Changing your deductible: deadlines and direction

Two directions, two deadlines

The deductible (Franchise) in basic health insurance applies per calendar year. This is why you can only change it with effect from 1 January, in both directions, but not on the same terms. If you raise your deductible, you take on more risk and relieve your insurer. If you lower it, you hand risk back to the insurer; for this, the ordinance requires the same notice period as for switching health insurer.

The key dates for 2027: the lower deductible must have reached your insurer by Monday, 30.11.2026. What counts is receipt, not the postmark; the FOPH recommends sending it by registered mail by mid-November. The deadline calculator works out the dates for cancelling and switching for you.

Adults and young adults can choose between CHF 300, 500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000 and 2,500, children between CHF 0 and CHF 600 in steps of CHF 100 (Art. 64 para. 4 of the Federal Health Insurance Act, KVG, Art. 93 para. 1 and Art. 103 para. 1 of the Health Insurance Ordinance, KVV). No insurer has to offer all optional levels, but its offer applies throughout the canton.

Step by step: how to change your deductible

1. Wait for the premium letter. Your insurer must notify you of the new premium at least two months in advance, i.e. by the end of October (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG). The FOPH publishes the approved premiums of all insurers at the end of September.
2. Estimate next year’s costs. Add up the gross costs of recent years from your statements of benefits and add any known treatments for the coming year.
3. Calculate the break-even point. The deductible calculator shows from which costs each level is cheaper, using the premiums of your tariff.
4. Compare other insurers. If you are changing your deductible anyway, it is worth looking at the premiums of other insurers for the same level in the premium calculator. If you switch, you choose the deductible directly with the new insurer.
5. Notify in writing. By letter or in your insurer’s customer portal. For a lower deductible, send the letter by registered mail by mid-November so that receipt by 30 November can be proven.
6. Check the confirmation and the policy. The policy for the new year must show the new deductible and the new premium. If something is wrong, get in touch immediately.

The rules in detail

Higher deductible. Insurance with optional deductibles is open to all insured persons. A higher deductible can only be chosen with effect from the start of a calendar year (Art. 94 para. 1 KVV). The FOPH does not mention a statutory notice period for this. In practice, insurers accept such notifications until 31 December; ask whether your insurer requires an earlier cut-off date or a particular form.

Lower deductible. Switching to a lower deductible is only possible at the end of a calendar year, with the notice periods under Art. 7 para. 1 and 2 KVG (Art. 94 para. 2 KVV). Because your insurer notifies you of the new premium every year, the one-month notice period after the premium notification applies: receipt by 30 November.

Premium discount. How much the premium falls with each level is set by the insurer. The discount may not exceed 70 % of the additional risk taken on (Art. 95 para. 2bis KVV), so with CHF 2,500 at most CHF 1,540 per year. Why the levels between CHF 500 and CHF 2,000 rarely win in the cost calculation is explained in the article Medium deductible.

Moving during the year. If you have to leave your insurer because you move your place of residence, the insurance ends when you move (Art. 7 para. 3 KVG). You keep the deductible you chose, provided the new insurer offers this level (Art. 94 para. 3 KVV). The new insurer credits the deductible and retention fee already invoiced to you in the same year (Art. 103 para. 4 KVV).

Switching mid-year. You can only switch insurer with effect from 1 July if you have the standard deductible without a special type of insurance; the notice of cancellation must have arrived by 31 March (Art. 7 para. 1 KVG, FOPH). With the new insurer you may then choose a GP, HMO or telemedicine model, but a higher deductible only from the next 1 January.

Bonus insurance. Bonus insurance may not be combined with an optional deductible (Art. 96 para. 4 KVV). If you want to move from bonus insurance to an optional deductible, you change the form of insurance at the end of the year, with receipt by 30 November (Art. 97 para. 2 KVV).

What the change makes for one insurer in 2026

A standard tariff from the middle of the field shows how much the premium falls with each level. Premiums 2026, municipality of Bern (region 1), adults (born 1985), with accident cover, CSS basic health insurance in the standard model, ranked 14th of 26 standard offers in Bern; source FOPH.

The maximum own share is the deductible plus a retention fee of at most CHF 700 (Art. 103 para. 2 KVV); for a hospital stay, the hospital contribution comes on top. The FOPH publishes the following year’s premiums at the end of September; until they are released, we calculate with the 2026 premiums.

Sample calculation: going down before a planned operation

Example with fictitious people. Marco is 41, lives in Bern and is insured in the tariff from the table with a CHF 2,500 deductible. In October he learns that an operation is planned for next spring. Assume the costs to basic health insurance for the operation and follow-up treatment amount to CHF 8,000.

Conversely, moving up pays off if costs stay low: in the same tariff, CHF 2,500 is cheaper than CHF 300 as long as the costs for the year stay below CHF 2,010.67. This is a calculation, not a recommendation; you calculate your own figures in the deductible calculator.

Special cases

• Children. There is no standard deductible for children; you can choose CHF 100 to CHF 600 (Art. 64 para. 4 KVG, Art. 93 para. 1 KVV). The same deadlines apply as for adults.
• Changing your insurance model at the same time. You can switch to a GP, HMO or telemedicine model at any time (Art. 100 para. 2 KVV), but back to the standard model only at the end of the year with receipt by 30 November (Art. 100 para. 3 KVV). The deductible still only changes on 1 January. The article GP, HMO, Telmed, pharmacy shows which models exist.
• Supplementary insurance. The deductible only exists in basic health insurance. Supplementary insurance has its own retention fees, which are set out in the contract and can be changed according to the general terms and conditions. Many run as a multi-year contract; you can give ordinary notice at the earliest at the end of the third year with three months’ notice, and only you as the policyholder may give ordinary notice (Art. 35a para. 1 and 4 of the Insurance Contract Act, ICA). What counts are the general terms and conditions and the information from your insurer.
• Switching insurer on 1 January. With the new insurer, you are free to choose your deductible and model. However, the notice of cancellation must still have reached your current insurer by 30 November, even if you are raising your deductible. You will find a template and the procedure under Switching.

Common mistakes

• Notifying a lower deductible in December. The deadline is 30 November. If you only realise later that treatment is coming up, you stay on the high deductible for another year.
• Relying on the postmark. What counts is receipt by the insurer. According to the FOPH, a registered item placed in a post office box is only deemed delivered when it is collected.
• Wanting to lower the deductible in the middle of the year. This is not possible, not even after a new diagnosis.
• Only looking at the premium. A higher deductible increases your possible own share. With CHF 2,500, it can amount to CHF 3,200 in one year.
• Not asking for confirmation. Check the policy for the new year. If it still shows the old deductible, complain immediately and provide proof of your notification.

The short version of the rules is in the glossary under Changing your deductible. Which level suits you is explained in more depth in the article Deductible of 300 or 2,500?. You will find all money-saving topics in the Saving money section.