Register your nanny in Zurich. Legal and insured.
You've already found your nanny. Clino prepares the paperwork.
Good to know in Zurich
Three things that count here.
- 80 %of the wage, for up to 720 daysNAV Zurich
Sick-pay insurance is mandatory.
The NAV Zurich requires a daily sickness allowance insurance.
How long you payWhat it means for you
Without a policy, you pay the 80% yourself.
- 4.2the question that mattersForm 318.147
In the form, pick «Domestic service».
SVA Zürich uses the federal form 318.147. Only «Domestic service» brings up question 4.2 on accident insurance.
The four stepsWhat it means for you
Otherwise accident insurance never even shows up in the form.
- 1.025 %family-allowance contribution on the wageFamily compensation fund
Family allowance: from CHF 215 per child.
If your employee has children, she is entitled to CHF 215 (CHF 268 from age 12) per child a month once her wage reaches CHF 630 a month (all employers together).
Work out the costWhat it means for you
The contribution is on every payslip.
Registering in Zurich
AHV registration with SVA Zürich: 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 AHVeasy.
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
SVA Zürich ↗Röntgenstrasse 17, 8087 Zürich
+41 44 448 50 00
Clino walks you through every step and fills in the wage fields from your payslip.
Try 30 days freeWages in Zurich
What a nanny earns in Zurich.
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 Zurich kit.
Three templates for hiring your nanny. As a PDF, right away.
Clino · Zurich
Nanny contract
With the overtime rule and no banked hours.
Clino · Zurich
Payslip
With the 2026 rates. Pick Zurich, done.
Clino · Zurich
SVA Zürich 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 Zurich.
- Register a cleaner in Zurich
- Register a nanny in ZurichThis page
- Register a caregiver in Zurich
Comparison Zurich
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: the NAV Zurich owes part-time staff no supplement (Art. 24 Abs. 2); the Clino contract still writes 25%. For overtime on Sundays and public holidays the Swiss Nanny Association recommends +50%; it is not the law, but it is what the Clino nanny contract agrees.
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 Zurich
- SubsidiesChildcare vouchers for a nanny? What families getThe city of Zurich pays vouchers or subsidies for daycare and childminders only. For a nanny, the tax deduction remains.Read →
- HiringNanny interview and trial day: questions, pay, probationThe right questions, the paid trial day and the probation period in Zurich.Read →
- ContractNanny contract Switzerland: 10 clauses to copyYour contract clause by clause, with the rules that apply in Zurich.Read →
Tax deduction Zurich
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 11'609
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 25'300 in Zurich.
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
Zurich: in the simplified procedure there is no salary certificate. Then attach a copy of the employment contract, ideally stating the childcare share as a percentage, and the SVA Zürich statements; bank proof of the wage payments may also be requested. The tax office decides which part counts as childcare.
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 Zürich: 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 11'450. Childcare deduction in Zurich: up to CHF 25'300 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 3'930 a year in Zürich. At CHF 150'000 income, that leaves around CHF 2'370 net.
If she falls ill: how long you keep paying the wage
How many days of full wage you owe in Zurich 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 256 days of full wage
- Year 363 days of full wage
- Year 577 days of full wage
- Year 10112 days of full wage
- Year 20180 days of full wage
It covers open-ended contracts and those over three months, from the first day.
Sick-pay insurance is mandatory in canton Zurich.
It pays 80 % of the wage from day 31 of the illness.
Up to 720 days.
The contract may deviate from it in writing.
An employer who does not insure is liable for exactly the benefits the insurance would have paid.
Check what applies in your caseSource: NAV hauswirtschaftliche Arbeitnehmer ZH (LS 821.12), Art. 11 Abs. 1 · Sick-pay insurance: NAV hauswirtschaftliche Arbeitnehmer ZH (LS 821.12), Art. 12 und Art. 26
Zurich at a glance
- Fund
- SVA Zürich
- Portal
- AHVeasy
- Market rate (SNA)
- CHF 25–40/h
- Sick-pay insurance
- mandatory
- 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 SVA Zürich). 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 SVA Zürich, 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 handles nanny registration in Zurich?
SVA Zürich. For the simplified billing procedure (up to CHF 22'680/year) you fill in the AHV office's "Registration of household helpers" form and submit it online via AHVeasy or by post.
Is there a minimum wage for nannies in the canton of Zurich?
There is no cantonal minimum wage in Zurich. The minimum wage of the federal NAV for household work (CHF 20.35/h unskilled, from 5 h/week) does not cover a nanny who mainly looks after the children. It applies as soon as housework makes up most of the job.
Can I deduct nanny costs from my taxes?
Yes. In Zurich, up to CHF 25'300 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. Only the childcare itself is deductible, not cleaning. In the simplified procedure there is no salary certificate: the proof is then a copy of the employment contract, ideally stating the childcare share as a percentage, and the SVA Zürich statements; bank proof of the wage payments may also be requested.
Is the simplified billing or the standard procedure worth it?
Up to CHF 22'680 annual wage per person you can choose the simplified procedure. It is optional. A flat 5% withholding tax, no separate tax return for the nanny. Above that, the standard procedure with a wage statement (Lohnausweis) becomes necessary. Clino detects the threshold automatically and handles the ordinary procedure for you.
How high are the employer's ancillary wage costs?
Around 8–9% on top: 5.3% AHV/IV/EO + 1.1% ALV + 0.505% UVG occupational accident + 1.025% FAK canton of Zurich + administration fee. The 5% withholding tax (simplified procedure) is deducted from the nanny's wage. It is not an employer cost.
Do I need a written employment contract for a nanny in Zurich?
Yes, strongly recommended. The NAV Hauswirtschaft sets minimum conditions (probation period, notice period, holidays). Clino provides a pre-filled template.
Updated:
Canton Zurich
One canton, one compensation fund.
Zürich, Winterthur or Dietikon: private households register with SVA Zürich.
Or tap your municipality
Nearby
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Neighbouring cantons
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2026 rates for all 26 cantons checked against official sources, as of · Sources and methodology