You have started offering your services and need to complete a registration questionnaire for Swiss social insurance. Some questions are straightforward; others ask you to describe your clients, investments or freedom to organise your work.
This article covers an activity carried out in your own name. If you receive pay for working in your own LLC (Sàrl/GmbH) or limited company (SA/AG), you generally have employee status for that work.
Your compensation office assesses whether you qualify as self-employed for Swiss old-age and survivors’ insurance, known as OASI in English, AVS in French and AHV in German. We use AHV below. The aim is to explain how you actually work. The office considers whether you operate on your own account and bear the financial risks, or whether the relationship amounts to employment.
At a glance
- Recognition depends on the actual economic circumstances, not simply on a contract describing you as “self-employed”.
- Prepare the relevant compensation office’s form, a clear description of your activity and concrete supporting evidence.
- Your invoices, contracts, payments, investments and working arrangements should describe the same business activity consistently.
- There is no universal rule that having three clients automatically gives you self-employed status.
- A secondary activity can qualify as self-employment. Each activity and working relationship must be assessed.
- Once registered, monitor your provisional contributions and report significant changes in income.
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Where to apply
The compensation office determines your activity’s status for social insurance purposes and collects contributions. Entry in the commercial register or a business identification number (UID) does not replace that decision.
Start by identifying the office responsible for your case. This may be a cantonal compensation office or one run by a professional association, depending on your membership. In sectors within Suva’s remit, Suva also helps determine whether an activity qualifies as self-employment or employment.
Forms and submission channels vary between offices. In French-speaking Switzerland, use the form required by the office responsible for your situation in Vaud, Geneva, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Valais or Jura. If you work across borders, disclose the other countries where you work so that the applicable social security coordination rules can be assessed.
This article focuses on preparing your registration application. For the wider process, see the steps to becoming self-employed in Switzerland. If you are still preparing your launch, use the checklist before starting a Swiss business to review funding, permits and administration.
Find the right form for your application
The compensation offices’ information portal on self-employment directs you to the application and the relevant office. The official AHV leaflet also refers readers to this portal. If you belong to a professional association’s compensation office, check its submission procedure before completing a cantonal questionnaire.
You need to apply for registration as a self-employed person. An employer registration form is used to register as an employer of staff; a VAT form concerns a separate tax. These procedures are not interchangeable.
Keep the version of the questionnaire you used, the application you sent and the acknowledgement of receipt. If several exchanges are needed, this single record helps you avoid giving inconsistent dates or amounts in later replies.
Complete the AHV form
Identity, contact details and start date
Have your AHV number, identity document, address and business contact details ready. State the legal form you use, usually a sole proprietorship if you work alone in your own name.
The start date must reflect when your activity actually began. Your first invoice is evidence, but it does not necessarily capture every step involved in starting the business. Explain any difference between the timing of your preparations and your first client assignments.
Contact the office early to find out when to apply and which documents it needs. There is no reason to wait several months unnecessarily. Equally, a purely hypothetical project with no concrete evidence may not allow a final decision.
Main or secondary activity
Declare any employment you retain, your working percentage and your other activities. You can be an employee in one relationship and self-employed in another. Having a salary does not remove the need to declare your secondary activity, but it may affect your contributions and social insurance coverage.
Do not describe the activity as your main occupation simply because that sounds more convincing. Explain the time you spend on it and the income you expect. Our article on combining employment and self-employment (in French) covers the other points to check.
What you do and where you work
Describe what you do, for whom and how. “Consultancy” is less informative than “helping small businesses develop their communication plans, under client assignments based on my own quotations”.
State where you work: at home, in rented premises, at clients’ premises or on construction sites. Working from a home office does not automatically invalidate an application. The overall working arrangements matter.
Explain your independence
The compensation office needs to understand who organises the work and who bears its financial consequences.
| Application question | What to explain |
|---|---|
| Who sets the prices? | Your quotations, negotiations and commercial terms |
| Who organises the work? | Working hours, methods, choice of assignments and client constraints |
| Who provides the resources? | Equipment, software, premises and the expenses you pay |
| Who bears the risk? | Unpaid invoices, rework, fixed costs and possible losses |
| How do you find clients? | Prospecting, recommendations, your website, advertising or your network |
A self-employed person may have to meet a client’s deadlines or quality requirements. That alone does not make them an employee. However, imposed working hours, integration into a team, managerial supervision and no financial risk of their own may, together, indicate an employment relationship.
When your former employer becomes your client
If you do the same work, in the same place and under the same instructions as before, replacing your salary with an invoice is not enough to change your status. Describe the relationship and its history openly. Your application should allow an accurate assessment of the facts.
Document your clients and payments
Having several clients is an important sign of self-employment. Depending on the circumstances, working for a single client may instead suggest employment. There is no magic number that replaces an assessment of the relationship.
List your actual clients and the share of your business each represents. If you are starting with one assignment and pursuing others, say so. Attach contracts already agreed and distinguish them from initial business enquiries.
Which invoices should you attach?
Choose representative invoices that meet Swiss requirements, issued in your own name or your sole proprietorship’s name, showing the client, date, service and amount. Only charge VAT if you are entitled to do so. AHV registration and Swiss VAT liability are separate matters.
Match paid invoices to the corresponding receipts. A simple table can list the invoice number, client, amount, payment date and relevant attachment. If an invoice remains outstanding, label it as unpaid rather than presenting an expected payment as money already received.
Contracts and quotations
Contracts, assignment confirmations and accepted quotations show the agreed services, prices and responsibilities. A signed contract is stronger evidence than an oral promise you cannot document. However, its title does not bind the compensation office if the economic reality is different.
