Pillar 1 is the foundation of the Swiss three-pillar pension system. Every employee, self-employed person and resident contributes from age 17 (employed) or 20 (non-employed) until retirement. The contribution rate is 5.3% from the employee and 5.3% from the employer, totalling 10.6% of gross salary, with no upper income ceiling.
Benefits cover old age, surviving spouses and orphans, and disability (IV/AI). The pension paid depends on the number of contribution years and the average earned income. A full pension requires 44 contribution years for men and women alike from 2026. Missing years (Beitragslücken) reduce the pension by roughly 1/44 each.
The minimum full pension in 2026 is CHF 1,260 per month; the maximum is CHF 2,520 per month for a single person and CHF 3,780 for a married couple. AHV alone is not designed to fully replace working income — it typically covers 30–40% of pre-retirement salary, which is why Pillars 2 and 3 are essential.
An employee earning CHF 90,000 contributes CHF 4,770 per year (5.3%); the employer matches. After 44 full contribution years with an average indexed income of CHF 88,200 or more, they will receive the maximum single AHV pension of CHF 2,520 per month.