Guide
Third-pillar guides
Three texts a week, not an article a day. The guides already online keep their original URLs. English versions use the same slug under /en/.
The wider frame is the Swiss third pillar.
Pace
Three articles a week, not a daily stream. Historical guides keep their original slugs. English pages use the same slug under /en/.
2026 series
Choosing the pillar 3a support24 October 2026
The 2026 ceiling does not depend on the support. Fees, surrender value and death capital do.
2026 series
OASI 21, women’s reference age, and pillar 3a22 October 2026
OASI 21 gradually raises women’s reference age from 64 to 65. It does not change the 2026 pillar 3a ceiling.
2026 series
Credit the pillar 3a before 31 December20 October 2026
An order dated 28 December can fall into the next year if the account is not credited in time.
2026 series
Source method: FSIO and FTA17 October 2026
Where the Swiss-franc figures on this site come from, and what is refused: a ranking, a promised return, or a 2027 figure that is not in the 2 October 2026 release.
2026 series
Pillar 3a fees: bank or insurance15 October 2026
The 2026 pillar 3a deduction is the same at a bank and at an insurer. Fees, surrender value and death capital differ. No ranking.
2026 series
Using pillar 3a and pillar 3b together13 October 2026
Pillar 3a takes the federal deduction. Pillar 3b takes flexibility. There is no official ranking.
2026 series
Leaving Switzerland and withdrawing a pillar 3a10 October 2026
A definitive departure is a legal reason for early payment. Exit tax is not in the ceiling PDF.
2026 series
Withholding tax and pillar 3a8 October 2026
Paying a pillar 3a does not by itself cut withholding tax. A subsequent ordinary assessment is where it usually shows.
2026 series
OASI conditions for a cross-border pillar 3a6 October 2026
A cross-border worker can open a pillar 3a if Swiss earned income is subject to OASI.
2026 series
Pillar 3a deduction under withholding tax3 October 2026
A pillar 3a payment is not in the withholding-tax scale. The deduction goes through a subsequent ordinary assessment, by 31 March.
2026 series
Third pillar in Vaud3 October 2026
Vaud applies article 7 OPP 3. It does not publish a second pillar 3a scale.
2026 series
Pillar 3b deduction in Fribourg1 October 2026
Fribourg does not turn pillar 3b into a second OPP 3 ceiling. Some life premiums fit a cantonal envelope.
2026 series
Geneva cantonal tax and pillar 3a29 September 2026
Geneva does not raise the 2026 pillar 3a ceiling. Cantonal tax changes the saving, not the right to pay in.
2026 series
How to read the FSIO amounts table26 September 2026
The comparison does not set the ceilings. It reads the FSIO PDF of amounts at 1 January 2026.
2026 series
Buying back pillar 3a gaps24 September 2026
From the 2026 tax year, a narrow buy-back of gaps from 2025 is possible. Capped at the small contribution. The next year’s buy-back ceiling is not numbered.
2026 series
Withdrawing pillar 3a or pillar 3b23 September 2026
Pillar 3a leaves only for legal reasons and is taxed apart from income. Pillar 3b follows the contract.
2026 series
Using a pillar 3a to fund a pension-fund buy-back23 September 2026
A 3a can be transferred to a pension fund to fund a buy-back, under the occupational-pension rules. The reverse direct transfer is not possible.
2026 series
Pillar 3a ceilings22 September 2026
2026 ceilings from the FSIO table. The following year is not numbered.
Archive
Bank or insurance: the same tax, a different exit6 September 2023
Same 2026 deduction. What remains if you stop, and what is paid if you die, is what differs.
Archive
Subsequent ordinary assessment24 October 2022
Withholding tax does not show the 3a deduction. A subsequent ordinary assessment can.
Archive
Tax when a pillar 3a is paid out16 October 2022
Pillar 3a capital is taxed separately from income. No cantonal rate is published.
Archive
The 2022 pillar 3a amounts are historical12 December 2021
The 2022 small and large contributions are historical. The current ceilings are the 2026 FSIO figures.
Archive
Opening a third pillar as a cross-border worker7 December 2021
Same OASI test as for a resident. The permit is not the key.
Archive
What the 2nd pillar is for7 December 2021
The 2nd pillar replaces part of the salary. It also decides which pillar 3a ceiling applies.
Archive
Choosing pillar 3a beneficiaries6 December 2021
The current pillar 3a order, and what the FSIO announced for 1 June 2027 without rewriting the ordinance.
Archive
Why take a third pillar6 December 2021
A federal deduction, a retirement gap, sometimes protection. Not a reason to empty your cash.
Archive
When to start a third pillar6 December 2021
You can start once you have income subject to OASI. A missed year before 2025 is not bought back.
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.