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Unpaid salary in Switzerland: demand and legal steps

Itemise the missing salary, expense or exit-settlement amount and reconcile the contract, any GAV or NAV, payslip, working-time record and bank receipt. Request correction or payment in writing with provable delivery. If it remains unresolved, identify the competent cantonal civil, debt-enforcement or insolvency route.

Publisher: svajc.com Knowledge Base7 min readLast reviewed: 8/6/2026

Editorially reviewed

In Brief

Key Takeaways

Break every claim down by period, amount, basis and supporting record.
Explaining standard payroll deductions and disputing an unlawful set-off remain separate search intents.
The employer notice should be written, itemised and delivered in a provable way.
Debt enforcement pursues money claims but does not replace proof when the entitlement is disputed.
When insolvency appears possible, check the official insolvency-compensation route immediately.

Short answer: what should you do if your salary was not paid?

First identify exactly which salary, expense or exit-settlement item is missing, and compare the contract, any GAV or NAV, payslip, working-time record and bank receipt. Send the employer an itemised written claim, request a verifiable response and preserve evidence of delivery. If it remains unresolved, choose the cantonal civil, debt-enforcement or insolvency route that matches the claim and the employer's situation.

Quick facts

Separate first: unpaid salary, disputed deduction, expenses, working-time balance and final account.
Core records: employment contract, GAV or NAV, payslips, bank statements, time and expense evidence, and correspondence.
First communication: an itemised written objection or demand with provable delivery and a reasonable response date.
Forum: an individual wage dispute is a civil matter; identify the competent cantonal body for the actual case.
Debt enforcement: Betreibung enforces money claims but does not itself decide a disputed employment entitlement.
Insolvency: insolvency compensation may apply and requires an urgent check with the competent unemployment insurance fund.

1. Define the missing item precisely

Do not begin with a general statement that you were not paid. Build a list by period, gross or net amount, due date and legal or contractual basis. A full monthly salary, variable commission, expense reimbursement, overtime, holiday balance and final account require different evidence. Use the Swiss employment-contract guide for general pre-signing and probation review; this page starts when a concrete monetary or accounting claim already exists.

Disputed item	Basis to check	Useful evidence
Full or partial salary	Contract, pay period, work performed	Payslip and bank statement
Deduction or set-off	Payslip, stated basis, employer notice	Previous and current payslips
Working time or overtime	Contract, GAV/NAV, approved time	Rota and time records
Expenses	Policy, assignment and receipt	Approval and receipts
Final account	End date and accepted balances	Final payslip and correspondence

2. Reconcile the payslip and cash movement

Under the Swiss Code of Obligations, the employer owes salary and must provide a written account with money wages. The official text of Articles 323–323b CO also shows that an agreement, custom, NAV or GAV may affect timing and that employer set-off is restricted. Do not classify a deduction from its label alone: request its basis, calculation and period.

If your first task is simply understanding AHV/IV/EO, ALV, BVG, accident insurance, withholding tax and other standard lines, use the Swiss payroll-deductions guide. This canonical applies when an item is missing, conflicts with the agreement or lacks a verifiable explanation. Payroll education and claim enforcement therefore remain separate search intents.

3. Build an evidence-ready claim file

List each item. State the month or date, amount, calculation, and contractual or legal basis.
Match each item to evidence. Attach the contract, payslip, bank credit, time record, expense receipt or written approval.
Separate agreed and disputed parts. Show what the employer has accepted and what still needs proof.
Preserve records lawfully. Keep your own records but do not export confidential customer, business or colleague data.
Create a chronology. Put work performed, due date, shortfall and every response on one timeline.

4. What should the written demand contain?

The ch.ch guidance on problems at work recommends writing to the employer in an individual salary or employment dispute. Identify the employment relationship, list the affected periods and items, show the calculation briefly, request correction or payment and give a reasonable response date. If the employer disagrees, request an itemised written explanation.

Delivery should be provable later, using a signed receipt, tracked mail or another reliable channel in the actual relationship. Registered mail is not a universal statutory form requirement. Do not threaten criminal proceedings, publicity or immediate resignation without case-specific legal review.

