Canton of Obwalden

Register a caregiver in Obwalden:
legally and simply.

Found a caregiver for your parents or for yourself? Clino turns it into a proper employment relationship: registration with the compensation office, contract, insurance and payroll. For CHF 19.90/month, whether it's a few hours or around the clock.

30 days free · then CHF 19.90/mo. · cancel anytime

AHV-compliantAusgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwaldenset up in 5 minutescancel anytime

No placement agency. You keep your caregiver. Clino prepares the official paperwork for you.

Authorities & registration

AHV registration with AK Obwalden: how to register your caregiver

AHV compensation office

Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden ↗

Brünigstrasse 144, 6060 Sarnen
+41 41 666 27 50

Responsible for AHV/IV/EO, ALV, the family-allowance fund (FAK) and the wage declaration for household staff, and in the simplified procedure for withholding tax too. In the ordinary procedure withholding tax goes to the cantonal tax administration.

Open registration form All about AK Obwalden: contact, registration, our experience →

1
Register with the Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden
Register as a private-household employer. Online or by form. You'll receive a billing number. Clino prepares everything.
2
Sort out accident insurance
Occupational accident cover is mandatory, NBU from 8 hrs/week. In the simplified procedure every compensation office offers the plus option with accident insurance: select it actively when you register, it never happens automatically. Otherwise the policy runs directly with an insurer. Clino compares the providers, prices the premium and prepares the application. You sign it.
3
Sign the employment contract
Workload, wage, holidays, probation period. For live-in additionally room, board & lodging and presence time. Template from Clino.
4
Settle monthly, declare at year-end
A ready-made payslip every month, and the annual wage declaration to the Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden at year-end. Clino generates both automatically.

Verified by Clino

The registration facts for Obwalden

Rates and registration route last checked on July 17, 2026.

The right form

Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden uses the federal form 318.147 (online). No office visit needed.

Important: under «Employment for», pick «Domestic service», only then does question 4.2 about accident insurance via the compensation office appear.

Simplified procedure

The simplified procedure plus (accident insurance included) is offered, but you must actively request it; it is never automatic. Above CHF 22,680 annual wage, quickly reached full-time, the ordinary procedure with individual withholding tax applies.

Deadlines

After submitting

The confirmation with your settlement number arrives by post. You may already pay wages in the meantime.

Free, no signup, every step, ready to tick off.

Which model fits?

By the hour, fixed days or live-in

Care by the hour

e.g. 2–3 mornings per week

Shopping, cooking, accompanying to appointments, companionship. The most common starting model. Often complementing Spitex or relieving family members.

Fixed part-time

fixed half-days or days

Reliable structure in daily life: the same person, the same times. From 8 hours per week, non-occupational accident insurance (NBU) is added.

24h care (live-in)

the caregiver lives in the household

Round-the-clock presence with her own room. Board and lodging count as payment in kind (CHF 990/month). The cantonal standard contract (NAV OW) does not regulate presence time. Put it and its pay in the contract. SECO's model contract for 24-hour care is a recommendation, not a binding rule.

Your personal plan

What does a caregiver cost in Obwalden?

Set hours and wage. Cost, procedure and insurance appear instantly. Clino costs CHF 19.90 a month.

Your situation

Hours per weekh/week

Gross hourly wageCHF/h

Your postcode6060Canton Obwalden

Your Obwalden care plan

Personal

Responsible office

AK Obwalden

online via AHVeasy

Your procedure

Ordinary procedure

Above CHF 22,680/year: quarterly advance contributions, wage declaration at year end, plus BVG pension (risk cover from 18, retirement savings from 25).

Accident insurance

Occupational accident (BU): paid by the employer
Non-occupational accident (NBU): mandatory from 8 h/week

Your cost per month

CHF 3'110.98/ month

≈ CHF 34'515.82 / year

Gross wageCHF 2'816.69

Social contributions (employer)CHF 274.39

ClinoCHF 19.90

Your caregiver receives net CHF 2'555.61

What Clino does for you

Employment contract ready
Registration with AK Obwalden prepared
Wage & contributions calculated every month

Use this plan30 days free · no power of attorney · cancel anytime

Financing

Money you are entitled to

Many families pay for care entirely themselves, although part of it would be covered.

AHV helplessness allowance

Up to CHF 1'008 a month, regardless of income and assets

Entitlement once the person has depended on help for 6 months without a break.
The AHV pays back at most 12 months. Applying late costs money.

