Doris Bianchi, head of the Federal Social Insurance Office.
Keystone-SDA
In December the Swiss old-age compensation funds will pay out CHF9.28 billion ($11.25 billion) to pensioners. This is because, for the first time, pensioners will receive a 13th month’s payment in addition to their usual December pension.
These figures were announced to the media on Tuesday in Bern by representatives of the Federal Social Insurance Office and the 74 old-age pension compensation funds. The compensation funds must pay out the correct amount to all eligible recipients at the right time in December and have made the necessary preparations.
What sounds simple in principle is complex in detail. The 13th pension payment corresponds to one-12th of all old-age pension payments that a person received in 2026. For this reason, the 13th payment is not simply the same amount as the usual pension for everyone.
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The 13th pension is paid out automatically; there is no need to apply for it. Depending on the relevant fund, those entitled will receive either a higher pension payment or two separate payments: one for the December pension and one for the 13th.
Nearly 2.7 million people will receive the 13th pension payment by the end of 2026. Of these, 830,000 are resident abroad. The average amount of the 13th pension payment is estimated at CHF1,580.
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Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.
