Pillar 3a 2025: the maximum contribution and the new 2026 catch-up rule

Key takeaways

• The pillar 3a maximum for tax year 2025 is CHF 7,258 if you belong to a pension fund. If you do not, it is 20% of your earned income, up to CHF 36,288.
• The contribution comes straight off your taxable income. At a 30% marginal rate, a full contribution saves roughly CHF 2,177.
• Several 3a accounts share one maximum. Paying CHF 5,000 into one and CHF 3,000 into another puts you over it.
• The money must be credited by 31 December, not merely ordered. A transfer settling on 2 January counts for the next year.
• From 2026 you can fill a missed year, but only gaps from 2025 onward, and only after paying the current year in full.

What pillar 3a is, and why it cuts your tax

Three pillars: the state pension (AHVAHVState pension contributionsFRAVSSwitzerland's first-pillar state pension. Contributions come off your salary automatically and are already reflected in the net figure on your salary certificate.Where you see itA deduction line on the payslip and at ch. 9 of the Lohnausweis.Open in the glossary →/AVS), your occupational pension fund (PensionskassePensionskasseOccupational pension fund (pillar 2)FRcaisse de pension (institution de prévoyance)ITcassa pensioni (istituto di previdenza)The workplace pension scheme funded by you and your employer. Your contributions are already inside the net salary figure, so do not deduct them again.Where you see itOn your salary certificate and in your annual pension statement.Open in the glossary →), and pillar 3a, which is voluntary, tied until retirement and tax-privileged.

Hold it as a bank account or an insurance policy. Both qualify, and you can hold more than one, which matters later for withdrawals.

What are the 2025 limits?

Your situation	2025 maximum	2026 maximum	How it is calculated
Member of a pension fund (the usual case if you receive a salary certificate, Lohnausweis)	CHF 7,258	CHF 7,258	A flat amount. All of it deductible.
No pension fund: self-employed, or an employee not enrolled	CHF 36,288	CHF 36,288	20% of earned income, capped at this figure
Catch-up for a missed year (new from 2026)	not available	up to CHF 7,258 on top of the ordinary contribution	Capped at the ordinary member limit for the year you pay in, and at the total you underpaid over the previous ten years

Several accounts share one maximum: CHF 5,000 into one and CHF 3,000 into another puts you over the CHF 7,258 member limit, and the excess is not deductible.

Each provider issues a contribution certificate (BescheinigungBescheinigungContribution certificateFRattestationITattestazioneYour pillar 3a provider's confirmation of what you paid in during the year. Without it you cannot prove the deduction.Where you see itOne per 3a provider, sent in January.Open in the glossary →), the document your return is built from. In Zurich the amount goes in box 14, one line per spouse, certificate attached. Only what you actually paid during the year counts.

• Amount paid inThe figure the deduction is built fromUse itThe only number the return asks for
• Value dateWhen the money was creditedCheck itDecides which tax year it counts for, not the transfer date
• Account balanceWhat the account is worthIgnoreTied 3a savings are not taxable wealth
• Provider and account numberWho holds itCheck itNeeded if you hold several 3a accounts

Hold more than one 3a account and the amounts add together against a single maximum. No provider sees what you paid into the others.

The 31 December deadline

Check when your payment reaches the pillar 3a account, as this determines the tax year in which it counts.

To count for tax year 2025 the money must reach your 3a account by 31 December 2025: credited, not ordered, not in transit. Start a transfer on 30 December that settles on 2 January and it counts for 2026.

Until now a missed year was simply gone. That is what changes from 2026.

How does the new 2026 catch-up rule work?

A change to BVV 3BVV 3The pillar 3a ordinanceFROPP 3The federal ordinance that sets the pillar 3a rules: who may pay in, the annual maximum for people with and without a pension fund, and when the money may come out.Where you see itIn citations as BVV 3 Art. 7, wherever a 3a maximum or a withdrawal condition is quoted.Open in the glossary → in force from 1 January 2025 allows retroactive contributions for years you did not pay in full, under Art. 7a and 7b. It is narrower than most people expect. All four of the following limits apply at the same time:

• Only gaps from 2025 onward count. The transitional provision to the 6 November 2024 amendment bars anything earlier, so every year before 2025 is permanently lost.
• The first catch-up is possible in 2026. A 2025 gap cannot be filled until 2025 is over. From there you can go back up to 10 years, and that window moves forward each year.
• One catch-up per gap year. A single payment can cover more than one gap year, but the CHF 7,258 ceiling still applies to that payment.
• No catch-up after you have drawn a 3a old-age benefit.

So in 2026 a pension-fund member can pay CHF 14,516: the ordinary CHF 7,258 plus up to CHF 7,258 filling the 2025 gap.