Apply to: Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden, 6060 Sarnen

Per month at home, by degree

MildCHF 252
ModerateCHF 630
SevereCHF 1'008

Check entitlement and back pay

With an application pack: cover letter to the IV office, help sheet and help diary.

Before pension age the IV pays more: CHF 504, 1'260 or 2'016 a month.

Supplementary benefits (EL)

If pension and savings do not cover living costs, the EL also refund costs of help, nursing and care at home, under the canton's rules. The invoices must be submitted within 15 months.

What EL refund for a carer →

Tax deduction

With a helplessness allowance, nursing and care count as disability-related costs: deductible as far as the allowance does not cover them, and for federal tax without the 5 % threshold for illness costs.

Deducting a carer from your taxes →

Care credits

If you care for a relative with a helplessness allowance (any degree) who lives nearby, you can get AHV credits towards your own future pension. Apply again every year with form 318.270 at the cantonal compensation office.

More for family carers →

UNDECLAREDThe dark reality.

Compensation Office

Employer audit

RRegistered

Keller family

Employer audit of your household

✕No contract: in a dispute, only what you both remember counts
✕Accident: the substitute fund pays, you owe 5 years of premiums
✕AHV: up to 5 years of back contributions (7 after an offence), plus a possible criminal penalty (Art. 87 AHVG)

REGISTEREDThe bright reality.

Employment contract

PDF

between Keller family · Maria Silva

✓NAV contract: holidays, notice and sick pay settled
✓Accident cover from the very first hour
✓AHV years for her, payslips for you

Signature EmployerSignature Employee

⇄

DRAG THE LINE: WHERE DOES YOUR HOUSEHOLD STAND?

Canton of Obwalden at a glance

Home care in Obwalden

Compensation office

Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden

registration

FAK employer

1.40%

2026

Minimum wage

CHF 20.35

NAV, from 5 hrs/week

Administration

0.36%

AHV office fee, typical household

Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden charges an administrative fee of 3.40% of the AHV/IV/EO contributions (capped at 5% by SR 831.143.41, Art. 1). Expressed against the gross wage that is 0.36%.

If you file online

The rate stays at 3.40% of the AHV/IV/EO contributions all year. Employers who declare through AHVeasy are credited 25% of the administrative fee already billed, after the wage declaration.

Source: Ausgleichskasse Obwalden, Merkblatt Verwaltungskostenbeiträge ab 2026

If she falls ill: how long you keep paying the wage

How many days of full wage you owe in Obwalden depends on the year of service. This is the table that binds here when no policy sits behind it.

Year 130 days of full wage
Year 237 days of full wage
Year 344 days of full wage
Year 558 days of full wage
Year 1084 days of full wage
Year 2084 days of full wage

The duty only applies once the job has lasted more than three months or was agreed for more than three months.

In canton Obwalden the duty to insure is addressed to the employee herself, not to you.

Check what applies in your case

Source: NAV hauswirtschaftliche Arbeitnehmer OW (GDB 844.1), Art. 20 · Sick-pay insurance: NAV OW (GDB 844.1), Art. 21

FAQ Obwalden

Frequently asked questions

Do I really have to register a caregiver in a private household: even by the hour?

Yes. As soon as you set the wage, tasks and hours, you are an employer. From the first hour and from the first franc. AHV/IV/EO (5.3% each side), ALV (1.1% each side) and accident insurance are mandatory. The exemption for very small wages (CHF 2'500/year) explicitly does not apply in private households. Your caregiver takes out health insurance (KVG) herself, but check that she has it. The Bern NAV for domestic service (Art. 36), for example, requires this explicitly.

Which compensation office is responsible in Obwalden?

The Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden. That's where you register the employment and then settle the contributions. Clino prepares the registration and produces a ready-made payslip every month.

What may the caregiver take on and what counts as nursing?

Care covers daily life and the household: cooking, shopping, accompanying, companionship, structure in the day. Basic and treatment-related nursing (e.g. preparing medication, wound care) belongs to nursing professionals or Spitex. Which requires a licence depending on the canton. The two combine without any problem.Spitex or private care: the comparison →

What applies to 24-hour care with board and lodging?

Accommodation and meals are payment in kind: CHF 990 per month (CHF 33 per day) is added to the cash wage and is subject to AHV. The cantonal standard contract (NAV OW) does not regulate presence time. Put it and its pay in the contract. SECO's model contract for 24-hour care is a recommendation, not a binding rule. If the caregiver falls ill or has an accident, you owe her care and medical treatment on top of her wage: for 3 weeks in the first year of service, then for an appropriately longer period. The same applies in pregnancy and childbirth (Art. 328a OR).In detail: hiring a caregiver in Switzerland →

Can I use the simplified billing procedure?

