Premium increase

What is a premium increase?

A premium increase is a rise in the monthly premium you pay your health insurer. In basic health insurance, premiums are set anew once a year and usually apply from 1 January. Each insurer sets its own premiums, graded by canton, premium region, age group, deductible and insurance model. Within the same group it charges all insured persons the same premium; your state of health plays no role.

When the media talk about “the” premium increase, they usually mean the change in the average premium, which the FOPH calculates for Switzerland as a whole. For 2026 it was CHF 393.30 a month, 4.4% or CHF 16.60 more than in 2025. Your own premium may rise much more or much less, or even fall, depending on your insurer, place of residence and model.

A premium increase should be distinguished from premium changes that you trigger yourself, for example by changing your deductible, model or age group. Anyone who moves from being a child to a young adult, or from a young adult to an adult, moves into an age group with a different premium. Supplementary insurance is subject to its own rules under the Insurance Contract Act and the insurer’s contract terms.

How it works

The process is repeated every year:

1. Budget and application. Insurers estimate the following year’s costs for each canton and submit their premium tariffs to the FOPH. The premiums must cover the cantonal costs; risk equalisation, provisions and changes in the number of insured persons also count.
2. Approval. The FOPH reviews every tariff. It refuses approval if the premiums do not cover the costs, are inappropriately high above them or lead to excessive reserves. The cantons can comment beforehand. No insurer may publish new premiums before approval. More on this under premium approval.
3. Announcement. The FOPH announces the approved premiums in the autumn, for 2026 on 23.09.2025, and publishes them on priminfo.admin.ch and as open data.
4. Notification to you. Your insurer must notify you of the new premium at least 2 months before it takes effect and point out your right to switch insurer.
5. Switching window. After the notification, you can switch with one month’s notice to the end of the month preceding the new premium. For a premium applying from 1 January, this means your notice of cancellation must reach the insurer by 30 November.

If an insurer’s premiums in a canton were significantly above costs, it can make a premium adjustment the following year and refund premiums that were overpaid. This adjustment also requires FOPH approval.

Legal basis

Art. 61 para. 1 KVG states that the insurer sets the premiums for its insured persons and, unless the law provides for an exception, charges them the same premiums. Art. 16 KVAG requires premium tariffs to be approved by the supervisory authority; before that, they may neither be published nor applied (para. 1). The premiums must cover the costs, which differ from canton to canton (para. 3), and the authority refuses approval for premiums that are unlawful, do not cover the costs, are inappropriately high above them or lead to excessive reserves (para. 4). The adjustment of excessive premium income is governed by Art. 17 KVAG.

Your right to switch is set out in Art. 7 para. 2 KVG: when you are notified of the new premium, you can switch, subject to one month’s notice, to the end of the month preceding the date from which the new premium applies. The insurer must notify the new premiums approved by the FOPH at least 2 months in advance and point out the right to switch.

Example: premium 2026 in Zurich

Anna is 34, lives in Zurich and has the CHF 300 deductible with accident cover. According to the FOPH, the 2026 premiums for the municipality of Zurich (region 1) range from CHF 517.70 to CHF 724.00 a month; the median is CHF 580.00. Assume that Anna paid exactly the median in 2026.

What this means for you

Read your insurer’s premium notification as soon as it arrives. Compare the new premium with the offers of other insurers for your municipality, deductible and model in the premium calculator. If another offer is cheaper, give notice in good time. The process is explained under switching health insurer, and all the dates are listed under deadlines. The basic rule for 1 January: your notice of cancellation must reach the insurer on 30 November, not just be sent off by then.

Take the opportunity to check your deductible and model too. A higher deductible or a GP or telemedicine model also lowers the premium. But keep your expected healthcare costs in mind: if you regularly need treatment, a high deductible quickly ends up costing more.

You do not have to switch supplementary insurance together with basic health insurance. Whether you can cancel it with extraordinary notice when the premium increases is set out in the contract terms; more on this under extraordinary cancellation. Never cancel a supplementary insurance before a new contract has been confirmed, because new applications include health questions.

Common mistakes

• Calculating the deadline wrongly. What counts is receipt by the insurer on 30 November, not the postmark. Send your notice of cancellation by registered mail and early enough.
• Mistaking the average premium for your own. The average of 4.4% for 2026 says little about your own premium. Always compare for your place of residence and your deductible.
• Only comparing when there is an increase. Even if your premium stays the same or falls, another insurer may be cheaper; the right to switch after the notification applies in every case.
• Cancelling basic and supplementary insurance together. Supplementary insurance has its own deadlines and health questions.

How we compare premiums is explained under How we calculate.