Switzerland has introduced new rules governing the tax and social security treatment of telework for cross-border employees, following agreements signed with France and Italy in 2025. Effective from 1 January 2026, the updated framework reflects the rise in telework and international business travel and requires employers to monitor the time employees spend working abroad. Telework and temporary assignment activity must be tracked on a calendar-year basis, reported monthly to the payroll processor, and will form part of the annual declaration submitted to the Swiss tax authorities.
Country-Specific Thresholds
The updated agreements introduce thresholds on how much work may be performed outside Switzerland while retaining Swiss taxation:
From January 2026, employers must ensure they are tracking the business travel and telework of their employees for all cross-border employees, and this will be required to be reported to the Swiss authorities.
In addition, there could be monthly payroll reporting obligations which, if applicable to you, you will need to liaise with your payroll provider and tax advisors to ensure that you are compliant.
At activpayroll, we simplify the complexity of cross-border compliance by providing:
Whether your employees work remotely for occasional days or travel regularly between countries, we help ensure obligations are understood and compliance requirements are met.
To discover our range of global mobility and global employer services, please visit our dedicated Global Mobility webpage or complete our contact us form, and a member of our team will be happy to assist with your queries.