Registration before birth

What is registration before birth?

Registration before birth is an application to a health insurer, made during pregnancy, to insure your child from birth. It concerns two types of insurance that are subject to very different rules.

In basic health insurance under the Federal Health Insurance Act (KVG), registering before the birth is voluntary. The law gives you 3 months from the birth. If you register the child within this period, it is insured retroactively from the day of birth. Every insurer must accept the child, and there are no health questions. So registering before the birth does not give you any advantage in terms of cover here, but it does save you work in the first weeks with your baby.

In supplementary insurance under the Insurance Contract Act (ICA, VVG in German), things are different. There is no obligation to accept. Before concluding the contract, the insurer may ask health questions and, on the basis of the answers, reject an application, impose reservations or set other conditions. If a child is born with an illness or a congenital disorder, this can make it harder to get supplementary insurance. Some insurers accept children registered before the birth without a health check. Whether this applies, until when and for which products is set out in each insurer’s admission conditions.

The term always refers to the child. The benefits for the mother during pregnancy and birth are covered by her own health insurance.

How it works

1. Compare. During pregnancy, compare the children’s premiums in basic health insurance for your municipality and the conditions of the supplementary insurance products you are considering.
2. Submit an application. For supplementary insurance, you fill in the insurer’s application before the birth. Ask whether it asks health questions and up to which week of pregnancy or which point in time it accepts registrations.
3. Report the birth. After the birth, you give the insurer your baby’s name and date of birth. The contract starts from birth, provided the insurer’s conditions are met.
4. Make sure of basic health insurance. If you have not already registered the child, register it for basic health insurance no later than 3 months after the birth.

Basic and supplementary insurance do not have to be with the same insurer. You can choose your child’s basic health insurance freely, regardless of where you are insured yourself. Whether an insurer also offers supplementary insurance without its basic health insurance is set out in its conditions.

Children have their own co-payment rules: there is no standard deductible, optional deductibles of CHF 100 to CHF 600 are available, and the retention fee is a maximum of CHF 350 a year. Children do not pay the hospital contribution.

Legal basis

For basic health insurance, Art. 3 para. 1 KVG applies: everyone resident in Switzerland must take out insurance, or have it taken out by their legal representative, within 3 months of birth. Under Art. 5 para. 1 KVG, if the child joins on time, cover starts at the time of birth. If the child joins late, cover only starts when the child joins, and if the delay is inexcusable, the parents who are responsible for it owe the premium surcharge (Art. 5 paras. 2 and 2bis KVG). The insurers’ obligation to accept is laid down in Art. 5 let. i of the Health Insurance Supervision Act (KVAG). Co-payments for children are governed by Art. 64 para. 4 KVG and Art. 93, 103 and 104 of the Health Insurance Ordinance (KVV).

There is no statutory rule on registration before birth in supplementary insurance. What counts is the ICA and the insurer’s admission and contract conditions. Under Art. 4 ICA, you must answer the insurer’s questions about material risk factors truthfully. If you conceal a fact you were asked about, the insurer may terminate the contract under Art. 6 ICA.

Example: children’s premiums in Bern

Sofia and Jan live in the city of Bern and are expecting their first child in 2026. They compare basic health insurance for the child with a CHF 0 and a CHF 600 deductible. Premiums 2026, municipality of Bern (region 1), children born in 2026, with accident cover; source: FOPH.

What this means for you

Decide during pregnancy whether you want supplementary insurance for your child. If you do, the time before the birth is decisive, because health questions may be asked after the birth. Ask the insurers about deadlines, health questions and minimum contract terms, and get the conditions in writing.

For basic health insurance, registering after the birth is enough. Compare the children’s premiums for your municipality in the premium calculator or with the children’s premium calculator. Put the 3-month deadline from birth in your calendar so that your child is insured without a gap. You will find key figures and contact details for the insurers in the health insurer profiles. How children’s premiums compare is explained under children’s premium, and exactly when cover starts under start of cover.

Common mistakes

• Thinking basic health insurance is urgent. It applies retroactively from birth if you register within 3 months. You only need to act quickly for supplementary insurance.
• Missing the 3-month deadline. Cover then only starts when you register, and you risk a premium surcharge.
• Answering health questions incorrectly. If the insurer asks questions, you must answer them truthfully; otherwise it can terminate the contract.
• Assuming the child must be with your own insurer. The choice is free, in both basic and supplementary insurance.
• Forgetting the children’s deductible. Children have their own deductibles, from CHF 0 to CHF 600.

We explain how we present premiums under How we calculate.