Only up to CHF 22'680 annual wage per person. A caregiver with a larger workload usually exceeds this limit. Then the standard procedure with a wage statement applies. Above CHF 22'680 annual wage the pension fund (BVG) is added as well: from 18 for death and disability, from 25 for retirement savings too. Exempt are fixed-term employment of at most 3 months and a side job, if she is already insured compulsorily through her main job or self-employed in it. Clino settles both correctly.Simplified procedure: the downsides →

My caregiver comes from abroad: what do I need to consider?

In the ordinary procedure her wage is taxed at source if she has no C settlement permit and is not married to a Swiss citizen or a C permit holder. In the simplified procedure the 5 % withholding tax applies to everyone, whatever the nationality or permit. Exception: if she lives in France and works in BE, SO, BS, BL, VD, VS, NE or JU, the simplified procedure is ruled out and, with form 2041-AS, her wage is taxed in France. For EU/EFTA citizens, the notification or permit procedure applies depending on duration; cross-border commuters need a G permit. From non-EU/EFTA countries you cannot hire a caregiver directly from abroad: permits are only granted to qualified specialists. If she already lives in Switzerland with a permit, employment may be possible depending on that permit; your cantonal migration office can tell you. Clino guides you through withholding tax and registration.

What do I risk without registering?

Back-payment of contributions plus default interest. An employer who does not join a compensation office and settle the wages also commits an offence under Art. 87 of the AHV Act: a monetary penalty of up to 180 daily units. If an accident happens without insurance, the Ersatzkasse UVG pays and charges you substitute premiums (Art. 95 UVG). Retroactive registration with the Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden is possible at any time; the sooner, the cheaper.Step by step: registering retroactively, the calm way →

Caregiver wage calculator

Gross, net & employer costs

Care employment contract

Free template as a PDF

Other cantons

Register a caregiver in another canton

All cantons & overview: register a caregiver in Switzerland →

Official language

German

Salary certificate

issued by the fund

Canton of Obwalden

All of Obwalden: one office, one registration

Every municipality, one office: Ausgleichskasse IV-Stelle Obwalden.

In every municipality of Obwalden

Registration works the same across the whole canton, whether care takes place in Sarnen, Kerns, Alpnach or one of the 2 other localities: same compensation office, same procedure, same flat fee.

SarnenKernsAlpnachAlpnachstadAlpnach DorfKägiswilWilen (Sarnen)Stalden (Sarnen)St. NiklausenMelchtalMelchsee-FruttSachselnFlüeli-RanftGiswil+2

Canton Obwalden compared

FAK contribution

1.4%

The FAK contribution is 1.4%, rank 8 of 26 across Switzerland (ascending).

Child allowance

CHF 220

The child allowance of CHF 220/month is CHF 5 above the federal minimum of CHF 215.

Binding minimum wage

CHF 20.35

There is no cantonal minimum wage; the NAV domestic-work minimums apply from 5 hours a week with the same household.

Public holidays in Obwalden (2026)

Only 1 August is paid by federal law. The other days are assimilated to Sundays, whether they are paid is set by the contract or the NAV.

Thu
1Jan
New Year's Day
Fri
3Apr
Good Friday
Thu
14May
Ascension Day
Thu
4Jun
Corpus Christi
Sat
1Aug
Swiss National Day
paid by law
Sat
15Aug
Assumption
Sun
1Nov
All Saints' Day
Tue
8Dec
Immaculate Conception
Fri
25Dec
Christmas Day

3 of these days fall on a weekend in 2026. Basis: Art. 20a Labour Act. Source: SECO, as of 12.12.2024.

New to Switzerland, or cross-border?

Hiring as an expat works exactly the same, in English. And if your helper lives across the border, the cross-border rules apply, AHV and accident insurance stay Swiss, withholding tax depends on her country of residence. The guide explains your case.

What applies to cross-border workers →

Are you the caregiver?

Pay, insurance, your rights, plus a ready-made pack you can send your employer so they register you legally.

Info for you →Pack for your employer →

In the same household

Who else has a key?

Each role has its own rules in Obwalden.

Page last updated: October 29, 2026

Your caregiver in Obwalden: properly employed

Registration, contract, insurance, payroll. CHF 19.90/month. Cancel anytime.

No placement commission · you keep your caregiver

Then CHF 19.90/mo · Nothing charged before day 30

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