Register your nanny in Lucerne. Legal and insured.
You've already found your nanny. Clino prepares the paperwork.
Good to know in Lucerne
Three things that count here.
- 80 %of the wage, for at least 720 daysNAV Lucerne
Sick-pay insurance: mandatory above a threshold.
The NAV Lucerne requires a daily sickness allowance insurance from a 20% workload and for open-ended contracts or those of more than 3 months.
How long you payWhat it means for you
Below it there is no duty. You still owe the wage during illness.
- 2steps: form first, then the portalWAS Luzern · connect
connect opens after registration.
Your household first registers with WAS Luzern. After that, wages and the annual declaration go through connect.
The four stepsWhat it means for you
Don't start in the portal. Start with the form.
- +50 %supplement on SundaysNAV Lucerne
Sunday work costs more.
The NAV Lucerne sets a 50% supplement, unless the contract says otherwise in writing.
Create the contractWhat it means for you
Settle weekend work in the contract right away.
Registering in Lucerne
AHV registration with WAS Luzern: four steps.
318.147
Employer registration
- 1
Fill in form 318.147
Online, with the federal government. Under «Employment for», pick «Domestic service».
- 2
Pick the right procedure
Above CHF 22'680 a year, the ordinary procedure applies. You then take out accident insurance and a pension fund yourself.
- 3
Register your nanny
With her AHV number (756.…) and first working day, within a month.
- 4
Wait for the confirmation
The settlement number arrives by post. Wages are declared every year by 30 January. After that it runs through connect.
Above CHF 22'680 a year, quickly reached full time, the ordinary procedure applies, with a pension fund (BVG).
Deadline: within 30 days of the start of employment. The confirmation then comes by post.
The fund
WAS Wirtschaft Arbeit Soziales ↗Langsägestrasse 13, 6010 Kriens
+41 41 209 00 01
Clino walks you through every step and fills in the wage fields from your payslip.
Try 30 days freeWages in Lucerne
What a nanny earns in Lucerne.
According to the Swiss Nanny Association, the market pays CHF 25 to 40 an hour.
According to SECO, the federal NAV does not cover nannies who mainly look after children. A minimum wage is a floor, not a recommended rate.
Register at CHF 30.00/h →Free, no account
The Lucerne kit.
Three templates for hiring your nanny. As a PDF, right away.
Clino · Lucerne
Nanny contract
With the overtime rule and no banked hours.
Clino · Lucerne
Payslip
With the 2026 rates. Pick Lucerne, done.
Clino · Lucerne
WAS Luzern checklist
Every step to tick off, with the fund's address and phone number.
A new payslip every month? Clino makes it for you, free for the first 30 days. Then CHF 19.90/mo. Try 30 days free →
In the same household
Who else has a key?
Each role has its own rules in Lucerne.
- Register a cleaner in Lucerne
- Register a nanny in LucerneThis page
- Register a caregiver in Lucerne
Comparison Lucerne
Nanny or daycare: what suits you?
Full-time daycare (Kita) per child vs. a full-time nanny (40 hrs/week). CHF/month, before subsidies.
Nanny, daycare, au pair & childminder in full comparison →- • From 2 children on, a nanny quickly becomes cheaper than daycare.
- • A tax deduction of up to CHF 25'800/child (federal) is also possible.
Childcare
Four rules for every nanny contract.
Childcare has its own rules. These four belong in every contract.
Overtime is paid
Overtime is the exception: only where it is needed and reasonable for the nanny (Art. 321c para. 1 OR), ideally agreed in advance. If it doesn't work for her (her own children, a course, a second job), she can say no. Beyond the agreed hours: a 25% supplement, or the same amount of time off if you both agree (Art. 321c OR). Waiving it only counts in writing. Exception: under the NAV Lucerne, hours 43 to 45 of the week are overtime without a supplement (§ 11 Abs. 1); the Clino contract still writes 25%. For Sundays the NAV Lucerne sets 50%.
