The India Employee Benefits Stack for Swiss companies

What changes when you come from Switzerland

What you call it in Switzerland, and what it is called in India

Every resident of Switzerland buys basic health insurance (KVG/LAMal) individually, at a per-head premium that averages CHF 393.30 a month in 2026, and the employer pays nothing towards it. India reverses that. Below ₹21,000 a month, employees sit in ESI, funded 3.25% by the employer and 0.75% by the employee. Above that line India has no statutory health cover at all, and the employer is expected to buy Group Health Insurance (GHI). Candidates hired at ₹8 LPA and above treat it as standard.

This edition maps each Swiss benefit, from AHV and the BVG pension fund to UVG accident insurance and the 13th salary, to its Indian counterpart. It then covers the patterns Swiss parents repeat in India, the India–Switzerland social security agreement for seconded staff, the tax treaty, and the cities where Swiss companies build, led by Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai and Delhi NCR.

What Swiss companies get wrong when they set up in India

None of these is a knowledge gap. Each is a reflex from home, applied to a country that works differently.

1. 01

   What they assume: Health insurance is the employee's own business, as at home.

   What India doesBelow ₹21,000 a month, ESI is compulsory and the employer pays 3.25%. Above it there is no statutory cover, and candidates hired at ₹8 LPA and above expect employer-paid Group Health Insurance. A cash allowance instead is taxable salary; the employer's premium is deductible under Section 36(1)(ib).

2. 02

   What they assume: Spouses and children each carry their own policy, so we insure employees only.

   What India doesIndian GHI is designed as family cover, with spouse and children on the employee's policy. Parents are the largest claims category by relationship, about 40% of claims in Plum's data. Decide on parental cover at policy design, not at renewal.

3. 03

   What they assume: Accident insurance covers employees on and off the job.

   What India doesThere is no UVG. The Employees' Compensation Act covers work injuries of staff outside ESI, and the employer insures that liability itself; nothing statutory covers off-duty accidents. Group Personal Accident is the usual voluntary cover.

4. 04

   What they assume: Maternity pay runs through income compensation insurance, not payroll.

   What India doesUnder the Maternity Benefit Act the employer pays 26 weeks of full salary directly, nearly twice the Swiss 14 weeks and at 100%, not 80%. ESI pays it only for ESI members.

5. 05

   What they assume: A second-pillar pension fund is compulsory, so we need one in India.

   What India doesIndia's compulsory retirement scheme is EPF: 12% employer plus 12% employee on basic. The other statutory obligation is gratuity, 15 days' last drawn salary per year of service after five years, capped at ₹20 lakh. A BVG-style fund is optional.

6. 06

   What they assume: A 13th salary is standard practice everywhere.

   What India doesIndia has no 13th-month custom; offers are quoted as annual CTC. Statutory bonus of 8.33% to 20% applies only to employees earning up to ₹21,000 a month.

7. 07

   What they assume: Seconded staff stay in AHV automatically.

   What India doesOnly with a certificate of coverage under the India–Switzerland agreement, in force since 29 January 2011, and for up to 72 months. Without it, a Swiss national employed in India is an International Worker and contributes to EPF on full salary from day one.

Switzerland vs India, benefit by benefit

Benefit	Switzerland	India
Statutory health cover	Compulsory for every resident, bought individually from a health insurer.	ESI for employees earning up to ₹21,000 a month. Nothing above that line.
Who pays for health cover	The employee: a per-head premium averaging CHF 393.30 a month in 2026, plus a deductible.	The employer: 3.25% into ESI below the line, a voluntary GHI premium above it.
Family members	Each family member is insured and billed separately.	Spouse and children added to the employee's GHI; parents optional, about 40% of claims by relationship.
First pillar	AHV/IV/EO at 10.6% of salary, no ceiling, split equally.	EPF and EPS at 12% employer plus 12% employee on basic pay.
Second pillar	BVG pension fund compulsory above CHF 22,680 a year; employer pays at least half.	No equivalent. Most MNC subsidiaries contribute to EPF on full basic rather than the ₹15,000 ceiling.
Lump sum on leaving	Vested pension fund benefits move to the next employer's fund.	Gratuity: 15 days' last drawn salary per year of service after five years, capped at ₹20 lakh.
Accident cover	UVG compulsory, on and off the job; salary insured up to CHF 148,200.	Employees' Compensation Act for work injuries; Group Personal Accident bought voluntarily.
Maternity	14 weeks at 80%, up to CHF 220 a day, through income compensation; two weeks' paternity leave.	Employer pays 26 weeks of full salary. GHI covers the hospital bill. No statutory paternity leave.
Paid leave	At least four weeks a year; five up to age 20.	Earned leave typically 12 to 18 days plus casual and sick leave, set by state law.
Unemployment insurance	2.2% of salary up to CHF 148,200, split equally.	None. Exit costs sit in notice pay and gratuity.
13th salary	Customary where agreed in the contract; not statutory.	No equivalent. Statutory bonus of 8.33% to 20% for employees earning up to ₹21,000 a month.

