Before you arrive or immediately after landing
The first practical step is registering with the municipality where you will live. Swiss law requires registration within 14 days of arrival. Bring your passport, employment contract, rental agreement, passport photos, and any work-permit pre-approval letter from your employer.
If you are a non-EU/EFTA national, your employer usually handles the work-permit application before you arrive. EU/EFTA nationals can enter Switzerland and file for a permit within 14 days. In both cases, the residence permit card takes weeks to arrive, but the confirmation of registration is enough to open a bank account and start working.
Your employer will need your AHV/AVS number, which is usually assigned automatically after registration. If you do not have one yet, they can still process your first payroll, but a temporary AHV number may be used until the permanent one is issued.
Bank account, salary, and tax at source
Open a Swiss bank account as soon as you have your registration confirmation. Most Swiss banks need a residence permit or at least the registration receipt. Your employer will pay your salary in CHF to this account. Without a Swiss account, receiving salary and paying Swiss bills is much harder.
Your employer will deduct tax at source from your salary if you are a foreign national without a C permit. The tax rate depends on your canton, municipality, gross salary, marital status, and number of children. The tax appears as a line item on your payslip and is paid directly to the cantonal tax office by the employer.
Keep your first few payslips and check that the source-tax deduction looks correct. If your salary changes, your marital status changes, or you have children, report it to the cantonal tax office through your employer. The tax at source vs ordinary assessment guide explains when and how to request a correction.
Health insurance within three months
Basic health insurance is mandatory for every person living in Switzerland. You must sign up with a Swiss health insurer within three months of arrival. Coverage starts retroactively from your registration date, so you are insured from day one even if the paperwork takes time.
Compare premiums across cantons and providers. Basic insurance benefits are identical by law, but premiums differ. You can freely choose your insurer and your deductible. A higher deductible lowers the monthly premium but increases what you pay out of pocket before insurance covers the rest.
Health insurance premiums may be tax-deductible within canton-specific limits. The health insurance tax deductions guide explains what can be claimed. Keep your insurance policy documents and annual premium statements for the tax return.
Pension setup and Pillar 3a first steps
Your employer automatically enrolls you in Pillar 1 (AHV/AVS) and Pillar 2 (occupational pension, BVG/LPP). These are mandatory deductions from your salary. You do not need to arrange them yourself, but you should understand the deduction amounts shown on your payslip.
Pillar 3a is the voluntary private pension pillar. For 2026, employees with a pension fund can contribute up to CHF 7'258 per year and deduct it from taxable income. The contribution must be made by 31 December to count for that tax year.
For new arrivals, the deadline pressure is real. If you arrive in, say, October, you have only a few months to open a Pillar 3a account and make a contribution before the year-end deadline. The Pillar 3a maximum contribution guide and the best Pillar 3a apps guide can help you choose a provider quickly.
If you also have foreign pension assets, investment accounts, or property in another country, start thinking about how these will be reported in Switzerland. The declaring foreign assets guide covers AEOI and CRS rules. The earlier you collect documents and plan the disclosure, the smoother your first Swiss tax filing will be.