- International
Social security law
Note: This language version is an automatically generated translation. The text may therefore contain linguistic and terminological errors.
view in original language (German)Note: This language version is an automatically generated translation. The text may therefore contain linguistic and terminological errors.
view in original language (German)Anna is a German citizen residing in Konstanz (Germany).
She has been working since January 2018 as an employee of a limited liability company (GmbH) based in Zurich (Switzerland) and receives an annual salary of CHF 90,000 from this employment.
Since July 2023, she has been working regularly two days a week from home in Germany (40%) and three days on-site in Switzerland (60%).
Since the start of her employment, payroll contributions have been processed through the SVA Zurich.
During an audit in April 2025, the GmbH is advised to clarify the employee’s social security status effective July 1, 2023.
Alternative scenario: Anna receives a call from Spain informing her that her mother, who lives in Spain, is seriously ill. Anna therefore intends to work remotely from Spain for the GmbH in Switzerland for the next 12 months.
What social security regulations must be observed for individuals working from home in their EU/EFTA country of residence?
What administrative measures must employers take to correctly handle the social security situation in cases of cross-border telework?
What specific advantages and challenges does the new multilateral framework agreement on cross-border telework present for companies and employees?
Is there a provision that allows teleworking outside one’s country of residence in the EU/EFTA without losing social security coverage in Switzerland?
What administrative steps are required to be able to work 100% remotely as part of a posting to an EU/EFTA country?
Mr. Moser is a German citizen and lives in Munich. He works there as a self-employed management consultant.
In the spring of 2025, Mr. Moser is appointed to the board of directors of SwissTech AG, headquartered in Zurich.
He does not receive a board fee (i.e., no compensation for his work on the board).
He performs his duties as a board member primarily from Germany—specifically through email correspondence, strategic analyses, and occasional video calls. Once a year, he travels to Zurich for the board meeting.
In 2026, Hans Moser intends to relocate his residence to Dubai (UAE). His board fee is to be paid to a corporation in Dubai, where he will also serve on the board of directors.
Variation: Hans Moser is employed by a German corporation in Munich. He represents the German corporation on the board of directors of the Swiss subsidiary. The board fee from the Swiss subsidiary is transferred to the German corporation.
Which social security law applies when members of the governing body of a legal entity in Switzerland live and work in an EU/EFTA country?
Which social security regulations apply if the individual also engages in gainful employment in their country of residence (EU/EFTA)?
What administrative procedures are necessary to determine the competent social security authority?
What are the social security implications of relocating to a third country that does not have a social security agreement with Switzerland?
Is the board of directors’ fee paid by a Swiss AG to the EU employer of the board member considered taxable income?
Tech GmbH, based in Berlin, wishes to hire Tom, an ETH graduate residing in Switzerland (Swiss citizen), as a full-time software developer. Tom will perform most of his work for Tech GmbH from a coworking space in Zurich (80%) and only occasionally work at his employer’s headquarters in Berlin (20%).
Emma, a British citizen, has been working as Chief Operating Officer at the publicly traded MedTec AG in Zurich since April 1, 2023. From January 1, 2021, to March 31, 2023, Emma was employed by the U.S. subsidiary in Boston. She relocated her residence from the U.S. to Switzerland as of April
1, 2023, and her payroll contributions have been processed by SVA Zurich since that date.
Under the MedTec Group’s Long-Term Incentive Plan, Emma has received the following options in recent years:
On May 1, 2025, at a stock price of CHF 50, Emma exercises all options from 2021 and 2022 as well as the vested 1,000 options from 2023 and realizes the following gross gains:
2021 options: 600 x (CHF 50 – CHF 15) = CHF 21,000
2022 options: 750 x (CHF 50 – CHF 20) = CHF 22,500
2023 options: 1,000 x (CHF 50 – CHF 25) = CHF 25,000
Variant: The shares acquired upon exercise of the options are subject to a two-year lock-up period.
Brian, a Costa Rican national, lived and worked in Switzerland from October 2019 to March 2023 for the Swiss subsidiary (CH AG) of a U.S. corporation. In early April 2023, he moved to the U.S. and worked there for the American sister company (US Inc). In January 2024, US Inc paid him a bonus for the 2023 fiscal year in the amount of USD 240,000.
Since Brian had permanently left Switzerland as of the end of March 2023, he was partially reimbursed for the AHV contributions paid for the years 2019–2023 upon his request.
During an employer audit, the auditor determined that withholding taxes, but not social insurance contributions, had been deducted from the pro-rata bonus payment for 2024. By means of an administrative order, the compensation fund demanded that CH AG pay the social insurance contributions, including late payment interest, on the corresponding wage amount. CH AG filed an objection, arguing that the bonus payment had been made by the U.S. subsidiary and that Brian was no longer subject to Swiss social insurance obligations at that time.
