Musicians with a second job would get pension cover there from 2028

Anyone with two jobs as an employee should be covered by a pension fund for both from 2028.¹ This applies to every salary above the entry threshold of the BVG (the compulsory occupational pension scheme).¹ The Federal Council opened a consultation on this on 28 October 2026.¹

Today only the main job counts.² You can insure a second job voluntarily at most.² According to the FSIO (Federal Social Insurance Office), people with several jobs are left with gaps in cover.²

Key figures of the proposal:

• Entry threshold: CHF 23,040 annual salary, from 1 January 2027.³
• People affected: just over 100,000 insured persons, estimated with AHV income data (the state old-age pension) from 2024.²
• Extra insured salaries: around CHF 1.2 billion a year.²
• Extra retirement credits: around CHF 170 million a year.²

Per person, that is roughly CHF 1,600 in retirement credits a year on average, based on 105,200 insured persons.² The FSIO counted only employees, leaving out jobs shorter than four months.² How many of them work in music, the estimate does not say.

If you are self-employed with a side job as an employee, that job stays outside the obligation.² The FSIO points to pillar 3a (tax-advantaged private pension saving).² Without a pension fund, you can deduct more there.²

• With a pension fund: up to CHF 7,373 a year, from 2027.³
• Without a pension fund: 20 per cent of earned income, up to CHF 36,864, from 2027.²³

You can still opt for voluntary cover.²

Anyone going self-employed should be able to withdraw just part of their pension savings.¹ Today it is all or nothing.² A partial withdrawal must be at least CHF 20,000.² As a rule, you can only claim it in your first year of self-employment.²

Most of the rules are due to take effect on 1 January 2028.¹ For now it is a proposal: the consultation runs until 17 February 2027.¹

What you can do now: Work out the annual salary from your second job. If it is above CHF 23,040, it would fall under the obligation as proposed.¹³ For pension questions, the online guide Artists Take Action by Suisseculture Sociale can help.⁴