With the transition from ELM4 to ELM5, Swissdec is taking an important step toward modernizing electronic wage reporting in Switzerland. ELM5 will become mandatory in January 2026: From this date onwards, withholding tax can only be transmitted via ELM5. The new requirements mean numerous simplifications, stricter requirements for data fields, an expansion of monthly reporting obligations, and more automation.
Below are the most important detailed questions and answers about the changes involved in switching to ELM5:
1. How will payroll reporting and task management work in the transition year 2025?
In 2025, tasks and payroll reporting will be handled as before with ELM4. From mid-December 2025, as soon as ELM5 has been activated, existing tasks will be automatically transferred to the ELM5 cockpit when it is started.
The new transmissions will be created automatically in the cockpit (and no longer as tasks on the dashboard).
From now on, electronic withholding tax transmission is only possible via ELM5.
2. What changes for cross-border commuters?
There are new mandatory fields for cross-border commuters. For example, French cross-border commuters must now specify the number of working days in Switzerland and abroad and the proportion of teleworking. There is a new menu item for this under “Manage employees.”
For Italian cross-border commuters, transmission in the system can be deactivated if it is not legally required. Whether transmission is required depends on the employee's place of residence and is announced by the withholding tax office. This ensures greater flexibility and transparency.
All details and further information can be found at this link: https://swissdec.ch/document/share/352/264fc012-a708-4ba6-a296-f4dc528ecac8
3. What applies to the wage structure survey?
Under ELM 5.0, the submission of statistical data will become technically possible for all companies. However, reporting remains mandatory only for those companies specifically requested to do so by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
New frequency: The schedule is changing for companies that have been requested to report. Instead of an electronic submission every two years, data must now be submitted monthly.
Make sure that the ‘Employment’ field is filled in correctly, as it is directly linked to the statistics field. An incorrect assignment will lead to transmission errors. For example, if you select ‘Hourly wage’ as the employment type, a variant with ‘Hourly wage’ must also be specified in the statistical data.
The statistical report is generated automatically. If you have not been requested by the FSO, you can simply delete the records in the ELM Cockpit.
4. What is new in the AHV notification?
If a negative value arises in the AHV (e.g., for people on long-term sick leave), this value can now be split in the system or divided over two years and reported correctly.
5. What applies to pensioners in the new system?
Pensioners can waive the AHV allowance if they wish. If this applies, a corresponding checkbox can be ticked in the employee's master data.
This allows pensioners to close pension gaps until the age of 70.
Further information on the implementation of AHV21 in ELM5 can be found here: https://swissdec.ch/document/share/291/2a1457e6-b6e4-4aae-b7ef-d2288b6f3d65
6. How are new irregular hourly wage earners recorded?
Irregular hourly wage earners can now be recorded without the need to specify hours or workload. To do this, select the “Contract without time commitment” option. This makes it easy to calculate VR compensation and other annual salaries, for example.
7. What should be noted regarding the BUR number?
The BUR is now a mandatory field and must be provided. The number now begins with a letter. KLARA automatically adjusts existing numbers. Newly stored numbers can only be stored in the correct format.
The BUR number can be found in the UID register.
To find out the BUR number (business and company registration number), you can log in to the UID register at https://uid.admin.ch and look under “MyUID.”
Alternatively, the BUR number can be requested at infobur@bfs.admin.ch .