In payroll, mistakes are expensive and visible: they affect employees, social insurers and authorities at the same time. The good news: most sources of error are well known.
Social contributions: AHV, ALV and liability
The thresholds of contribution liability are frequently mishandled: when a salary is subject to AHV, how secondary and minor incomes are settled, and what applies to young people and pensioners. Even small misjudgements add up over the year.
Correct and timely settlement with the compensation fund is part of this too. Keeping interim contributions and the year-end statement clean avoids additional claims and default interest.
Payroll errors rarely go unnoticed: employees, insurers and authorities all spot them at once.
Occupational pension: BVG entry and coordination deduction
With the second pillar, mistakes often occur at the point of entry, in the correct application of the coordination deduction, and with salary changes during the year. Such changes must be reported to the pension institution promptly.
If the insured salary is reported incorrectly, neither the contributions nor the later retirement savings will be right. An annual reconciliation between payroll and the pension institution prevents such discrepancies.
Withholding tax: rate, settlement and corrections
For employees subject to withholding tax, the correct tariff code is decisive — depending on family situation, denomination and other income. If the situation changes, the tariff must be adjusted.
Settlement takes place with the responsible canton, and here too deadlines apply. Retroactive corrections are possible but laborious — doing it cleanly from the start is far cheaper.
The most common pitfalls
- Wrong or outdated withholding tax tariff
- Coordination deduction miscalculated for part-time work
- Salary changes not reported to the pension institution
- Missed deadlines for AHV and withholding tax settlement
- Expenses and benefits in kind not recorded correctly
Reliable payroll protects you from back payments and builds trust with your employees. We handle it for you — monthly, on time and transparently.
