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Cleaner employment contract: free template

Based on the Code of Obligations and your canton's standard contract (NAV). Minimum wage, holidays and notice periods checked as you type. A ready PDF in 3 minutes.

With your canton's rules: minimum wage, holidays, notice periods
Bilingual, if your cleaner speaks another language
As a PDF to sign or as a Word file

Fill in the contract

Page 1 of an employment contract made with this generator: household in Zurich, cleaner María Santos, CHF 30 an hour

Real PDF made with this generatorEmployment-contract_María-Santos.pdfA4 · 2 pagesOpen the sample PDF

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Contract for a different role? Caregiver employment contract (incl. live-in)·Nanny employment contract

Swiss employment law

What goes into a cleaner's employment contract?

Eleven sections, each filled with your answers or your canton's rules, each with the law it rests on. Plus optional extra clauses.

Employment Contract

Contents

Sample

1
Contracting parties
From your answers
Names, addresses, date of birth and residence status: who employs whom.
Legal basis: OR Art. 319, 330b
2
Start of employment and duration
From your answers
Start date, open-ended term and the probation period that applies in your canton.
Legal basis: OR Art. 334, 335b
3
Workplace and activity
From your answers
Your address as the workplace and the tasks you ticked.
Legal basis: OR Art. 330b
4
Working hours
From your answers
Hours per week and your canton's rules on overtime, nights and Sundays.
Legal basis: OR Art. 321c · NAV
5
Compensation
From your answers
Hourly wage, holiday supplement and net pay, checked against the minimum wage that applies in your canton.
Legal basis: OR Art. 322, 323b, 329d · NAV
6
Social insurance
Per your canton
Which deductions apply: AHV/IV/EO, ALV, UVG and, depending on the wage, BVG.
Legal basis: AHVG Art. 12 · UVG Art. 1a · BVG Art. 2
7
Vacation
Per your canton
The statutory or cantonal holiday entitlement, depending on age.
Legal basis: OR Art. 329a, 329d · NAV
8
Illness and accident
Per your canton
Sick pay and who pays after an accident.
Legal basis: OR Art. 324a, 324b · UVG Art. 1a
9
Confidentiality
Standard clause
Discretion about everything that happens in the household.
Legal basis: OR Art. 321a
10
Termination
Per your canton
Notice periods by years of service, as your canton sets them.
Legal basis: OR Art. 335c, 336c
11
Applicable law
Per your canton
Which law applies: the Code of Obligations and your canton's standard employment contract (NAV).
Legal basis: OR Art. 319 ff., 360

Clause by clause

Probation, hourly wage, notice: the rules for your contract

What the law requires, what your canton changes and what the template does with it.

Does the employment contract have to be in writing?

No. But five points do.

An employment contract is valid even when agreed verbally (OR Art. 320). Within one month of the start, though, you must give your cleaner in writing: the names, the start date, her role, the wage and the weekly hours (OR Art. 330b).

A longer probation, different notice periods and overtime without a supplement are only valid in writing. Your canton's standard contract (NAV) applies anyway, even without a contract (OR Art. 360).

The template contains all five points and names your canton's NAV.

OR Art. 320, 330b, 360What your canton's NAV covers

How long is the probation period?

1 month, with 7 days' notice

That is the rule unless something else is agreed (OR Art. 335b). In writing you can agree up to 3 months, or no probation at all.

In 13 cantons the NAV sets its own rule, from 2 weeks (Obwalden and Graubünden) to 2 months (Fribourg and Vaud), 8 of them with a shorter notice. The template uses your canton's rule.

OR Art. 335b · NAVProbation and fixed-term contracts

Which hourly wage goes into the contract?

At least CHF 20.35 gross, plus paid holidays

From 5 hours a week the federal standard contract for domestic work requires CHF 20.35 an hour, CHF 22.30 with several years' experience or an EBA, CHF 24.55 with an EFZ. The minimum is higher in Neuchâtel (CHF 21.35) and Geneva (CHF 24.59). In the city of Lucerne, a municipal minimum of CHF 22.75 also applies.

With an hourly wage, holiday pay is often paid as a supplement, shown separately in the contract and on every payslip: 8.33 % for 4 weeks of holiday, 10.64 % for 5, 13.04 % for 6 (OR Art. 329d). CHF 30.00 thus becomes CHF 32.50. The Federal Supreme Court accepts the supplement only for irregular work (4A_357/2022); with fixed days and hours, “the wage keeps running during the holidays” is the safe option.

The template checks your wage as you type against the minimum that applies at your address, and asks how the vacation is paid.

What households actually pay: hourly wage of a cleaner

OR Art. 322, 329d · NAV

Which notice periods apply?

1 to 3 months, always to the end of a month

Probation: 7 days
Year 1: 1 month
Years 2 to 9: 2 months
From year 10: 3 months

That is the law (OR Art. 335c). Shorter is only possible in writing, and never below one month. If your cleaner is ill after the probation, a notice is void for a while: 30 days in year 1, 90 days in years 2 to 5, 180 days from year 6 (OR Art. 336c).