What MNCs and GCCs offer their teams in India

From The Standard of Employee Benefits 2026–27, Plum's report on 15,312 benefit plans, 5,20,100 claims and 74,543 checkups from Plum's FY26 book.

• 1.6×MNC and GCC benefits spend per employee in India, against a funded Indian startup (nearly 3× a local Indian business).
• 43%of MNCs and GCCs in India are Holistic Leaders: deep insurance plus real breadth of healthcare beside it.
• ₹7,50,000median MNC/GCC sum insured, covering parents or in-laws, with ₹1,00,000 maternity cover and no copays or sub-limits.
• ~2%of payroll buys India's top-quartile plan, against roughly 15% in the US, 10–25% across Europe and 8–15% across APAC.

Staff seconded from Switzerland

Seconded staff usually hold an international health policy, but an India-admitted GHI is still worth adding: it gives cashless admission at network hospitals without an advance deposit. Under the India–Switzerland social security agreement, a secondee with a certificate of coverage stays in AHV/IV and is exempt from EPF for up to 72 months. Without the certificate, EPF applies on full salary from day one, so apply to the compensation office before the posting starts.

Where Swiss companies set up in India

Hospital networks, claim costs and state leave rules differ by city. These are the places Swiss companies concentrate.

• Bengaluru

  Karnataka

  ABB India's headquarters, Bühler's Indian operations and Swiss Re's business services centre. Mostly engineering and service staff above the ₹21,000 ESI line, where GHI is expected.

• Hyderabad

  Telangana

  Novartis runs a large global service and development centre here. A competitive capability-centre market, with most hiring above ₹8 LPA, where candidates expect Group Health Insurance.

• Pune and Satara

  Maharashtra

  Schindler's elevator plant at Chakan, UBS's technology centre in Pune and Rieter's textile-machinery plant at Koregaon. Plants follow the Factories Act; offices Maharashtra's Shops and Establishments Act.

• Mumbai

  Maharashtra

  Indian headquarters of Schindler and Roche, plus Swiss banks, insurers and flavour and fragrance houses. Corporate and finance staff, almost all above the ESI line.

• Delhi NCR

  Haryana

  Nestlé India's headquarters in Gurugram, with factories across north India. Plant workers below ₹21,000 a month sit in ESI; office staff need GHI.

Swiss companies with operations in India include Nestlé, Novartis, Roche, ABB, Schindler, UBS, Swiss Re, Zurich Insurance, Sika, Bühler, Givaudan, SGS, Kuehne+Nagel, Rieter.

Everything else applies to every foreign employer

Statutory benefits, group insurance, tax, leave and CTC work the same whichever country you come from. Each part is covered in full in the India guide.

1. Part 1 – Employee BenefitsWhat employee benefits are legally mandatory in India?These are not optional.
2. Part 2 – Group Health InsuranceGroup health insurance for MNCs in IndiaNone of these are legally required.
3. Part 3 – Business Insurance (Non-EB)What business insurance does a new India entity need?This stack is separate from EB and is often the one India-entry teams leave until last.
4. Part 4 – Beyond InsuranceThe benefits your team will actually noticeInsurance is the foundation, not the programme.
5. Part 5 – Setup StageIn what order should a new India entity buy insurance?The most expensive insurance mistake isn't buying the wrong policy.
6. Part 6 – Sector NotesWhat your sector adds to the universal stackThe policies in Parts 1–3 apply to every MNC.
7. Part 7 – City GuideHow do employee benefit benchmarks differ across Indian cities?The same ₹5L GHI plan means different things in different cities.
8. Part 8 – ChecklistThe pre-operations checklistBefore your India entity goes live, each item below should have a policy number, a renewal date, and a named contact.
9. Part 9 – Tax GuideIs group health insurance taxable for employees in India?India runs two parallel income tax regimes simultaneously, and the tax treatment of almost every benefit differs between them.
10. Part 10 – Leave & PoliciesLeave entitlements and what global MNCs typically add on topIndia's statutory leave framework is state-governed and more fragmented than most MNCs expect.
11. Part 11 – Allowances & CTCHow should an MNC structure India CTC under the new labour codes?India's cost-to-company (CTC) structure is more complex than most countries your payroll team has operated in.

Questions Swiss HR teams ask about India

More from Plum for Swiss companies in India

• How MNCs structure health insurance for Indian subsidiariesGlobal programmes, local policies and who signs what.
• Do you need to match headquarters' benefits in India?Where to mirror the parent plan, and where India needs its own design.
• Insurance for expatriate employees in IndiaCovering seconded staff alongside the local plan.
• Group insurance vs ESI: a guide for employersWho must be in ESI, and where group health insurance takes over.
• How to calculate gratuity in IndiaFormulas, worked examples and a free calculator.
• The Standard of Employee Benefits 2026–27Benchmarks from 4,500+ Indian employee health plans.