No banked hours
If you don't need the nanny because you are on holiday or a child is ill, you still pay the full wage (Art. 324 OR). Minus hours are not allowed.
An au pair is not a nanny
Au pair means at most 30 hours a week, room and board, a language course, and a parent at home at least half the time. Whoever looks after the children more, or alone, is a nanny.
Full time means a pension fund
Above CHF 22'680 a year, the pension fund (BVG) is mandatory. Clino includes it in every payslip.
The nanny contract in the kit already has the overtime and banked-hours clauses. ↑
Typical market rates, according to the Swiss Nanny Association
CHF 5'000–6'500
gross per month, or CHF 25–40 an hour, depending on experience. The minimum wage is a floor, not a recommended rate.
Independent support: Swiss Nanny Association
The Swiss Nanny Association is a nonprofit association supporting nannies and Au Pairs with information, resources, training and guidance on fair working conditions in Switzerland.
For information and resources, visit swissnanny.org ↗Guides
For families with a nanny in Lucerne
- HiringNanny interview and trial day: questions, pay, probationThe right questions, the paid trial day and the probation period in Lucerne.Read →
- ContractNanny contract Switzerland: 10 clauses to copyYour contract clause by clause, with the rules that apply in Lucerne.Read →
- SicknessSick child, sick nanny: who pays her wage?Who pays the wage in Lucerne when your child or the nanny is ill.Read →
Tax deduction Lucerne
Registered? Then you get money back.
Declare your nanny properly and her costs come off your taxes. Work out how much:
Children under 14
What does she do?
Household taxable income
Tax return 2026
SampleDeductions
- Work expenses
- Insurance premiums
- Third-party childcare costs
- Federal tax deduction
- CHF 32'537
- Cantonal and municipal tax deduction
- CHF 32'537
- Estimated tax saving per year
- CHF 9'235
When the deduction applies
- The child is under 14 and lives with you.
- You need the care because you work or study. For a couple, that goes for both of you.
- Only the childcare is deductible, not cleaning, cooking or laundry.
- You can prove the costs. That only works if the nanny is declared and you pay her wage by bank transfer.
- Per child at most CHF 25'800 for federal tax and CHF 20'200 in Lucerne.
The documents you attach
- The compensation office's statements and, in the ordinary procedure, the nanny's salary certificate (Lohnausweis)
- The employment contract with its task list, ideally stating the childcare share as a percentage
- Proof of payment: the wage transfers (the tax office may ask for them)
- Proof that you work: your own salary certificates
Clino prepares the contract, the payslips and a statement of the childcare costs for the tax office, plus the salary certificate in the ordinary procedure.
Paid cash and undeclared, there is no proof, so no deduction.
Some employers pay towards it
The federal administration pays its staff up to CHF 750 per child and month until the child starts school, Swiss Post up to CHF 12'000 a year depending on income, and the canton of Solothurn up to CHF 300 per child and month. All three also pay towards an employed nanny. They usually ask for the employment contract, proof of the costs and a confirmation from the compensation office. The contract and the costs come from Clino, the confirmation from your office.
Federal Personnel Ordinance (German)Swiss Post: fact sheet from HR or the social counselling serviceCanton of Solothurn
› How we calculate
A cautious estimate: the net wage before source tax (as on the salary certificate, box 11), the cantonal capital's tax rates, married, no church tax. A deduction lowers taxable income, not the tax itself. The tax office makes the assessment.
ESTV tax calculator for Luzern: a family with two children and CHF 150'000 income, a nanny 25 hours a week. Deducted: her net wage, at most the deduction per child. At CHF 250'000 income, around CHF 9'720. Childcare deduction in Lucerne: up to CHF 20'200 per child (cantonal and municipal tax), up to CHF 25'800 for federal tax (2026).
The employer contributions for a registered nanny cost around CHF 3'910 a year in Luzern. At CHF 150'000 income, that leaves around CHF 1'210 net.
If she falls ill: how long you keep paying the wage
How many days of full wage you owe in Lucerne depends on the year of service. This is the table that binds here when no policy sits behind it.
