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The right to a 13th pension payment for pensioners abroad is being questioned. <\/p>\n
Keystone <\/p>\n
Swiss citizens living abroad could be excluded from the new 13th state pension payment under a proposal from the right-wing Swiss People\u2019s Party.\n<\/p>\n
This content was published on <\/p>\n
August 28, 2026 – 16:00\n<\/p>\n
A year ahead of the federal elections, the People\u2019s Party is proposing new restrictions on the Swiss diaspora. In a motion, parliamentarian Didier Calame has called for \u201cthe 13th pension [payment] to be restricted to beneficiaries who are resident in Switzerland\u201d.<\/p>\n
Calame told Swissinfo: \u201cPensioners abroad are entitled to the OASI [Swiss old-age and survivors\u2019 pension, also known as AHV\/AVS], but not to a 13th pension payment. They often deliberately emigrate for economic reasons to countries where the cost of living is lower. So they are saving money.\u201d Calame goes on to say that he has already received reactions from expatriates in Portugal, Thailand and the Dominican Republic. \u201cThese are all countries with a low cost of living. You need less money there. That proves I am right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pensions abroad targeted before<\/p>\n
Calame came up with the idea for his motion during parliamentary debates on how to fund the 13th pension payment. This is expected to cost the Swiss government CHF4.2 billion ($5.22 billion) this year alone, and then around CHF5 billion ($6.22 billion) annually thereafter. Funding for this has not yet been secured; so far, parliament has only been able to agree on incomplete or temporary funding arrangements.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the financing of the OASI poses a growing challenge, it is essential to concentrate the available funds on those who live in our country and are actually suffering from high prices,\u201d Calame writes in his motion.<\/p>\n
During the initiative campaign on the introduction of the 13th pension payment, the People\u2019s Party criticised retirees living abroad. \u201cSwiss citizens living abroad are the most selfish people there are,\u201d declared journalist Markus Somm at the time, acting as an advisor to the People\u2019s Party leadership. Some parliamentarians also spoke of \u201cluxury pensioners abroad\u201d.<\/p>\n
Swiss Abroad react with anger<\/p>\n
Within the community of the Swiss Abroad, the current proposal \u2013 first reported by the news portal cash.ch \u2013 has caused outrage. Josef Schnyder, who represents the Swiss Abroad in Thailand, comments: \u201cThe People\u2019s Party is making it unmistakably clear where it stands on the Swiss Abroad: paying OASI contributions \u2013 yes. Equal rights in old age \u2013 no.\u201d Matthias Anderegg, a Swiss Abroad in Thailand, asks: \u201cAre Swiss people worth less as soon as they live abroad? Anyone who has paid into the OASI all their life should be able to spend their retirement wherever they wish, without being disadvantaged.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel Hunziker, director of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (ASO), replied succinctly when asked by Swissinfo: \u201cThe ASO rejects cuts to benefits for the Swiss Abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n
Will the People\u2019s Party lose the support of the Swiss Abroad with this move, a year before the elections?<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, I wasn\u2019t thinking about the 2027 elections when I drafted this motion \u2013 that\u2019s not how I work. But it could, of course, have a slight impact on this electorate,\u201d said Calame.<\/p>\n
Pensions abroad are low<\/p>\n
No distinction is made regarding nationality when it comes to pensions paid abroad. They are not only paid to the Swiss Abroad, but two-thirds go to former foreign workers who have returned to their home countries from Switzerland after retirement. \u201cAs far as I\u2019m concerned, they are all emigrants. It has nothing to do with the nationality of the pension recipients. The idea behind the 13th OASI was to do something about the rising cost of living in Switzerland,\u201d says Calame.<\/p>\n
Both the Swiss Abroad and foreign nationals have seen their numbers rise in recent years, though not at a disproportionately higher rate than the domestic population. The total OASI budget has grown at the same rate.<\/p>\n
However, the People\u2019s Party\u2019s focus on pensions paid abroad has so far hardly ever considered the total amount of pensions paid out. During the 2024 initiative campaign, the party already pointed out that almost one in three OASI recipients lives abroad. This is correct, as this chart shows.<\/p>\n
However, it is also worth noting that by no means one in three pension francs goes abroad. In fact, it accounts for only 14% of all pension expenditure by the Swiss state.<\/p>\n
This is because pensions paid abroad are, on average, much lower. In 2025, the average monthly pension in Switzerland was CHF1,970 ($2,450), while abroad it was CHF702 ($873). Anyone receiving an average pension from abroad would therefore struggle to make ends meet in Switzerland without supplementary benefits. A pension paid abroad costs Switzerland around a third of what a domestic pension does.<\/p>\n
Based on the figures for 2025, the potential savings from not paying the 13th OASI pension abroad would amount to around 14% of the new expenditure incurred.<\/p>\n
Why the government opposes the pension cut<\/p>\n
The Federal Council, Switzerland\u2019s executive body, recommends rejecting Calame\u2019s motion, citing the law \u2013 in particular the agreement on the free movement of persons with the European Union (EU) and Switzerland\u2019s social security agreements with other countries. The principle of equal treatment applies in these contexts. \u201cNationals of the countries concerned have the same rights as Swiss nationals,\u201d writes the Federal Council. \u201cThere is no scope for treating beneficiaries living abroad differently from insured persons resident in Switzerland.\u201d Furthermore, the text of the Constitution guarantees all recipients a 13th old-age pension.<\/p>\n
In a statement, the international branch of Switzerland\u2019s Social Democratic Party points out that the cost of living abroad is not lower everywhere compared to Switzerland. The Swiss Abroad also often have to take out private health insurance, which can be significantly more expensive, particularly as they get older. \u201cIf such private insurance is not available, they have to cover a considerable proportion of their healthcare costs themselves,\u201d writes Co-President Christophe Margot. \u201cThis is another reason why they are reliant on the 13th OASI pension.\u201d<\/p>\n
The maximum annual state pension in Switzerland for an individual currently stands at CHF32,760 ($40,729), including the 13th payment. The amount depends on the duration and level of pension contributions made during a working life.<\/p>\n