Switzerland

Switzerland

Europe

8.800.000

Swiss franc (CHF)

Rhaeto-Romanic, German, French, Italian

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Regulations for Working in Switzerland

Overview

Switzerland has adopted a free movement agreement with the EU, which allows cross-border provision of services for up to 90 effective working days per calendar year. Anyone working in Switzerland, whether by posting to Switzerland or on a business trip to Switzerland, must comply with certain reporting requirements. Employers must register their employees via an online portal before starting work.

EU Posted Workers Directive

Foreign employers based in EU/EFTA countries who can make use of the online reporting process must submit the posting notification at least 8 days before starting work in Switzerland. The online reporting process is available in German, English, French and Italian.

Important: In some sectors, such as the construction, hospitality and security industries, notification is required from the very first day. All other activities must only be registered for a period of eight days per calendar year. Employers can obtain detailed information on the website of the Swiss Confederation.

Necessary documents

Foreign employers must generally be able to prove that Swiss minimum working and wage conditions are met when posting.

During the posting, foreign employers must keep the following documents:

Payroll and expense statements related to the posting
Timesheets

Further documents can be requested from the Swiss authorities.

Contact person for posting

It is not necessary to name a legal representative in Switzerland, but a contact person at the place of work in Switzerland must be specified in the online posting notification.

Penalties for violation

Failure to comply with the regulations for workers posted to Switzerland may result in fines, criminal penalties, black lists of employers on publicly accessible websites, etc.

Administrative sanctions include:

for less serious infringements, a fine of up to 5,000 CHF (approx. 5,100 EUR)
In the event of serious violations, the foreign employer may offer and Provision of services in Switzerland will be prohibited for 1-5 years

Criminal penalties include:

Maximum fine of 40,000 CHF (approx. 41,000 EUR)
In serious and systematic cases with intent to self-enrichment: maximum fine of 1 million CHF (approx. 1.30 million EUR)

Labor Law

Minimum wage

There is no minimum wage at national level in Switzerland.

However, some cantons have introduced minimum wages, such as Basel-Stadt, Tessin and Geneva
In some sectors, minimum wages are set in collective agreements
Some collective agreements are generally valid and must therefore apply to all employees
There are more than 70 generally binding collective agreements, such as personnel leasing, construction, hotels and restaurants, etc.

Compensation

Employees who are employed abroad and posted to Switzerland must be paid in accordance with the practices of the respective Swiss canton, industry and profession (so-called Swiss reference wage).

Swiss immigration authorities always check wages when processing applications for work permits. The 26 Swiss cantons apply their own standard wages. However, all cantons rely on statistical reference wages for comparable Swiss workers in their geographical area.

Working time

The maximum working time per day/week depends on the job and the sector.

If there is no generally binding collective agreement, the maximum weekly working time is:

45 hours for office workers
for all other 50 hours

Important Hints

Failure to comply with the employment laws applicable in the country may also result in financial obligations, fines or demands under local termination and working time laws.

Social Security

When an employee is posted to Switzerland from an EU country, EU Regulation 883/2004 on the coordination of social security systems applies:

A1 certificate available: employee continues to be insured by the home country‍
without A1 certificate: The Swiss social security regulations, and the foreign employer must act like a Swiss employer.

Important Hints

The consequences of a violation may include extensive administrative obligations, back contributions (interest), increased audit costs and severe sanctions. In addition, significant reputation damage can occur in this context.

Income Tax

There is generally no “de minimis period” during which there is no tax liability in Switzerland
If there is an employer in Switzerland (company/permanent establishment, economic employer), that employer is obliged to keep a shadow pay list for tax purposes
If there is no employer in Switzerland, the posted employee in Switzerland is responsible for compliance with the rules on taxation of income from work

Important Hints

The consequences of a violation may vary depending on the situation, but there is often an immediate obligation to file a tax return in the destination country, which can have further, extensive consequences for employees and the company.

Immigration & Visas

International activities require exact compliance with international visa and entry requirements. The traveller, the type of activity, the purpose of stay and the duration are decisive for this, whether a business visa, a work visa or other special permits are required.

Important Hints

The consequences of a violation may include entry bans and associated loss of revenue, sanctions, fines and reputation damage.

Permanent Establishment

Employees working abroad can establish a permanent establishment through their activities in the target country and thus trigger a chain of financial and administrative consequences for companies.

Important Hints

The consequences of a violation may vary depending on the situation, but each establishment entails a significant administrative burden. In addition to registration, profit allocation and filing of the corporate income tax return, income tax obligations usually also arise.

Wichtige Hinweise

Important Hints