Employer of record. Hire in Switzerland.

An employer of record is a company that formally employs people and places them with another company to work for it. The EOR pays their salary, handles social insurance and withholding tax, and registers them with the authorities. The work itself is done for your company, and you direct it. The model is aimed at foreign companies that want to hire in Switzerland without setting up their own entity.

Under Swiss law, an EOR counts as personnel leasing. In its guidance on the Employment Services Act (AVG), the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) classifies both payrolling and employer of record this way: your company is the client (Einsatzbetrieb), and the EOR is the lessor (Verleihbetrieb). Anyone who leases staff commercially needs an operating license from the cantonal labor office and, for cross-border assignments, an additional license from SECO (Art. 12 AVG). On top of that come a deposit of at least CHF 50'000, written contracts with prescribed content and, as a rule, the collective agreement for personnel leasing. Without a license, both the leasing contract and the employment contract are void, and fines run up to CHF 100'000 for the lessor and CHF 40'000 for a client who knew (Art. 22 and 39 AVG).

No. Swiss law expressly prohibits leasing staff into Switzerland from abroad (Art. 12 para. 2 AVG), even within a group of companies. An international EOR provider therefore needs a Swiss company or registered branch that holds a leasing license and acts as the employer. You can check in SECO's public register whether a provider is licensed. Do that before you sign.

No. clever hr does not act as an employer of record or staff lessor, and it holds no leasing license under Art. 12 AVG. We work for companies that already have, or are setting up, their own Swiss entity. That entity is the employer, and we handle the employer registrations, employment contracts under Swiss law and ongoing payroll. Decisions on hiring, pay and terminations stay with you. If you need an EOR to get started, we can point you to licensed Swiss staffing companies on request. Once your entity is up and running, we set up payroll for the employees you take over.

With payroll outsourcing, your company remains the employer. A provider such as clever hr runs payroll on your behalf, handles social insurance and withholding tax, and takes care of the year-end work. No leasing license is needed, because no one is being leased. With payrolling and EOR, the provider employs the person and places them with you. That is personnel leasing, which requires a license and a deposit and is usually covered by the collective agreement for personnel leasing. What matters is who the employer is; the monthly payroll run looks much the same in both models.

An EOR works well for a limited market test with one or a few people, when you want to start within days and aren't ready to incorporate yet. If you are building a real presence, employing several people or serving Swiss customers under your own brand, your own GmbH or AG is usually cheaper and gives you full control. From roughly 10 to 15 employees, it is normally the more economical route. You can also combine the two: start with an EOR, then move the employees over to your own entity. A leasing contract may not stand in the way of that move (Art. 22 para. 2 AVG); the only thing allowed is a limited fee if the assignment lasted less than three months.

EOR providers usually charge a monthly fee per employee, either flat or as a percentage of salary, on top of salary and employer contributions. Setup fees, a deposit and currency markups are common. Ask for a quote that itemizes everything; the leasing contract has to state the full cost, including social benefits, allowances and expenses, anyway (Art. 22 AVG). With your own entity, you pay for incorporation through a notary and the commercial register (share capital of CHF 20'000 for a GmbH, or CHF 100'000 for an AG with at least CHF 50'000 paid in) plus the ongoing employer contributions. For the HR side, our setup package applies: a fixed setup fee, then a monthly fee per employee for payroll and HR support, both net of VAT and excluding statutory employer contributions. You'll find the amounts at the top of this page.

Swiss employers pay contributions on top of gross salary: 5.3 percent for AHV, IV and EO, 1.1 percent for unemployment insurance on salaries up to CHF 148'200, 1 to 2.75 percent for family allowances depending on the canton, and 0.1 to 2 percent for occupational accident insurance depending on the industry. The occupational pension adds retirement credits of 7 to 18 percent of the coordinated salary, at least half of which the employer pays, and most employers also carry daily sickness benefits insurance. We calculate the exact cost of each position before you hire.

With a licensed EOR, usually within a few days, because the provider is already registered as an employer. The own-entity route takes longer: incorporation typically takes about three weeks, the registrations with the compensation fund, insurers and tax authority run in parallel, and we register new employees subject to withholding tax within 8 days of their start date. With our setup package, the first payroll run usually follows four to eight weeks after the commercial register entry, provided your documents are complete. The compensation fund normally confirms the affiliation within one to two weeks, and we file the pension fund, accident insurer and family allowance fund registrations at the same time; choosing a pension fund and opening the bank account usually take the longest. Permits for people from outside the EU and EFTA take considerably longer and depend on the quotas (2026: 4'500 B and 4'000 L permits for non-EU/EFTA nationals, plus 2'100 B and 1'400 L for UK nationals).

EU and EFTA citizens enjoy freedom of movement: for up to 90 working days a year, an online notification is enough, and a permit for longer employment is normally granted as a matter of course. Citizens of other countries need a permit from a limited annual quota (2026: 4'500 B and 4'000 L permits, plus a separate quota of 2'100 B and 1'400 L permits for UK nationals). Plan ahead; we coordinate with specialized immigration partners.

You enter into employment contracts under the Swiss Code of Obligations, pay the employer contributions (AHV/IV/EO, unemployment insurance, occupational pension, accident insurance, family allowances), withhold tax for employees without a permanent residence permit, grant at least four weeks of vacation (Art. 329a CO) and keep paying salary for a limited period during illness or accident (Art. 324a CO). Working-time rules, workplace safety and protection against dismissal apply as well. With an EOR, these duties formally sit with the lessor; you bear their cost through the leasing fee and remain responsible for instructions and for safety at the workplace (Art. 10 VUV).

Five things. First, the license in SECO's register: cantonal, plus federal if the person is moving to Switzerland from abroad or will work abroad. Second, a written leasing contract with all mandatory details: place of work, start date, duration or notice periods, working hours and the full cost including social benefits (Art. 22 AVG). Third, pay and benefits under the collective agreement for personnel leasing, which provides for minimum wages, a 13th-month salary and daily sickness benefits. Fourth, confidentiality, rights to work product and non-compete clauses that also protect you, because the employment contract binds the employee only to the EOR. Fifth, a clear arrangement for the later move to your own entity.