What is ANobAG? —
Here’s what you need to know

ANobAG is a Swiss employment scheme that enables Swiss residents to fulfill their Swiss social security system contributions while remotely working for a non-Swiss company without an establishment within the country. ANobAG is a German acronym that stands for “Arbeitnehmer ohne beitragspflichtigen Arbeitgeber”, which means “employee without a contributory employer”.

In a regular employee-employer relationship, the employer is responsible for paying all necessary tax and insurance contributions on behalf of the employee. However, in accordance with Swiss regulations, this requires both the employee and the employer to have residence or at least a legal entity based in Switzerland.

The ANobAG registration process varies per the canton of residence and where the employer is domiciled. As it pertains to the domicile of the employer, here are some of the differences in the ANobAG registration process:

• EU/EFTA Domicile: Due to the close relations and trade agreements between Switzerland and member states of the EU (European Union) and EFTA (European Free Trade Association), an employer can simply register with the local canton compensation office. To do so, the employer is only required to provide a mailing address. This way, the employer can remotely conduct payroll according to Swiss regulations and conclude the required tax and insurance contributions for the employee. With this solution, the employee is viewed in the legal sense as a regular Swiss employee working for the Swiss entity of a foreign company.
• EU-ANobAG: As it pertains to foreign entities domiciled within the EU that do not wish to register in Switzerland, the employee must register themselves as an ANobAG with their local canton compensation office. In this case, the employee and employer must establish an agreement pursuant to Article 21, para. 2 of the Regulation (EC) No. 987/09 which defines the social security contributions the employee is responsible for. The employee must also conclude the mandatory pension fund and occupational accident insurance. In any event, the employer will still be held liable toward the compensation office where the ANobAG employee is registered. Because the employer retains an obligation to the canton compensation office, this type of ANobAG registrant is known as a “pseudo ANobAG”.

A payroll company is a specialized third party service provider that “employs” an independent contractor or freelancer. When a payroll company employs an individual, they assume the responsibilities of an “ordinary Swiss employer”, including the processing of payroll, conclusion of social security contributions, and the collection/distribution of earned wages. The payroll service provider also keeps a timesheet to track the employee’s working hours, which is then used to calculate earnings.

The Swiss ANobAG employment model provides a great way to expand your professional boundaries and live in two worlds at once. The ANobAG registration process may be daunting and confusing, but with the guidance of one of our experienced consultants, you can rest assured you’ll receive the best solution for your unique case.