Issue a salary certificate: employer’s guide
Every employer in Switzerland must issue each employee a salary certificate (Lohnausweis) for every calendar year – including part-timers, temporary staff and anyone who left mid-year. We produce your company’s salary certificates as part of payroll.
How it works
Close the payroll year
The basis is the completed payroll year: base salary, 13th month, bonuses, commissions, allowances and back payments. What counts is the year of payment, not the period worked for.
Capture benefits in kind and private shares
Company cars, meals, staff accommodation and employee discounts all belong on the certificate. For a company car, the private share is added at 0.9 % of the purchase price excluding VAT, per month.
Declare expenses correctly
Actual and lump-sum expenses are reported separately. Lump sums require an expense policy approved by the tax authority – without it they count as salary and are taxed.
Reconcile deductions and social insurance
AHV/IV/EO, unemployment insurance, non-occupational accident cover, occupational pension and any daily-sickness-benefit premiums are reconciled against the annual statements from the compensation fund and pension provider. Otherwise discrepancies only surface at audit.
Fill in the remarks field properly
The remarks field is where field-service share, free transport, employee participation plans or a mid-year start and exit belong. An empty field is the most common reason the tax office comes back with questions.
Distribute and handle withholding tax
The certificate goes to employees at the start of the year. For employees taxed at source, the monthly settlement with the canton runs in parallel and follows its own deadlines.
We'll take care of it
Answered in short
By when must the salary certificate be issued?
There is no single nationwide deadline; January or February is customary. Employees need it for their tax return, which in some cantons is due in March.
Do temporary staff need one too?
Yes. The obligation applies regardless of workload or length of employment, including short assignments and mid-year departures.
What happens if a certificate is wrong?
It has to be corrected and reissued. Systematically understating benefits in kind can trigger back claims for AHV contributions and tax – usually against the employer.