- Year 121 days of full wage
- Year 230 days of full wage
- Year 330 days of full wage
- Year 560 days of full wage
- Year 1090 days of full wage
- Year 20150 days of full wage
Sick-pay insurance is mandatory in canton Lucerne.
It pays 80 % of the wage from day 31 of the illness.
For at least 720 days.
The duty only applies from a 20% workload.
It applies to open-ended contracts and those of more than 3 months.
Check what applies in your caseSource: NAV hauswirtschaftliches Arbeitsverhältnis LU (SRL Nr. 854), § 21 Abs. 1 · Sick-pay insurance: NAV LU (SRL Nr. 854), § 22
Lucerne at a glance
- Fund
- WAS Luzern
- Portal
- connect
- Market rate (SNA)
- CHF 25–40/h
- Sick-pay insurance
- mandatory from a 20% workload
- Child allowance
- CHF 215/month
Frequently asked questions
Do I really have to register my nanny, even for just a few hours?
Yes. For household employees there is no minimum number of hours and no de-minimis threshold. From the very first franc you pay AHV/IV/EO, ALV and UVG accident insurance. Exceptions are young people up to the year they turn 17 and, for employees up to age 25, wages up to CHF 750 a year; from reference age, an allowance of CHF 16'800 a year applies. The exemption for very small wages (CHF 2'500/year) explicitly does not apply to nannies and other household employees. Paying a nanny in cash and unregistered is undeclared work.
I've been paying my nanny without registering her for a while. What now?
No need to panic. You can register the employment retroactively (back-registration with the WAS Wirtschaft Arbeit Soziales). The sooner you do it, the smaller the back-payment, and you avoid a penalty if it comes to light in an inspection. Clino helps you with the back-registration and then sets up the ongoing payroll.
What exactly does Clino prepare for me?
Clino prepares the registration with the WAS Wirtschaft Arbeit Soziales, the nanny contract with the overtime rule, a comparison of UVG policies with the application ready, the monthly payslip, the wage statement (Lohnausweis) and the annual declaration. You enter the workload and wage, check and send. You take out the insurance yourself. CHF 19.90/month, cancel anytime.
Which compensation office is responsible in the canton of Lucerne?
WAS Wirtschaft Arbeit Soziales. With the federal online form 318.147. On the last page, choose «WAS Wirtschaft Arbeit Soziales» as the recipient. The connect portal only comes in after registration, for the annual wage report.
How high are the family allowances in the canton of Lucerne?
Child allowance: CHF 215 per child a month, CHF 260 for children over 12. Training allowance: CHF 268 a month. Plus a one-off birth allowance of CHF 1'075. As of 2026.
Is there a minimum wage in the canton of Lucerne?
Not cantonally, but in the city of Lucerne yes: anyone working there earns at least CHF 22.75/hr, from the first hour. Voters kept it on 27.9.2026. Outside the city the NAV Hauswirtschaft applies (CHF 20.35–24.55/hr, 2026). In Lucerne the market rate is CHF 25–33/hr.
Which tax deductions are possible in Lucerne?
Yes. In Lucerne, up to CHF 20'200 per child a year (cantonal and municipal tax), and up to CHF 25'800 for federal tax (2026). Condition: the child is under 14 and both parents work or are in training.
Seasonal nanny employment: is that possible?
Yes. Fixed-term contracts are allowed; the simplified procedure applies as long as the annual wage stays below CHF 22'680. Otherwise the standard procedure with a wage statement (Lohnausweis) applies. Clino detects the threshold automatically and handles the ordinary procedure for you.
Updated:
Canton Lucerne
One canton, one compensation fund.
Luzern, Emmen or Ebikon: private households register with WAS Luzern.
Or tap your municipality
Founded in Zürich, for all of Switzerland
Goodbye, paperwork.
Sign up for free. Clino prepares your registration with WAS Luzern.
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2026 rates for all 26 cantons checked against official sources, as of · Sources and methodology