Calculate your net salary as a cross-border commuter to Switzerland online

• You combine a comparatively high salary with a low cost of living.
• Support for families is considerably more attractive in Germany, because Switzerland has no parental leave. After maternity leave, mothers return to work or, if they want to stay at home longer, have to give up their job and receive no financial support from the state whatsoever. As a father it is therefore advisable to work in Switzerland and earn well, but to live with the family in Germany. And if the mother worked in Germany before the birth, she benefits from state-supported parental leave.
• Not to be overlooked is the Swiss pension system, which often puts considerably more money into your retirement pocket than the German one. The statutory Swiss pension can also be topped up through the employer with a direct insurance policy - which is even tax-deductible in Germany. After their working life, former cross-border commuters can enjoy a higher standard of living in Germany - provided they worked in Switzerland for a number of years.

To be able to work in Switzerland you need a cross-border commuter permit. It is your employer's job to apply for it at the responsible cantonal office in Switzerland. Commuters receive a G permit, which is valid for 5 years in the case of permanent employment.

Cross-border commuters are liable to tax at their place of residence, that is in Germany. Switzerland and Germany have a double taxation agreement in place. The Swiss employer does deduct 4.5 per cent withholding tax from your gross salary, but this can be credited in Germany. 

A high salary can be a reason to turn your back on Germany. In most cases the considerably higher German tax rates cannot compete with the more favourable Swiss ones, where the average rate is around 12 per cent. Single commuters in particular benefit from moving to Switzerland, because the tax advantages can be enormous. Once you have a family, the picture looks different.

Families with small children should think a move to Switzerland through carefully. The high cost of living eats into the tax savings. Childcare up to kindergarten age in particular is very expensive in Switzerland. On top of that, Switzerland has no parental leave and requires mothers to return to work after 14 weeks of maternity leave. 

Until you turn 20 you are legally entitled to 5 weeks of holiday, after that to 4. Some employers are generous and grant their staff 5 or more weeks a year even beyond the age of 20. Some Swiss employers also grant long-serving employees more holiday than the law provides for. 

Unemployment is unpleasant, but in Switzerland it is no cause for financial worry either, because you are insured. The condition is that you have worked in Switzerland for at least 6 months by then. You receive the benefits from the employment agency in Germany. Should you be dismissed, you must register as a jobseeker in person with the employment agency within three days in order to claim unemployment benefit. The Swiss unemployment fund issues form "PD U1", which you present to the employment agency in Germany as proof of your period of employment in Switzerland. If you are insured for health care in Switzerland, you must deregister there and join a German health insurer in Germany.