1. 1The gap year is 2025 or laterAnything earlier cannot be filled at all
2. 2You had AHV-liable income in that yearIncome subject to old-age and survivors' insurance
3. 3You pay the current year in full firstThe ordinary CHF 7,258, before any catch-up
4. 4Then the catch-up, cappedCHF 7,258 in the year you pay, and never more than you underpaid

Every condition must be met; miss one and the payment is not deductible. Your provider checks them before accepting the money (BVV 3 Art. 7b).

The rule is asymmetric: a year you underpay from 2025 onward can still be topped up later, and an earlier one cannot.

Withdrawing your 3a

Pillar 3a is tied, meaning you cannot withdraw it whenever you like. Under BVV 3 Art. 3 the standard cases where you can draw on it are retirement (at the earliest five years before the reference age), leaving Switzerland permanently, buying or building your own home, becoming self-employed, or paying into your pension fund.

The payout is taxed separately from your other income, at a reduced rate (KapitalauszahlungssteuerKapitalauszahlungssteuerLump-sum withdrawal taxFRimpôt annuel entier sur les prestations en capitalITimposta annua intera sulle prestazioni in capitaleA separate, reduced-rate tax charged when you withdraw pillar 2 or pillar 3a capital. Staggering withdrawals across years usually lowers the total.Where you see itAssessed separately from your ordinary return, in the year of withdrawal.Open in the glossary →) rather than added to that year's taxable income. The rate depends on the canton and the size of the payout.

This is why holding several 3a accounts can help: withdraw them in different calendar years and each payout is taxed on its own, instead of one large sum reaching the higher rate steps. Rules vary by canton, so check yours before relying on it.

For what else you can claim alongside 3a, see Zurich tax deductions.

Common questions

How much can I pay into pillar 3a in 2025?

If you are in an occupational pension fund (Pensionskasse): CHF 7,258 for 2025, and the same for 2026. If you are not, whether self-employed or simply not enrolled: 20% of earned income, capped at CHF 36,288.

Can I pay into past years I missed?

From 2026, but only for gaps from 2025 onward. Nothing earlier is recoverable. Up to 10 years back, you must first make the current year's full contribution, and you need AHV-liable income in the years you fill. Each catch-up is capped at the ordinary limit for the year you pay in (CHF 7,258 in 2026) and at what you actually underpaid.

Sources

The sources below support the tax figures and rules discussed in this guide. Follow the links to check the original guidance and its scope.

1. BVV 3 (SR 831.461.3), Art. 7 — the deduction and both maximums, for federal, cantonal and communal tax — fedlex.admin.ch
2. BVV 3, Art. 7a and Art. 7b and the transitional provision to the amendment of 6 November 2024 — the catch-up conditions, the annual ceiling, and the bar on filling pre-2025 gaps — fedlex.admin.ch
3. Federal Council media release on that amendment, in force 1 January 2025 — www.admin.ch
4. EFDEFDThe Federal Department of FinanceFRDFFEidgenössisches Finanzdepartement: the government department the Federal Tax Administration sits inside. It issues the ordinances that set things like interest rates on late and early payments.Where you see itNamed as the issuing department on a federal ordinance or a rate announcement.Open in the glossary → / ESTVESTVThe Federal Tax AdministrationFRAFCEidgenössische Steuerverwaltung: the federal tax authority. It publishes the forms, leaflets and price lists the cantons and your tax software work from, but it is not the office that assesses you: that is your canton.Where you see itNamed as the publisher on federal forms, leaflets and the Kursliste.Open in the glossary → — Höchstabzüge Säule 3aSäule 3aPillar 3aFRpilier 3a (prévoyance individuelle liée)ITpilastro 3a (previdenza individuale vincolata)Tied private retirement savings. What you pay in during the year comes straight off your taxable income, up to a legal maximum.Where you see itYour provider sends a contribution certificate in January.Open in the glossary → im Steuerjahr 2026, 17 November 2025, confirming the 2025 amounts carry into 2026 — www.admin.ch
5. BSV — Welche Beiträge kann ich in die Säule 3a einzahlen?, stating CHF 7,258 and CHF 36,288 for 2025/26 — faq.bsv.admin.ch
6. Canton Zurich — WegleitungWegleitungOfficial filing instructionsFRinstructionsITistruzioniThe canton's own guide to completing the return, published each tax year. Authoritative and, in Zurich, German only.Where you see itPublished on zh.ch alongside the year's forms.Open in the glossary → zur SteuererklärungSteuererklärungTax returnFRdéclaration d'impôtITdichiarazione d'impostaThe return itself: the whole set of forms you complete and submit for one tax year. What the canton sends you, and what its software fills in.Where you see itThe title on the letter the canton sends, and the name of the cantonal app.Open in the glossary → 2025, box 14 (3a contributions: the same two maximums, certificate to be attached, only amounts actually paid in 2025) — zh.ch