Guide
Using a third pillar to buy a home in Switzerland
A third pillar can help you buy the home you live in, in Switzerland, by an early withdrawal or by a pledge. The withdrawal pays the capital out and triggers a separate tax. The pledge leaves the assets invested and gives them to the bank as security. A second home or a rental property is outside this frame.
Withdrawal and pledge
A withdrawal pays 3a capital out for the home you occupy, or to repay the mortgage on that home. A pledge pays nothing out: the foundation or insurer commits to the bank, and the assets remain.
The exact tax depends on the canton and the amount. It is not estimated here. The money that leaves no longer compounds, and later deductions do not by themselves rebuild it.
On a policy, the bank reads the surrender value, not a projected capital. The frame: Swiss third pillar.
Questions
Your questions, answered
The questions people ask before they request a comparison.
Can I use a 3a for a second home?+−
Not for the early withdrawal that promotes owner-occupied housing. You must live in the property. A pillar 3b follows the contract, not that legal reason.
Does a pledge avoid tax?+−
When you pledge the 3a, there is in principle no withdrawal tax, because the capital is not paid to you. If the bank enforces the pledge, capital tax can then apply.
Official sources
Official sources
- FSIO — The third pillar (article 7 OPP 3) — Small and large contributions. Pillar 3a buy-backs concern gaps from 2025. The first buy-back is possible in 2026.
- FSIO — Amounts valid on 1 January 2026 — OASI pensions, BVG thresholds and 2026 pillar 3a ceilings. Last editorial check: 6 octobre 2026.
- Federal Council — pillar 3a deduction from 1 January 2027 — Press release of 2 October 2026: 7,373 francs with a 2nd pillar, 36,864 francs at most without one. The 20% rate is unchanged.
- FSIO — Your third-pillar contribution — Maximum with a 2nd pillar, or 20% of income inside the limit without one. The credit counts on 31 December for the tax year.
- FTA — Circular 18a (taxation of pillar 3a) — Tax on capital at withdrawal, staggering, transfer to the 2nd pillar.
- FTA — Pillar 3b life policies that can be surrendered — Flexible provision is not one single tax story. A policy follows the contract and the canton.
- FSIO — OPP 3 change (beneficiaries) — The FSIO announced a wider choice of pillar 3a beneficiaries from 1 June 2027. The applicable detail is on that page, not in a ceiling figure.
- OASI/disability information centre — Pensions, the 13th old-age pension, reference age and the transitional generation.
Editorial review on 6 octobre 2026. Pillar 3a ceilings cited for 2026, from the FSIO table. From 1 January 2027 the Federal Council sets 7,373 francs with a 2nd pillar and 36,864 francs at most without one. The 20% rate is unchanged. Press release of 2 October 2026: https://www.admin.ch/fr/newnsb/BqB41FVYi5FB. Cantonal pillar 3b amounts can change from one tax notice to the next. This is not personal advice.