This translation has not yet been read by a person. The German text is authoritative.
Premium reduction: who is entitled
Individual premium reduction — in German usually shortened to IPV — is a contribution by the public authorities towards the health insurance premium. It is provided for in the Health Insurance Act (KVG), but the federal government does not administer it: the cantons do, each according to its own rules.
Orientation, not legal or financial advice — the competent authority is what counts. This page deliberately gives no amounts and no deadlines.
What the federal government prescribes and what the canton decides
The federal government prescribes that there must be a premium reduction and contributes to its funding. Who receives it and how much is decided by the canton.
Specifically, these differ from canton to canton: the income and asset limits, how the relevant income is calculated in the first place, whether you have to apply or are contacted, and the deadlines.
One thing is the same everywhere, however: where the money goes. The canton pays the contribution directly to the health insurer, not to the insured person. This is set out in the Health Insurance Act and is not within cantonal discretion.
That is why the sentence “here you get it from an income of X” rarely helps. At best it is true for one canton, and there only for one year.
Which figures count
As a rule the cantons rely on tax data — and often not on that of the current year but on an earlier assessment that has already become legally binding. This has a consequence that surprises people: someone earning considerably less this year will not see that reflected automatically in many cantons — others only take it into account with the later final settlement.
Several cantons have their own procedure for such cases, in which a substantial change in circumstances is taken into account retrospectively. Whether and how is a matter for the competent office — usually the cantonal social insurance institution (SVA) or the compensation office, but in some cantons the tax administration or the municipality of residence.
The most common misconception
Many people assume that with an earned income you are not entitled to anything. That is not the case: premium reduction is not a benefit only for people without work. Families with children, people in education and middle-income households qualify in many cantons.
The second common misconception is that an application refused once applies forever. It applies to its year. If income, household or canton of residence change, it is a new question.
Frequently asked questions
Am I entitled to premium reduction?
That depends on your canton of residence, on the relevant income and assets and on the size of your household — all three are weighted differently from canton to canton. There is no limit that applies everywhere. The competent office decides bindingly: usually the cantonal social insurance institution or the compensation office, in some cantons the tax administration or the municipality of residence.
Do I have to apply?
In some cantons those entitled are contacted automatically; in others the application has to be submitted yourself. Because this is governed cantonally and can change, it is worth asking your own cantonal office — even if you already received something in an earlier year.
Which income is counted?
As a rule an income derived from the tax assessment, often from an earlier year, and often with cantonal additions and deductions. The gross income of the current month is almost never the relevant figure.
What if my income has fallen sharply?
Then it is particularly worth asking. Several cantons take a substantial change in economic circumstances into account upon request, even if the underlying assessment still shows a higher income.
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Sources and calculators
Maloja Plana has no connection with these organisations. Linking to them implies neither cooperation nor endorsement. Not all of them are authorities — SKOS, for instance, is a professional association, and its guidelines are recommendations.
This page is orientation based on public information — not legal or financial advice. It deliberately gives no amounts, deadlines or income limits: these differ from canton to canton and change regularly. What counts is always the information or the ruling of the competent authority.