Your first Swiss payslip: what is deducted, what is not, and what to check

Your payslip is boring. Treat it like evidence.

The first Swiss payslip is not just proof you were paid. It is a map of what the system is already doing for you — and a warning label for the big costs it is not doing for you. Read it once properly and future budgeting gets much less mysterious.

Five lines worth recognising without becoming a payroll enthusiast

AHV / IV / EO. In 2026, the combined contribution rate is 10.6%, split equally between employer and employee, so the employee share is 5.3% on contributory salary. Think of this as the core first-pillar social-insurance line.

Unemployment insurance (ALV / AC). Employees are generally covered through payroll, with employer and employee sharing contributions. The detailed calculation depends on the applicable insured-salary limits.

Occupational pension (BVG / LPP). For employees who meet the legal conditions, pension contributions appear through payroll. The statutory entry threshold is CHF 22,680 annual salary in 2026, but the actual deduction depends on the pension fund and plan. The payslip gives you the cash movement; the pension certificate gives you the fuller story.

Accident insurance. The employer pays the premium for occupational accidents. Employees can bear the non-occupational accident premium, so you may see a deduction depending on your employment setup.

Tax at source. For many foreign employees, withholding tax is deducted directly from salary. It can be one of the largest jumps from gross to net — and it is a collection method, not permission to forget tax exists.

The expensive thing that is usually missing

Compulsory basic health insurance is normally arranged and billed separately. So are rent, utilities and most personal insurance. This is why "net salary" can still be a slightly optimistic number if you mentally label all of it "available".

If a deduction looks odd, ask these four questions before guessing

Is this required by law, or is it a feature of my employer's benefits plan?
Is the deduction calculated on gross salary, insured salary or another salary definition?
What is the employer contributing alongside me — equal, more than the minimum, or something else?
Which document explains the benefit behind the deduction: pension certificate, plan rules, insurance terms or something else?

Use the payslip with two other documents, not on its own

The employment contract tells you what was promised. The payslip tells you what moved in cash. The pension certificate or plan documentation tells you what is being insured and accumulated. Put the three together and you get a much better picture of total compensation than staring at the net figure alone.

Navinua view — Stop asking only "Why did they take money off my salary?" Ask "What protection or pension is this funding, what is my employer funding too, and which major costs are still waiting outside payroll?"

Official sources

Continue with

Next: untangle the two insurance systems newcomers most often blend together — health insurance and accident cover.

Then look behind the pension deduction in Pensions after arrival.

Finally, write the important numbers into the one-page household baseline — get the guide.