Short German structure

Betreff: Offene Lohnforderung für [Zeitraum]. Gemäss Arbeitsvertrag und Lohnabrechnung ist aus meiner Sicht folgender Betrag offen: [items and calculation]. Bitte prüfen Sie die Abrechnung und überweisen Sie den unbestrittenen Betrag beziehungsweise senden Sie mir Ihre begründete schriftliche Stellungnahme bis [date]. Beilagen: [list].

5. If it remains unresolved, separate the routes

Situation	Possible direction	Key check
Basis or amount is disputed	Cantonal civil or conciliation route	Jurisdiction, requested relief and evidence
Defined money claim	Consider the Betreibungsamt	The office does not decide the underlying disputed right
Employer is insolvent	Insolvency compensation and enforcement	Urgent official deadlines and active pursuit
Several workers share a collective dispute	Cantonal collective conciliation body	Do not confuse it with an individual wage claim
Dismissal is also challenged	Separate dismissal file	Its own objection and claim deadlines

ch.ch states that the cantonal civil court decides an unresolved individual dispute. The body's name, prior conciliation, form and filing channel may differ by canton and case type. Do not reuse another canton's form without checking. Union members should contact their organisation; with legal-expenses insurance, confirm coverage and obtain a claim reference before instructing counsel.

6. Betreibung is not an automatic judgment

The Federal Office of Justice explains in its debt-enforcement and bankruptcy overview that money claims are enforced under the SchKG. A debt-enforcement request can begin the process, but the office does not determine whether a disputed wage entitlement exists. If the employer objects, the federal SME portal's procedure summary explains that the creditor must continue the matter with evidence.

Debt enforcement is therefore not automatically the best first external step. Assess the evidence, the employer's response, the likely dispute and the cantonal civil route. Do not submit an imprecise or inflated claim merely as pressure. Obtain personal advice for a material amount, several legal bases or an employer counterclaim.

7. If the employer is insolvent

If the facts indicate bankruptcy, enforcement events, closure or sustained insolvency rather than an administrative delay, check insolvency compensation immediately. The official arbeit.swiss page describes a separate insurance route for unpaid employment claims. Eligibility, covered period, competent fund, required enforcement steps and deadlines are urgent and case-specific; do not rely on figures copied from an old article.

Keep the demand and delivery evidence, contract, payslips, bank statements, time records and any official insolvency document. Contact the competent unemployment insurance fund. Insolvency compensation is not ordinary unemployment benefit; the regular RAV and benefit file is covered by the RAV and unemployment-benefit guide.

8. Treat dismissal, resignation and wage claims separately

Do not resign with immediate effect over unpaid salary using a template. Repeated or material wage arrears and insolvency can trigger special rules, but any demand for security, assessment of seriousness and timing needs individual legal review. If the employer dismissed you, use the job-loss first-response guide. If you want to leave through ordinary employee notice, use the resignation guide.

A wage claim remains a separate file after employment ends. Do not sign a final-balance declaration, termination agreement, waiver or confirmation that all claims are settled without itemised review. The employment end date, validity of termination, unemployment benefit and unpaid salary are different questions.

9. Common mistakes

Do not state only a net difference; show period, basis and calculation.
Do not confuse explanation of a standard payroll deduction with a claim about an unlawful set-off.
Do not rely only on oral promises or data that may disappear from an employer system.
Do not remove confidential business, customer or colleague data.
Do not treat debt enforcement as an automatic ruling on the claim.
Do not assume guaranteed fee waivers, counsel reimbursement or a court outcome.
Do not wait when insolvency signs or termination deadlines may be involved.
Do not ask a consulate to decide a private employment claim.

10. When should you obtain personal help?

Obtain union or Swiss employment-law advice if the employer disputes the legal basis, several periods or a material sum are involved, a GAV or NAV applies, commission or bonus is disputed, an employer counterclaim is set off, termination documents require signature, insolvency appears likely or cantonal proceedings must begin. Bring a one-page chronology, an itemised table and organised supporting records.

The SECO private-employment-law overview places the CO, GAVs and NAVs within the legal-source framework but does not decide an individual case. Consular functions are covered by the separate consulate guide; a private wage claim is not a consular or migration procedure.

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