with the current rates.
Common questions
›Does the CHF 22'050 entry threshold still apply?
No. CHF 22'050 was the BVG entry threshold until the end of 2024. Since 1.1.2025 the figure is CHF 22'680 — unchanged in 2026. The same figure also caps the simplified settlement procedure.
›Do the limits apply per person or per household?
Both, depending on the figure: CHF 22'680 applies per employee and year, CHF 60'480 to the combined payroll of all the household's employees. The BVG entry threshold of CHF 22'680 counts per employer — wages from different households are not added together for it.
›Do board and lodging count as wage?
Yes. All limits are measured against the AHV-relevant wage: cash wage plus in-kind wage (CHF 990 per month for full board and lodging) plus holiday supplement and public-holiday indemnity.
›What if the employment starts partway through the year?
The limits are annual values. Whether they are reduced pro rata for a mid-year start is currently handled inconsistently by the compensation offices — when in doubt, ask your Ausgleichskasse before relying on the simplified procedure.
Rates and thresholds already set - you just submit
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Sources
BGSA Art. 2; BVG Art. 7; DBG Art. 37a; AHV/IV leaflet 2.07; BSV key figures 2025/2026. Every number on this page is rendered from the same verified database Clino uses to produce payslips — last verified on 17.07.2026.
