Yes to the Center/SP proposal Council of States approves financing of the 13th AHV pension
The 13th AHV pension is to be financed with higher salary contributions and higher VAT. This was decided by the Council of States.
12.06.2025, 10:57
12.06.2025, 11:49
SDA
VAT and salary contributions are to be increased to finance the 13th AHV pension. This was decided by the Council of States on Thursday, taking into account a possible abolition of the AHV marriage penalty.
The small chamber thus opted for the proposal of the center and SP.
Under discussion was not only the financing of the 13th AHV pension, but also the abolition of the marriage penalty in the AHV. The majority of the Council of States' Social Affairs and Health Committee (SGK-S) requested more VAT and also higher salary contributions.
The Council agreed on Thursday by 23 votes to 17 with one abstention. It had previously rejected a minority motion by Hannes Germann (SVP/SH), who did not want to anticipate decisions on the AHV marriage penalty and only wanted to temporarily increase VAT for the 13th AHV pension.
First VAT increase in 2028
Specifically, according to the Council of States' decision, salary contributions to the AHV are to be increased by 0.4 percentage points on January 1, 2028. If salary contributions to unemployment insurance were reduced by 0.2 percentage points at the same time, AHV contributions for employers and employees could increase by 0.1 percentage points each.
At the same time, value added tax will be increased in two stages by up to one percentage point. The first increase of half a percentage point from 2028 will be used for the 13th AHV pension. The subsequent second increase will be used to finance a possible abolition or higher cap on AHV pensions for married couples.
