Who exactly benefits from the lowering of the LAINF threshold?

All self-employed with annual earnings between CHF 44,460 and CHF 66,690. Low-income sectors, part-time women and professionals in the cultural sector who carry out multiple activities particularly benefit. Until 31 December 2026, these were excluded from optional insurance; from 1 January 2027 they will be able to take it out according to the new OAINF ordinance.

Does accident coverage become mandatory for the self-employed?

No. It remains optional. It only changes the access threshold, which is lowered from 45% to 30% of the LAINF insured ceiling. Independents retain the freedom to sign up for coverage or not, but now a much larger number of freelancers have the ability to do so at the federal level.

What if I work both as an employee and as a freelancer (part-time)?

From 1 January 2027, insurers will be able to adjust the access threshold based on your actual activity rate. If you are 60% self-employed and 40% employed, the insurer will consider 60% of your income to assess eligibility. This is an advantage over the previous system, which did not provide this flexibility.

When do I need to sign up for the new accident coverage?

There is no binding federal deadline, but it is advisable to contact insurers by November 2026 to ensure coverage is activated from 1 January 2027. Prepare documentation of your independent income (financial statements, tax returns or certified estimate).

Does the OAINF review also cover employee policyholders?

No. The review only touches on optional self-employed insurance. Employees already have mandatory LAINF accident insurance and are not affected by this ordinance.

LAINF: reduced threshold for 40,000 self-employed workers (cross-border guide)

Di Redazione Frontaliere Ticino · Published on 26 August 2026

Freelance professional working at desk with Swiss mountain vista behind

The Federal Council lowers access to accident insurance from 1 January 2027: from CHF 66,690 to CHF 44,460 per year. They benefit from 40,000 more freelancers.

Context

In a nutshell

Federal Council lowers LAINF threshold: from CHF 66,690 to CHF 44,460 per year from 1 January 2027
40,000 more independent workers can be insured
Easy access for low-income sectors, part-time women, cultural professionals

Key facts

What: Review of accident insurance ordinance (OAINF)
When: Decision 26 August 2026; effective 1 January 2027
Where: Switzerland (federal law)
Who: Federal Council
New threshold: CHF 44.460/anno (30% of the ceiling)
Previous threshold: CHF 66.690/anno (45% of the ceiling)
Beneficiaries: ~ 40,000 self-employed

Bern, 26 August 2026. The Federal Council has adopted a revision of the Ordinance on Accident Insurance (OAINF) to make coverage more accessible to self-employed workers. The decision significantly lowers the threshold for access to optional insurance, a move that allows around 40,000 more self-employed people to insure themselves from 1 January 2027.

The new threshold goes from CHF 66,690 per annum (45% of the amount of the maximum gain insured under the federal law LAINF) to CHF 44,460 per annum (30% of the same amount). This reduction is not just a technical detail, but a structural change of the Swiss accident risk protection system for the self-employed.

In Switzerland, the system is already well outlined for employees. All employees benefit from insurance

Operational details

The lowering of the threshold represents a concrete step forward for Swiss social protection of the self-employed. To understand the impact, just consider the figures: 40,000 more workers, so far excluded from the possibility of covering against the risk of injury. These are not abstract numbers, but people whose independent income is between CHF 44,460 and CHF 66,690 per year.

Who will benefit from the new threshold

Lower-income professional sectors will benefit the most. Think of service freelancers, junior consultants, skilled artisans, cultural educators and private teachers who often struggle to reach standardized protection thresholds on employees with stable salaries, in the face of costi della vita in Svizzeras that remain high.

Women working part-time represent another crucial category. In Switzerland, part-time is still predominantly 'pink': women who have young children, who stack freelance jobs with salaried jobs, who manage self-employed projects alongside main part-time jobs. For them, the federal accident protection system has often remained unattainable precisely because of the high threshold. With the new limit, many more professionals will have access to basic coverage. If you are a part-time mom, you can deepen your diritti in materia di congedo parentale and social protection, which integrate with this new injury opportunity.

The cultural sector deserves a separate mention.

Useful tools to protect your net income

To reduce FX leakage, compare CHF-EUR exchange options and banks for cross-border workers.

Key points

The new ordinance comes into force on January 1, 2027. Self-employed workers who wish to subscribe to accident coverage must act within a reasonable time before that date to ensure activation from the date of entry into force, as insurers will need time to process new subscriptions.

How to Proceed

The first step is to verify whether you fall within the new access threshold. The threshold is CHF 44,460 of annual income (or 30% of the maximum amount of CHF 148,200 set by the LAINF). If your self-employed income is between CHF 44,460 and CHF 66,690, you will be a beneficiary of the new regulation and will be able to subscribe to optional insurance for the first time. If you were already earning CHF 66,690, your position does not formally change, but it is advisable to check whether the premiums offered by various insurers will change following the reduction of the threshold.

The second step is to contact Swiss insurers operating in the LAINF accident insurance sector. Among the main players are SUVA, AXA, Generali and other companies offering this type of coverage. There is no single federal portal: each insurer has its own forms, processing times and conditions. It is advisable to explicitly ask whether they accept customers below the previous threshold, since from January 1, 2027 the regulation changes, but the administrative transition may have variable timelines.

…

Frequently Asked Questions

Who exactly benefits from the lowering of the LAINF threshold?: All self-employed with annual earnings between CHF 44,460 and CHF 66,690. Low-income sectors, part-time women and professionals in the cultural sector who carry out multiple activities particularly benefit. Until 31 December 2026, these were excluded from optional insurance; from 1 January 2027 they will be able to take it out according to the new OAINF ordinance.
Does accident coverage become mandatory for the self-employed?: No. It remains optional. It only changes the access threshold, which is lowered from 45% to 30% of the LAINF insured ceiling. Independents retain the freedom to sign up for coverage or not, but now a much larger number of freelancers have the ability to do so at the federal level.
What if I work both as an employee and as a freelancer (part-time)?: From 1 January 2027, insurers will be able to adjust the access threshold based on your actual activity rate. If you are 60% self-employed and 40% employed, the insurer will consider 60% of your income to assess eligibility. This is an advantage over the previous system, which did not provide this flexibility.
When do I need to sign up for the new accident coverage?: There is no binding federal deadline, but it is advisable to contact insurers by November 2026 to ensure coverage is activated from 1 January 2027. Prepare documentation of your independent income (financial statements, tax returns or certified estimate).
Does the OAINF review also cover employee policyholders?: No. The review only touches on optional self-employed insurance. Employees already have mandatory LAINF accident insurance and are not affected by this ordinance.