Switching health insurer: deadlines, procedure, pitfalls

Switching health insurer: what you change and what stays the same

Changing health insurer almost always concerns basic health insurance. It is the same with all health insurers: an insurer may only cover the statutory benefits (Art. 34 para. 1 of the Federal Health Insurance Act, KVG), and every insurer must accept you without a health questionnaire, reservation or waiting period (obligation to accept, Art. 5 let. i of the Health Insurance Supervision Act, KVAG). So you change the price, not the cover.

Supplementary insurance is different. These are contracts under the Insurance Contract Act (ICA), they have their own deadlines, and a new insurer may reject you. Hence the basic rule: think about basic health insurance and supplementary insurance separately, and cancel them separately.

The key dates for switching for 2027:

The FOPH publishes next year’s premiums at the end of September; your health insurer must notify you of the new premium by 31 October at the latest and point out your right to switch (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG). If a key date falls on a weekend or public holiday, according to the FOPH the notice of cancellation must arrive on the last working day before it.

By when do you have to cancel your health insurance?

Your notice of cancellation of basic health insurance must reach your health insurer by 30 November for you to switch on 1 January. What counts is receipt, not the postmark (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG). With the standard deductible of CHF 300 in the standard model, there is a second date: cancellation with three months’ notice to the end of June, with receipt by 31 March (Art. 7 para. 1 KVG).

Besides the notice period for switching health insurer, there are deadlines for changes with your own insurer. You notify a lower deductible by 30 November and a higher one by 31 December (Art. 94 of the Health Insurance Ordinance, KVV). 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.

Supplementary insurance has deadlines according to the contract. By law, it can be cancelled at the earliest at the end of the third year of the contract with three months’ notice, unless the contract provides for something shorter (Art. 35a ICA). If the contract runs by calendar year, that is often 30 September.

All key dates with weekdays, the deadline behind the deadline for unpaid invoices and an example with two insured persons are in the article Health insurance notice periods. The deadline calculator works out your personal dates.

If your notice of cancellation arrives too late

According to the FOPH, a late notice of cancellation takes effect on the next possible date: 1 July with a CHF 300 deductible in the standard model, otherwise the next 1 January. Even so, the year is not entirely lost. Until 31 December, you can choose a higher deductible with your insurer, and you can switch to a model with restricted choice of doctor at any time. If the insurer disputes timely receipt, you can request a written decision and lodge an objection against it within 30 days (Art. 49 and 52 of the Federal Act on the General Part of Social Insurance Law, ATSG). What to do step by step is explained in Notice of cancellation arrived too late.

How do you cancel your health insurance correctly?

With a letter that contains all the details and a method of sending whose receipt you can prove. The KVG does not prescribe a form for cancelling basic health insurance, but the FOPH assumes a written notice of cancellation and recommends sending it by registered mail or A Mail Plus. In the event of a dispute, you have to prove that it arrived in time.

The letter should contain your name, address, insurance number, the health insurer, the sentence “Cancellation of basic health insurance as of 31.12.2026”, a note that you will be insured with another insurer under the KVG from 01.01.2027, a request for written confirmation, and place, date and signature. If you are also cancelling for children, list each person individually. The FOPH provides a sample letter on priminfo.admin.ch.

The order matters: register with the new health insurer first, then cancel the old one. Your old basic health insurance only ends once the new insurer has notified it that you are insured without interruption (Art. 7 para. 5 KVG). That way, there is no gap.

The whole procedure in seven steps, the content of the letter and the special cases are in the article Cancelling health insurance: deadline, letter and procedure. Whether an email is enough and how to prove receipt for each method is clarified in Cancelling by email or by registered mail?: for supplementary insurance, cancellation in text form, i.e. by email, is expressly permitted (Art. 35a para. 1 ICA).

Is switching worthwhile, and which health insurer is the cheapest?

There is no health insurer that is cheapest for everyone. The premium depends on the municipality, age group, model, deductible and accident cover (Art. 61 KVG). For the same benefits, however, the offers are far apart: in the municipality of Zurich, the difference between the cheapest and the most expensive offer for adults with a CHF 300 deductible and accident cover was CHF 206.30 per month (premiums 2026, source FOPH). In 2026, the average premium across Switzerland rose by 4.4 % to CHF 393.30 per month (FOPH).

Example with fictitious people.

How to compare properly, in five steps and with key figures alongside the price, is shown in Finding the cheapest health insurer. What to check after the premium letter by 30 November, from the deductible to accident cover, is summarised in the premium increase checklist. You can see the premiums for your municipality in the premium calculator, and the insurers’ key figures and contact options in the health insurer profiles.

What happens to your supplementary insurance when you switch?

Nothing, if you do nothing. Basic and supplementary insurance are separate contracts. Your current insurer may not force you to cancel your supplementary insurance when you switch your basic health insurance, and it may not cancel it because you switch (Art. 7 para. 7 and 8 KVG). In any case, only the insured person may give ordinary notice in supplementary health insurance (Art. 35a para. 4 ICA).

