Children living abroad
Special rules apply to the payment of family allowances for children living abroad.
Children living abroad giving rise to entitlement
In such instances, family allowances are only paid out if Switzerland is required to do so as part of an international social security agreement. As Switzerland has concluded this type of agreement with the European Union (EU) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Swiss nationals and citizens of an EU or EFTA member state who live or work in Switzerland are entitled to Swiss family allowances for their children living in an EU or EFTA member state. If a person has a concurring claim to family allowances from Switzerland and from an EU or EFTA member state, the special coordination provisions between Switzerland and EU/EFTA determine which entitlement takes precedence.
For children and young people who leave Switzerland to study or train elsewhere, it is assumed that they will retain their residence in Switzerland for a maximum of five years. During this period, entitlement to family allowances remains unaffected.
When there is entitlement to family allowances for children living abroad, the child allowance and education allowance are exported: However, this does not apply to the childbirth allowance and the adoption allowance. In certain instances, the household allowance for agricultural employees can also be exported.
If the child lives in a country which has not concluded a social security agreement with Switzerland, there is no entitlement to Swiss family allowances. However, there are a number of exceptions; these are set out in national legislation on family allowances. In such instances, the amount that these family allowances take is adjusted in line with the purchasing power in the child's country of residence.
Since Brexit, the following rules apply to the United Kingdom:
Nationals from the UK, Switzerland or an EU member state who were in a cross-border situation involving the UK prior to 1st January 2021 remain entitled to family allowances, even if the children concerned were born after that date. However, exportability does not apply to the allowance entitlement of individuals who have been in a cross-border situation involving the UK since 1st January 2021.
Coordination rules on concurring claims in cross-border situations involving EU/EFTA member states
Only one allowance of the same type may be paid for each child. When a person is entitled to family allowances for the same child and for the same period in both Switzerland and an EU or EFTA member state, this is called a concurring claim. If, for example, more than one person in gainful employment is simultaneously entitled to family allowances, precedence is given to the person who is gainfully employed in the state where the child lives.
There are additional detailed rules on the order of entitlement for concurring claims in cross-border situations involving an EU or EFTA member state
Inter-state differential supplement, Switzerland–EU/EFTA
Once the order of entitlement have determined who is the person with primary entitlement and who is the person with the secondary entitlement, the question of a possible differential supplement arises. If the Swiss family allowances which the person with secondary entitlement can claim are higher than those paid to the claimant with primary entitlement, the person with secondary entitlement can request the payment of the difference.
Payment to a third party
Family allowances must be used for the child's upkeep. The parent claiming the allowance must pass it on to the parent who lives with the child. If the claimant fails to do so, the child's primary carer can apply to have the family allowances paid directly to them. If there is entitlement to family allowances in an EU/EFTA member state, the request must be submitted to the competent authority in the applicant's place of residence. It will forward the application to the competent family allowances compensation fund in the claimant's country of employment. If there is an entitlement to Swiss family allowances, the application must be submitted to the claimant's Swiss family allowances compensation fund. If the family allowances are paid into an account abroad, the Swiss family allowances compensation fund bears the transfer costs for payments abroad. The administrative costs of the bank abroad to which the payment is made are borne by the person who receives the allowances.