Example: documenting a small-scale start
Imagine a graphic designer starting with two assignments: a fixed fee of CHF 2,400 for a visual identity and CHF 900 for a brochure. She uses her own computer and software licences, sets prices through her quotations, works from home and bears the cost of the revisions included in her commitments.
A clear application describes these facts and includes the two accepted quotations, the first invoices, software expenses and an explanation of how she works. It separates confirmed clients from prospects. Ten requests for a quote should not be presented as ten clients.
| Document | What the designer provides | What the office can check |
|---|---|---|
| P1 and P2 | The two accepted quotations: CHF 2,400 and CHF 900. | The agreed services, prices and commitments. |
| P3 | The CHF 2,400 invoice and matching bank transaction, if paid. | The link between the invoiced service and the payment received. |
| P4 | The CHF 900 invoice, marked “unpaid” if still outstanding. | An amount owed by a client, distinguished from cash received. |
| P5 | Software licence invoices and a description of the equipment used. | The business resources and expenses she bears. |
In this illustration, the two assignments total CHF 3,300. If only the first has been paid, cash received is CHF 2,400 and the outstanding receivable is CHF 900. These amounts describe the initial activity; on their own, they are not an annual forecast.
This does not guarantee recognition as self-employed. It does give the compensation office concrete evidence to assess independence. A general statement such as “I am completely independent” would not provide that information.
Three inconsistencies to avoid
An application may describe consultancy while its attachments show only the supply of staff. Elsewhere, the income figure may be the total invoiced, without deducting expenses. Or the start date may differ between the questionnaire, contracts and an application to withdraw second-pillar pension savings.
Read the application as someone who knows nothing about your business. Can they understand what you sell, to whom, with which resources and since when? Explain real differences so that they do not appear to be contradictions.
Estimate income and organise your evidence
Do not confuse turnover with business profit. If you expect CHF 40,000 in sales and CHF 12,000 in business expenses, excluding your personal AHV contributions in this example, estimated profit is CHF 28,000: 40,000 − 12,000. This profit is neither your turnover nor necessarily the final income figure used to assess contributions.
Follow the definitions used in the form, particularly for net income and personal contributions. The compensation office calculates provisional contributions using an estimate, then sets the final amount from the relevant tax data, with the required adjustments.
According to official leaflet 2.02, valid for 2026, the combined rate for old-age and survivors’ insurance (OASI), disability insurance (DI) and income compensation (IC) reaches 10% at the top of the scale. A decreasing scale applies to annual income below CHF 60,500. Administrative fees and any other applicable contributions are additional, so 10% is not an all-inclusive rate.
From estimated income to provisional contributions
The CHF 28,000 profit in the example helps you prepare your estimate. The compensation office then applies the rules for assessable income and the appropriate contribution scale. Automatically multiplying this amount by 10% would oversimplify the calculation.
Review your position quarterly: actual sales, expenses incurred, expected profit and provisional contributions paid. Update your estimate if the business grows significantly. A small AHV bill at the start does not mean your final contributions will also be small.
Organise your supporting documents
- The completed form, dated and signed as required by the office.
- A description of the activity and its start-up timeline.
- Contracts, accepted quotations and client invoices.
- Evidence of payments already received.
- Invoices for investments and an inventory of business equipment.
- A lease or explanation of how you use your premises, where relevant.
- Evidence of client prospecting: a website, advertising, proposals or business correspondence.
- Information about other employment and any necessary permits.
A qualification or business plan can support your application, but does not by itself prove economic independence. Number the documents and link each one to information in the form, so the office can understand why you have included it.
Follow up your application
Keep a complete copy of your application and proof of submission. Answer requests for information precisely. Report any change in your circumstances while the application is being assessed.
A request for additional documents does not necessarily mean your application has been refused. If you receive an adverse decision, read its reasons and the instructions on how to challenge it. Simply submitting a new application does not automatically protect a deadline for an objection or appeal.
Professional support can help you explain and document your activity. It cannot guarantee approval of a working relationship that does not meet the criteria. The competent authority makes the decision.
After registration, monitor provisional contributions and report significant income changes to reduce the risk of large adjustments and interest. If you are considering withdrawing your second-pillar pension savings (in French), promptly coordinate the procedure and deadline with your pension institution.
Key takeaways
A well-prepared AHV application describes a real activity in plain language and supports it with consistent evidence. Start with the correct form, provide clear figures and answer questions about your independence precisely. Once you receive the decision, keep monitoring provisional contributions. Recognition as self-employed is one step in starting your business, and your social insurance obligations continue afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
Are three clients enough to qualify as self-employed?
No. Having three clients is not an automatic guarantee. A varied client base matters, but independence and financial risk remain key factors.
Can I apply if I work from home?
Yes. Explain your working arrangements. The compensation office assesses the activity as a whole, rather than simply checking whether you have a commercial lease.
Must I wait until all my invoices have been paid?
Ask the compensation office which documents it needs. Clearly distinguish invoices issued, payments received and future assignments. Do not delay reporting the start of your activity without a reason.
Does recognition cover all my future assignments?
A new activity or working relationship may require a fresh assessment. A general confirmation of self-employed status does not automatically turn work performed as an employee into a self-employed assignment.
Sources
- OASI/DI Information Centre: leaflet 2.02, status as of 1 January 2026.
- Suva: determining self-employed or employee status (in French).
- Compensation offices’ information portal: self-employment criteria and the responsible office.
- Compensation offices’ information portal: completing your application.
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Romain Prieur is a Swiss certified public accountant and the founder of Entreprendre.ch. With more than ten years of experience in auditing and supporting businesses in Switzerland, he advises entrepreneurs on company formation, accounting and taxation.
