Pillar 3a: Making up for missed contributions – Here's what's changing from 2026!

Have you not fully utilized the maximum contribution to Pillar 3a in the past? Until now, this money was irretrievably lost for your private retirement savings – and for your tax savings. But there's excellent news: The Federal Council has amended the ordinance (BVV 3), so that subsequent contributions to Pillar 3a will soon be possible.

Here you can find out how the new regulation works, what conditions apply and what you need to pay attention to.

Only new gaps from 2025 onwards can be closed

The most important rule first: The new system applies exclusively to contribution gaps that arise from January 1, 2025 onwards. Gaps from 2024 and earlier unfortunately cannot be filled retroactively.

The reason for this lies in the technical systems: Only from 2025 onwards are pension providers required to share information when a customer switches providers in order to correctly calculate the permissible purchase potential. Since the gaps in coverage will logically only be counted from 2025 onwards, the actual retroactive payments will first be possible in 2026.

The most important prerequisites for retroactive purchases

The idea for this innovation originated from a motion by National Councillor Erich Ettlin. However, to benefit from this opportunity, several strict conditions must be met:

• AHV-liable income: You must have earned income subject to AHV contributions in Switzerland in the year in which the gap occurred. Gaps due to stays abroad, full-time education, or parental leave without earned income cannot be compensated for.

• Maximum amount in the current year : Before you can close an old gap, you must have already fully paid in the regular 3a maximum amount in the current year.

• Ten-year deadline: You have a maximum of ten years from the date the gap arises to close it.

• Strict upper limit: Each year, you may only make a maximum additional payment equal to the so-called "small" 3a maximum amount (CHF 7,258 from 2025). This limit also applies to self-employed individuals without a pension fund, who actually have a much higher upper limit for their regular contributions.

• No splitting: Only one payment is allowed for each gap in your insurance. You cannot pay off a large gap in small installments over several years. However, you can close the gaps for several years at once with a single payment.

• No retirement benefits: Once you have already received retirement benefits from pillar 3a, the right to further back payments expires.

Save on taxes twice

Just like your regular deposits, these subsequent purchases can also be fully deducted from your taxable income. This will noticeably reduce your income tax in the year of the payment.

Conclusion: A safety net with administrative hurdles

The new regulations offer a great opportunity to reclaim missed pension benefits. However, pension funds must check your eligibility for each purchase, which means you will need to submit applications and provide supporting documentation.

For sound financial planning, regular, punctual payments remain the best approach. However, the new regulation provides a perfect safety net for anyone who simply forgot to make a payment one year or initiated the transfer too late at the end of the year.