So you can move your basic health insurance to a cheaper insurer and keep your supplementary insurance. This often makes sense, because a new insurer may ask health questions for supplementary insurance and reject you or accept you with a reservation. Anyone who wants to cancel supplementary insurance should therefore take out the new one before cancelling the old one. In everyday life, this means two health insurers, two invoices and two addresses for receipts.

How to switch only your basic health insurance and what you can save is shown in Cancelling basic health insurance and keeping supplementary insurance. What other disadvantages a switch can have, such as a model with different rules or children with different insurers, is clarified in Does switching health insurer have disadvantages?. One point from it: if you switch during the year, the new insurer credits the deductible and retention fee you have already paid (Art. 103 para. 4 KVV). Several children with the same insurer pay at most the co-payment of one adult together; if you spread them across different insurers, this cap no longer applies (Art. 64 para. 4 KVG).

Can you switch if you are in treatment or have unpaid premiums?

Ongoing treatment does not stop you; unpaid premiums do. The new insurer must accept you for basic health insurance, even in the middle of treatment (Art. 5 let. i KVAG). Anyone who has not paid premiums, co-payments, default interest or debt enforcement costs for which they received a reminder, on the other hand, cannot switch (Art. 64a para. 6 KVG).

Switching during treatment

The insurer responsible is the one you are insured with on the day of treatment: treatment from the day of the switch is paid by the new insurer (Art. 103 para. 3 KVV). If a treatment requires cost approval, such as longer therapy, you submit a new request to the new insurer for the period from 1 January. Supplementary insurance is trickier: there, the new insurer may reject you because of the treatment. The procedure and what applies if cost approval is refused are described in Switching during treatment.

Switching with premium debts

From the delivery of the reminder, you are considered in default. Your notice of cancellation only takes effect if the amounts for which you received a reminder up to one month before the end of the notice period have been paid in full by the end of the period (Art. 105l para. 2 KVV). For switching on 1 January, this means: whatever was subject to a reminder by 30 November must have reached the insurer by 31 December. Anyone who only has arrears for their children may switch themselves, but the child may not. How reminders, debt enforcement and suspension of benefits fit together is explained in Premium debts and debt enforcement: can I still switch?.

Two policies after switching

You cannot be insured twice in basic health insurance. The old insurer remains responsible until the new one notifies it of uninterrupted cover; if the new insurer forgets this notification, it must compensate you for the damage, in particular the difference in premiums (Art. 7 para. 5 KVG). If you still receive two premium invoices, first check whether your notice of cancellation arrived in time and whether the new insurer made the notification. You report duplicate supplementary insurance to both insurers without delay (Art. 46b ICA). How to sort out two invoices is explained in Double insured after switching.

Who earns money from your switch?

Intermediaries, brokers and comparison portals receive remuneration for a contract, the amount of which has been capped since 01.09.2024. For basic health insurance, an insurer may pay at most CHF 70 in variable remuneration per insured person (Art. 35b of the Health Insurance Supervision Ordinance, KVAV, with Annex 2), and for supplementary insurance at most 16 net monthly premiums per contract (Art. 190e of the Insurance Supervision Ordinance, AVO, with Annex 7). Untied insurance intermediaries may only accept remuneration if they have informed you beforehand of its type and amount (Art. 45b of the Insurance Supervision Act, ISA). The amounts, the repayment obligation for short contract terms and five questions to ask every adviser are set out in Intermediaries, brokers, comparison portals: who receives how much commission. How this platform is financed is disclosed on the Disclosure page.

Since the same rules came in, cold calling for health insurance has been banned, for insurers, intermediaries and their partners. A call is only permitted if you are a customer, have been one in the last 36 months or the contact came about through a recommendation. Where to report unwanted calls is explained in Sales calls about health insurance.

Common mistakes when switching health insurer

• Thinking the postmark counts. Your notice of cancellation must reach the insurer by 30 November. A letter posted on 30 November arrives too late.
• Cancelling supplementary insurance without a replacement. A new insurer may reject you for supplementary insurance. First the new policy, then the cancellation.
• Overlooking unpaid invoices. Amounts for which you received a reminder block the switch, even if your notice of cancellation was on time.
• Only comparing the premium. A GP or telemedicine model has rules you have to follow in everyday life; otherwise the insurer can reduce benefits.
• Not keeping proof. Without proof of sending or confirmation from the insurer, timely receipt is hard to prove.

Where to start?

1. Check the premium letter. Compare the new premium with the previous year and check your model, deductible and accident cover. The premium increase checklist takes you through seven points.
2. Compare. Look up the offers for your municipality, your year of birth and your deductible in the premium calculator. Read Finding the cheapest health insurer as well.
3. Clarify obstacles. Do you have supplementary insurance, ongoing treatment or unpaid premiums? Then read the relevant section above first.
4. Register and cancel. Register with the new insurer and send your notice of cancellation by registered mail by mid-November. You can create the letter with the Create a cancellation letter tool; the Switching health insurer overview shows the procedure.
5. Wait for confirmation. The old insurer confirms the cancellation and the new one sends the policy. If a confirmation is missing in December, ask.

How to save money alongside switching, with the deductible, the model and premium subsidies, is shown in the Saving money section.