Prescription :
https://www.admin.ch/opc/fr/classified-compilation/20200744/index.html
Cantonal directives or voluntary interruption of work do not entitle the employee to an allowance.
In the event of closure of the company as a result of measures taken by the Federal Council to deal with Covid-19 (Art. 6 of the Ordinance), entitlement begins on the day on which all the conditions for entitlement are met, i.e. March 17, 2020 at the earliest.
It will expire when the measures to combat the coronavirus are lifted by the Confederation.
At its meeting on 16.04.2020, the Federal Council decided to extend entitlement to the Covid-19 loss-of-earnings allowance for self-employed persons who are only indirectly affected by the official measures to combat the pandemic, provided that their income from gainful employment subject to AHV is more than CHF 10,000 and less than CHF 90,000. This allowance is intended for self-employed persons who have suffered a loss of income as a result of the measures taken by the Federal Council on March 13 to combat the pandemic. Entitlement begins retroactively from the 1st day of the decline in activity, but no earlier than March 17, 2020, and ends after two months, but no later than the lifting of the measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Benefits amount to 80% of last income (annual income used to calculate last personal AVS/AHV contribution prior to entitlement), but not more than CHF 196 per day. Benefits are paid monthly by the AVS fund. The maximum daily allowance is reached, for an employee, with an average monthly salary of CHF 7,350 (7,350 x 0.8 / 30 days = CHF 196/day or CHF 5,880/month). Benefits are paid monthly in arrears by the AVS fund.
Coordination with other social insurances :
Self-employed people can claim short-time working benefits for their employees. For themselves, they must apply for this allowance.
Allowance for parents (employed and self-employed) :
Following the closure of schools or nurseries, or when childcare is rendered impossible because it was previously provided by a person at risk (people over 65, people with chronic respiratory illnesses, diabetics, etc.). The self-employed are also entitled to compensation if they take on childcare duties (children up to the age of 12).
Since 16.04.2020, parents of disabled young people over 12 and under 20 who can no longer attend a rehabilitation center or special school due to measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic are also eligible for benefits.
In this case, there is a waiting period of 3 days, i.e. March 19, 2020 at the earliest, as schools have been officially closed throughout Switzerland since March 16, 2020. In addition, benefits end when a childcare solution is found. The entitlement for self-employed parents is limited to 30 daily allowances.
Each eligible parent is entitled to the allowance. However, only one allowance is paid per working day, as only one parent may be responsible for childcare. If both parents are entitled to the allowance, there is only one competent compensation fund. This is the compensation fund of the parent who claims first.
Note:
If the activity can be carried out from home, there is no entitlement to the allowance.
Parents are not entitled to daily allowances during school vacations. However, if the planned childcare solution is rendered impossible due to the coronavirus (see above), entitlement to the allowance is guaranteed.
Allowances for quarantined persons (employees and self-employed): updated as of 18.01.2021
As an employee or self-employed person, you may be entitled to loss-of-earnings benefits if you have been quarantined and have had to stop working. The quarantine must have been ordered by a doctor. The allowance is paid from the 1st day following the cessation of activity, but no earlier than March 17, 2020. The daily allowance ends after a maximum of 7 days. You are not entitled to this allowance if you are fit for work and can carry out your activity from home. If a further quarantine is ordered at a later date, a new entitlement of up to seven daily allowances can be claimed.
The benefit amounts to 80% of the average income from gainful employment subject to AHV contributions prior to entitlement, up to a maximum of 196 francs per day. The maximum daily allowance is reached, for an employee, with an average monthly salary of 7,350 francs (7,350 x 0.8 / 30 days = 196 francs/day).
Example used: Ms X works as an educator. On September 17, 2020, she was placed in quarantine by her doctor. Her job does not allow her to telework. Her monthly salary for August 2020 was 5,400 francs, the allowance is 144 francs per day (5,400 x 0.8 / 30 days = 144 francs/day).
Mrs X’s husband is self-employed and owns a takeaway business. On September 17, 2020, he was placed in quarantine by his doctor. The decisive factor for calculating the allowance is the annual income converted into daily earnings, which was used to determine his last personal AVS/AHV contribution before entitlement began. The allowance will be calculated on the basis of the most recent contribution decision for 2019. To do this, the annual income is multiplied by 0.8 and divided by 360 days. As Mr. X’s annual income is 45,000 francs, the allowance is 100 francs (45,000 x 0.8 / 360 days = 100 francs/day).
Submission of claim :
The allowance is not paid automatically. You must apply using the form below.
Please fill in the form and send it as a PDF file with attachments to the AHV fund with which you pay your social insurance contributions.
Entitlement to unpaid compensation ceases five years after the measures decided by the Federal Council are repealed.