OR Art. 335c, 336cCalculate the notice period

What applies when she is ill?

At least 3 weeks' pay in year 1

That is the legal minimum once the job has lasted, or was agreed for, more than three months (OR Art. 324a). After that the entitlement grows with the years of service, following a court scale or your canton's NAV. After an accident, the accident insurance pays, which is mandatory for every employee (UVG Art. 1a).

In 15 cantons the NAV also requires daily sickness benefit insurance, in some only above a minimum workload or contract length; in 5 it is optional. It replaces sick pay if it is at least equivalent and agreed in writing.

The template uses your canton's rule.

OR Art. 324a, 324b · UVG Art. 1aSickness insurance: mandatory in your canton?

Who pays for cleaning products and equipment?

You do, unless agreed otherwise

The employer provides the equipment and supplies (OR Art. 327). If your cleaner brings her own, you owe her fair compensation, for example a fixed monthly allowance. What she buys on your behalf is refunded against receipts (OR Art. 327a).

Into the contract: The household provides the supplies Own supplies for a flat allowance

OR Art. 327, 327aChecklist: cleaning supplies and who pays

The template applies all of this to your canton.

Fill in the contract

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Sample contract

Sample cleaner contract: what yours will look like

An example made with this generator: household in Zurich, 6 hours a week, CHF 30 an hour. What you type yourself is highlighted; the template fills in the rest from the law and the NAV.

Employment Contract

for work in a private household (Art. 319 ff. CO)

1. Contracting parties

Employer:

Anna Keller

Seestrasse 41, 8002 Zürich

Employee:

María Santos

Date of birth: 14.03.1981

Nationality: Spain

Residence permit: B

Address: Badenerstrasse 120, 8004 Zürich

2. Start of employment and duration

The employment relationship begins on 02.11.2026 and is concluded for an indefinite period.

Probation period: the first month (NAV ZH Art. 17 Abs. 2 und Art. 18 Abs. 1). During the probation period, the employment may be terminated by either party with 3 days' notice.

3. Workplace and activity

Workplace:Seestrasse 41, 8002 Zürich

Activity:Cleaning, Ironing, Laundry

Working days:Tuesday, Friday

4. Working hours

Hours per week:6 hours

The exact scheduling of working hours shall be agreed between the parties.

Overtime: Work beyond the agreed weekly hours is performed only at the employer's request or with the employer's consent and is paid at the normal wage without supplement (NAV ZH Art. 5 Abs. 4 (Art. 24 Abs. 2 für Stundenfrauen)). By mutual agreement, overtime may instead be compensated by time off of equal length. Overtime is recorded in writing each month and shown on the payslip.

5. Compensation

Hourly wage:CHF 30.00 gross

Vacation pay:4 weeks of vacation · 20 days, the wage continues (no surcharge)

The wage is paid monthly, no later than the last working day of the month. A detailed payslip is issued every month.

A 13th month salary is not agreed.

6. Social insurance

Social insurance contributions are processed via the simplified billing procedure according to Art. 2 and 3 BGSA.

Responsible compensation office: SVA Zürich

The following contributions are deducted from the gross wage (employee share): AHV/IV/EO (5.3%), ALV (1.1%), withholding tax (5%), cantonal FAK employee contribution (VS/VD only). The 5% withholding tax is the flat-rate final tax of the simplified procedure (Art. 37a DBG) and applies regardless of nationality or residence permit, so also to Swiss citizens. The wage is thereby fully taxed and is not taxed again in the tax return.

The employer additionally pays: AHV/IV/EO (5.3%), ALV (1.1%), UVG-BU (0.505%), FAK (1.025%).

7. Vacation

The employee is entitled to 20 paid vacation days per calendar year (4 weeks). The work is performed regularly on fixed days with fixed hours. The wage continues during the vacation (Art. 329d CO); if the hours vary, the average wage of the last 12 months is paid. No vacation surcharge is paid. Untaken vacation may not be compensated in money during the employment and is paid out only when it ends.

8. Illness and accident

In the event of absence due to illness or accident, the statutory provisions apply (Art. 324a CO). Continued payment of wages is governed by the scale customary in the canton of Zurich.

The mandatory accident insurance (UVG) is taken out by the employer.

Sickness daily allowance: the standard employment contract applying at the place of work requires such a policy to be taken out. The policy covers 80 percent of the wage for at most 720 days within 900 days. Benefits start on day 31 of the illness; the employer covers the days before that. The in-kind wage is insured as well. The employer carries at least half of the premium. Where none is taken out, the employer is personally liable for the uninsured risk (NAV hauswirtschaftliche Arbeitnehmer ZH (LS 821.12), Art. 13a). Legal basis: NAV hauswirtschaftliche Arbeitnehmer ZH (LS 821.12), Art. 12 und Art. 26.

9. Confidentiality

The employee undertakes to maintain confidentiality regarding the private affairs of the employer's family, even after termination of the employment relationship.

