Law
AHV registration or the EU short-stay notification: which one do you need?
In short: you need the AHV registration for every paid household worker. The notification procedure only comes on top when someone comes from an EU/EFTA country for a job of at most three months. Then both apply, and neither replaces the other.
They are two separate duties. The notification procedure (SEM, online via EasyGov) decides whether an EU/EFTA national may work for you short term: a job of up to three months, notified by the day before work starts at the latest. The AHV registration with your canton's compensation office covers wages and social insurance and applies from the first franc, also to these short assignments.
- If your employee already lives in Switzerland (B, C or L permit), is a cross-border commuter (G) or Swiss, there is no notification procedure, only the AHV registration.
- The employer notifies, which means your household. For cleaning in households it applies from the first day.
- Third countries and the UK: there is no notification procedure for a job; a permit is needed from the first day.
This applies when
You employ a cleaner, nanny or carer in a private household, especially if she comes from abroad for a fixed-term assignment.
Official sources
Two registrations that get mixed up all the time
Both are called "registering" in everyday speech, but they belong to two areas of law. The notification procedure settles whether the person may work in Switzerland at all. The AHV registration makes sure wages, social insurance and taxes are settled correctly.
Which counters apply to you?
Pick where your employee lives. The counters you don't need close. At the others you draw a ticket with your deadline.
Where does she live before she starts with you?
How long will she work for you?
AHV registration
Wage, AHV/IV/EO/ALV, withholding tax
Within one month
Within one month
From the first franc, for every paid household helper, short jobs included.
Notification procedure
Report a short EU/EFTA job
The day before at the latest
The day before the first working day
Your household files it. For cleaning it applies from day one.
L or B permit
Residence and work
Up to three months the notification is enough.
You need both: the notification procedure and the AHV registration.
- The day before the first working day: report the job on EasyGov.
- Within one month: registration with your canton's compensation office.
- From the first working day: accident insurance, from the first working hour.
- Her wage is subject to withholding tax.
You file the notification yourself on EasyGov. Clino prepares the AHV registration for you.
What most people miss: a carer who comes from Poland for only three months is in the Swiss AHV from the first franc if you hire her directly, and her wage is subject to withholding tax. The only exceptions are a posting by a foreign firm with an A1 certificate, or doing a substantial part (around 25 %) of her work in her country of residence.
When do I need the notification procedure? By nationality
Whether the notification procedure applies depends on the person's passport and on whether she already lives in Switzerland.
EU/EFTA nationals
A job of up to three months needs no permit, only the notification via EasyGov, the day before work starts at the latest. The eight notification-free days of other sectors do not apply to cleaning in households: notification from the first day. If the job lasts longer than three months, an L or B permit is needed.
Third-country nationals (non-EU/EFTA)
A permit is required from the first day; the notification procedure does not cover a job with you. Only someone posted by a firm in the EU/EFTA who has been regularly admitted there for at least 12 months can be notified. Permits for private households are rare.
British nationals (UK)
Since 1 January 2021 treated as third-country nationals: there is no notification procedure for a job, but a permit under the Foreign Nationals and Integration Act (AIG), applied for at the cantonal authority.
Deadlines and how the notification procedure works
The notification is filed online via EasyGov; the SEM calls online notification "the usual notification procedure". The deadlines:
EU/EFTA, employed directly by you
Notify the day before the first working day at the latest, for a job of up to three months.
Posted workers or self-employed from the EU/EFTA
Notify at least 8 days before the start; at most 90 working days per calendar year.
Longer than three months
An L or B permit from the cantonal migration office, before the longer job starts.
Special case: 24-hour and live-in care
Many families bring someone from an EU country to care for a relative, often in rotation. If you hire her directly, you are the employer: notification procedure up to three months, then an L or B permit, and the AHV registration as for any household worker.
If an agency leases her to you, it must be based in Switzerland and hold a staff-leasing licence; leasing staff from abroad into Switzerland is not allowed (AVG Art. 12). Be careful with foreign agents who send a carer straight into your household.
Frequently asked questions
I registered my cleaner with the AHV. Do I still need the notification procedure?
What is the difference between the notification procedure and the simplified procedure?
Who files the notification, me or the worker?
My carer is coming from Poland for three months. What do I have to do?
Does this also apply to cross-border commuters (G permit)?
Next step: the AHV registration
You file the notification yourself on EasyGov. For the AHV side you enter canton, wage and hours; Clino prepares the registration with the compensation office and produces the payslips with withholding tax. The first 30 days are free.
Start the AHV registration