Form (only if your compensation fund does not provide a form) :
Annex to be attached to the form : Last quarterly AHV statement
You can send directly by email to the following addresses according to the name of your AHV fund:
Caisse cantonale vaudoise : apgcovid@avs22.vd.ch
Center patronal – fédération patronale vaudoise : avs.prestations@centrepatronal.ch
Cantonal Social Insurance Office: apgcovid19@ocas.ch
Caisse interprofessionnelle AVS – Fer CIAM: indemcovidindependant@ciam-avs.ch
Caisse cantonale neuchâteloise : avs.prestations@centrepatronal.ch
Medisuisse: please send documents by e-mail to eo@medisuisse.ch
Caisse interprofessionnelle AVS – Fer CIFA : cifa.avs@cifa.ch
For further information, please refer to the Memento: https: //www.ahv-iv.ch/p/6.13.f
Allowances for particularly vulnerable people who have to stop working (employees and self-employed): updated as of January 18, 2021
People (employed or self-employed) who have to interrupt their gainful activity because they cannot work from home for organizational or other reasons are entitled to an allowance if they have not been vaccinated and suffer from one of the following pre-existing conditions, as well as pregnant women, according to Appendix 7 of Ordinance 3 CoVID-19- (high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, disease that weakens the immune system, cancer or obesity). Applications must be accompanied by a medical certificate.
The allowance is paid from the 1st day following the interruption in employment, but no earlier than January 18, 2021. The daily allowance ends as soon as the vulnerable person is able to resume gainful employment, but no later than March 31, 2021.
The amount of the allowance is identical to the calculation for quarantined persons.
The application must be submitted only once; the AHV fund must be notified of any change in the relevant circumstances. Benefits are paid retroactively on a monthly basis.
For self-employed persons with a 2019 income of less than CHF 10,000 or more than CHF 90,000:
For self-employed people with an income in excess of CHF 90,000, the professional associations will be supporting various pilot processes to have the legality and interpretation of the ordinances examined by the courts. Pending a final ruling, claims for benefits in the event of factual closure of the business and income above the limit remain open with the AHV funds. Should the courts recognize a right – the associations will inform their members – the application can be submitted until February 2025.
These explanations do not concern:
– the possibility of requesting a Covid-19 transitional credit
– employees’ entitlement to compensation in the event of a reduction in working hours
– entitlement to parental or quarantine allowances (see related paragraphs).
From September 17, 2020, in the event of a reduction in sales (“factual closure of the business”), the entitlement of self-employed persons and persons in a position comparable to that of an employer, will no longer depend on income.
The cumulative conditions are:
1. Gainful activity is restricted due to epidemic control measures ordered by an authority. The applicant must show the measures restricting his gainful activity.
2. The reduction must be significant. This is the case if monthly sales have fallen by at least 55% or, since December 19, 2020, 40% of the average monthly sales for the years 2015-2019.
3. The claimant must suffer loss of earnings or loss of wages. This may not be the case if the insured person, because of the limitation of the original activity, takes up an additional or new activity, definitive or temporary, full-time or part-time.
The allowance is paid from the 1st day following the interruption of activity, but no earlier than September 17. The daily allowance ends as soon as the measure is lifted. In general, a new application for the allowance must be submitted for each calendar month.
The allowance is not paid automatically. You must apply for it using the form on the website of your compensation fund, with which you pay your social insurance contributions (AVS/AI/ APG/ AC).
For self-employed doctors (before 17.09.2020) :
There was some ambiguity as to whether or not self-employed doctors were entitled to APG benefits; the Coronavirus loss-of-earnings benefit leaflet states: “Self-employed doctors who suffer a loss of income due to the suspension of their activity by order of the Federal Council or the ban on events.
According to the ordinance, if the establishment has been closed by decision of the Federal Council or if an event has been cancelled, in accordance with Ordinance 2 COVID-19, art. 6 al. 1 and 2, these businesses benefit from short-time working (either RHT or APG).
According to article 10a of the ordinance: Healthcare establishments within the meaning of art. 6, para. 3, letter m, in particular hospitals, clinics, doctors’ surgeries and dental practices, are prohibited from carrying out non-urgent examinations, treatments and therapies (interventions).
In particular, non-urgent interventions are considered to be non-emergency:
a. which can be carried out at a later date without the person concerned risking any inconvenience other than minor physical and mental injury or disturbance
b. which are produced mainly or entirely for aesthetic purposes or to improve performance or well-being
The Federal Social Insurance Office (supervisory authority for AHV compensation funds) explicitly states that doctors, dentists and other medical professionals are not entitled to the “Corona loss-of-earnings allowance” under Art. 2 para. 3 of the current Ordinance.
According to the Federal Office, there is no closure of the business by decision of an authority; the loss of sales is only compensated if the self-employed person has an income of between CHF 10,000 and CHF 90,000.
In the case of self-employed people with an income in excess of CHF 90,000, the FMH, SSO and ChiroSuisse will be supporting various pilot processes to have the legality and interpretation of the ordinances examined by the courts. Pending a final ruling, claims for benefits in the event of a factual closure of the business and an income above the limit remain open with the AHV funds. Should the courts recognize an entitlement – the associations mentioned will inform their members of this – the application can be submitted up to February 2025, which is why it is not necessary to send in the form at this stage.
In view of the above, Argos Group fully supports the professional associations’ initiative. We will be issuing a general communication to all our doctors if the APG is accepted.
Pending the outcome of this opposition, don’t hesitate to apply for RHT for your staff; you’ll find full details of the procedure in our newsletter dedicated to this subject, or apply for the transitional credit explained in the dedicated newsletter.
The Argos Group team remains at your disposal for any further information.
