13th salary in Switzerland: when it is owed and how to handle it in your budget
In Switzerland no federal statute requires a 13th salary: it is owed when it is agreed, in the employment contract or a collective labour agreement, and in some cases through regular practice, as the cantonal labour offices of Vaud (2026) and Basel-Stadt (2024) explain. If you leave during the year, an agreed 13th salary is paid pro rata. Budgetberatung Schweiz builds its budget examples on monthly net income without the 13th salary; here are the December and January bills in one table and the steps to prepare for them.
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Track your groceries in Rappn, freeNo federal statute makes a 13th salary mandatory: you get it if your employment contract, a collective labour agreement or a standard employment contract provides for it (canton of Vaud, 2026) and, in some cases, through the employer’s regular practice. If it is agreed, it is part of the salary and, if you leave during the year, you get a proportional share (canton of Basel-Stadt, 2024). A bonus at the employer’s discretion is something else. Budgetberatung Schweiz builds its 2025/26 budget examples on monthly net income without the 13th salary.
Updated October 2026. Sources: DGEM of the canton of Vaud, employment law FAQ, in French; AWA of Basel-Stadt, Merkblatt Lohn (1 January 2024); art. 322d CO; Budgetberatung Schweiz, examples and templates 2025/26, taxes; BSV (Federal Social Insurance Office), pillar 3a, and ESTV (Federal Tax Administration), maximum deductions; BAG (Federal Office of Public Health), 2027 premiums; Serafe AG, invoicing, in English (all others in German; viewed on 14 October 2026).
What is the 13th salary and who gets it?
A 13th salary is one extra monthly salary a year: thirteen payments instead of twelve. It is owed when it is agreed in your individual employment contract, a collective labour agreement or a standard employment contract (DGEM Vaud): it is then a fixed part of the salary and you are entitled to it (AWA Basel-Stadt).
A bonus (gratification) is something else: an extra the employer pays on occasions such as Christmas or the end of the business year, owed if it was agreed (art. 322d para. 1 CO). Practice matters too: if a bonus is voluntary, the employer must say so with every payment, otherwise it can be treated as owed (DGEM Vaud), and the line between a bonus and salary depends on the actual circumstances and agreement (AWA Basel-Stadt). Check your contract and payslips.
If you leave during the year, an agreed 13th salary is paid pro rata: after two thirds of the year, two thirds are due (AWA Basel-Stadt). For a bonus, a proportional share is owed only if that was agreed (art. 322d para. 2 CO).
After the holidays you can see your December grocery spending, sorted by category and by month, next to your own monthly average.
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Your spending
Why is a budget built without the 13th salary?
Because the Budgetberatung Schweiz examples (version 2025/26) start from monthly net income without the 13th salary, which keeps the plan independent of money that comes once a year. Tax, however, depends on the full income, 13th salary and bonus included (notes to the examples), and Budgetberatung Schweiz advises, with few exceptions, against counting on the 13th salary to pay it: better to set it aside every month.
In the household budget template you enter the 13th salary in the month you receive it; the Budgetberatung template gives it its own line, with a yearly and a monthly column (yearly amounts are divided by 12). For the rest of the budget: the five steps and the list of fixed costs.
December: which bills arrive together?
| Item | When | How to prepare (amounts in CHF, Swiss francs; sources in brackets) |
|---|---|---|
| Gifts | December | In the monthly provisions of Budgetberatung Schweiz: in its example for a single person with CHF 5'000 net a month it is CHF 70, or CHF 840 a year (70 × 12, our calculation). |
| Taxes | Depends on the canton | Advance payments, a provisional bill or the final bill: the dates are on your canton’s notice. |
| Health insurance premium | From January | On 29 September 2026 the BAG announced for 2027 an average monthly premium of CHF 412 per insured person (+5.0%) and of CHF 487.60 per adult; yours is on your insurer’s notice. |
| Serafe invoice (TV and radio fee) | If your group falls in December or January | The annual invoice is staggered over twelve randomly assigned billing groups (Serafe AG). For the monthly plan: yearly amount ÷ 12. |
| Pillar 3a (private pension savings) | By 31 December | Voluntary, for people in gainful employment: the payment must be credited to the pillar 3a account by 31 December to be deductible for the same year. At most CHF 7'258 in 2026 for employees affiliated to a pension fund (CHF 7'373 in 2027). |
January without gaps: what should you set aside?
Set aside the known December and January bills before you spend the 13th salary. What is left is yours to allocate: this page is not financial advice.
- List the items of the table that apply to you, with amount and date.
- Add up those that fall between December and January.
- Subtract what your monthly plan already covers (taxes, deductible, dentist, gifts, the unexpected) and set the difference aside. For the monthly amounts, see how much to save per month.
- Allocate the rest: a reserve, pillar 3a, paying down a debt or a planned purchase.
Holiday groceries under control
First set the holiday amount like any other line of the plan, then write the menu and the list before you go out. Opening hours and the five-day plan are in the guide to Christmas grocery shopping in Switzerland, the December calendar in the Christmas dinner planning guide.
Rappn, a free Swiss app (iOS and Android) that compares the current promotions of seven Swiss retailers and turns receipts into a spending overview, helps only with the grocery part: the list shows an estimated price, you can share it with your household and edit it together, and for a product you follow you get an alert when it goes on offer. Add your receipts, by photo or by hand, and see your spending by month next to your own monthly average. Rappn does not cover the 13th salary, taxes, health insurance or deadlines. Rappn is building an AI assistant for groceries: you can join the waitlist.
Updated: .
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is the 13th salary mandatory?
No federal statute requires it. In Switzerland a 13th salary is owed when it is agreed in the employment contract, a collective labour agreement or a standard employment contract (canton of Vaud, DGEM, 2026) and, in some cases, through the employer’s regular practice. A Christmas bonus is owed if it was agreed (art. 322d CO).
When do you receive the 13th salary?
The employment contract, the collective agreement or the staff regulations set when and how it is paid. If you get it in monthly shares with your salary, no extra sum arrives in December: look at your payslips.
What happens to the 13th salary if I leave during the year?
A 13th salary agreed as part of the salary is paid pro rata: if the employment ends after two thirds of the year, two thirds are due (canton of Basel-Stadt, AWA, as of 2024). For a bonus, a proportional share is owed only if it was agreed (art. 322d para. 2 CO). If in doubt, your contract decides.
How can you use a 13th salary?
There is no single rule, and this page is not financial advice. Budgetberatung Schweiz advises, with few exceptions, against counting on the 13th salary to pay taxes and suggests setting them aside every month, so the 13th salary stays free, for example for the unexpected, savings, holidays or gifts. Pillar 3a is another, voluntary option: by 31 December, at most CHF 7'258 in 2026 for employees affiliated to a pension fund, according to the federal authorities.
Can Rappn help with Christmas groceries?
Only with groceries: Rappn, a free Swiss app, has a list with an estimated price, shows the current promotions of seven Swiss retailers and alerts you when a product you follow goes on offer. It does not handle the 13th salary, taxes or health insurance. Rappn is building an AI assistant for groceries, and there is a waitlist.