10. Termination

After the probation period, the employment may be terminated by either party subject to the following notice periods:

In the 1st year of service: 1 month to the end of a month

From the 2nd to the 9th year of service: 2 months to the end of a month

From the 10th year of service: 3 months to the end of a month

These periods take NAV ZH Art. 17 Abs. 2 und Art. 18 Abs. 1 into account; where the CO provides longer periods, those apply.

11. Applicable law

For all matters not covered by this contract, the provisions of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO Art. 319 ff.) and, where applicable, the standard employment contract for domestic workers of the canton of Zurich shall apply.

Place, date:

Employer: Anna Keller

Employee: María Santos

Created with Clino (clino.ch)

This contract is based on the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO Art. 319 ff.)

Legal basis: CO Art. 319ff, Information sheet 2.06 Domestic work (ahv-iv.ch) | clino.ch/en/sources

Open the sample PDF Create my contract

Generator or a Word template from the internet?

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Clino generator

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Vacation pay: surcharge (8.33 / 10.64 / 13.04 %) or paid leave

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Your canton's FAK rate (2026)

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Cantonal minimum wage

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Generic template: One language only

Create yours free

Legal basis: OR Art. 319 ff.. Wage and duty details in the NAV domestic-work guide.

Swiss newsrooms cite our studies

Not a paid placement, not a partnership.

After the download: your part and ours

Your part

1Print the contract, sign it together, keep one copy each
2Send the registration to the compensation office (Clino prepares all the details)
3Transfer the wage every month

Clino takes care of

A payslip every month, all deductions calculated automatically
AHV registration prepared: details and instructions for your compensation office
Accident insurance (UVG): which cover is mandatory and how to take it out
Reminders so no payslip is forgotten

30 days free, then CHF 19.90/month, cancel anytime.

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Frequently asked questions

Is the template legally valid?

Yes. Once you both sign, the contract is valid; the template follows the Code of Obligations (OR Art. 319 ff.) and your canton's standard contract (NAV). As you fill it in, it checks the minimum wage, holidays, probation and notice periods that apply at your address. It does not replace legal advice for special cases.

Is there also a Word template?

Yes. You can download the contract as a PDF or as an editable Word document. Both are filled in automatically (vacation surcharge, your canton's FAK rate and minimum wage), unlike blank generic Word templates where exactly these points are often wrong or outdated.

Can I adapt the contract?

Yes. In the generator you pick extra clauses, for example “Expenses against receipts”, “Overtime regulation” and “Probation extension (illness)”. You can then edit the Word file freely. What the law and the NAV make mandatory, such as the minimum wage, holidays or sick pay, no contract can change to your cleaner's disadvantage (OR Art. 360d, 361, 362).

Does the template also work for a housekeeper, domestic worker or carer?

For a housekeeper or domestic worker who cleans, washes, irons or cooks: yes, the same rules apply (NAV for domestic work). If she looks after elderly or ill people, standby time, night duty and board and lodging belong in the contract: use the caregiver contract. For childcare, the nanny contract.

Caregiver employment contract (incl. live-in) Nanny employment contract

Cleaning contract or employment contract: which do I need?

If one person cleans for you regularly, following your instructions at agreed times, that is employment, even if the paper says «service agreement» or «cleaning contract». What counts is how the work is done, not the title. The compensation office decides whether she is self-employed, and for a cleaner in private homes it almost always says no. You then owe the AHV contributions as her employer (AHVG Art. 5, 12). A cleaning contract only fits a cleaning company.

Self-employed or employed?

Do I have to register my cleaner even for 3 hours a week?

Yes. In a private household the duty to register with the AHV applies from the first franc of wages, whatever the number of hours. Exceptions: young people up to 31 December of the year they turn 17 are exempt; up to and including CHF 750 a calendar year from the same household is contribution-free for someone up to 31 December of the year they turn 25, unless they ask for contributions to be deducted. The contract is the first step, registration with the compensation office the second.

What do I risk without a contract and without registration?

The compensation office can claim contributions, as a rule up to 5 years back (AHVG Art. 16), plus default interest. On top come penalties, and after an accident the Ersatzkasse UVG claims substitute premiums from you. A written contract and AHV registration remove that risk.

What hourly wage is usual?

On average, households in Switzerland pay CHF 33 an hour, between CHF 27 and 35 depending on the canton. The minimum from 5 hours a week is CHF 20.35 (NAV for domestic work), higher in Neuchâtel (CHF 21.35) and Geneva (CHF 24.59). In the city of Lucerne, a municipal minimum of CHF 22.75 also applies. Below 5 hours the NAV wage does not apply; only a cantonal or municipal minimum binds then, for example in Basel-Stadt (CHF 22.20), Jura (CHF 21.40), Ticino (CHF 20.00) and Vaud (CHF 19.95). The generator checks your wage as you type against the minimum at your address.

Which wage to pay your cleaner

How much does Clino cost after the trial?

CHF 19.90 a month, after 30 days free. Includes contract, monthly payslips, social security registration and a step-by-step guide to the accident insurance. Contributions and the UVG premium are paid separately to the compensation office and the insurer.

All 26 cantons

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