Switch to Visana now
As your first step towards top-quality insurance, and choose the optimal package for you.
The most important terms
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Basic insurance and top-up insurance
Basic insurance is compulsory and the benefits are defined by law; they are the same for all health insurers. Top-up insurance is voluntary and adds to the benefits from basic insurance.
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Premium
The insurance premium is the fixed amount that you pay for your insurance, as stated in your insurance contract. Premiums can be paid once a month, once every half-year, or once a year.
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Deductible
The deductible is the amount that you agree to pay for medical treatment without being reimbursed by the basic insurance.
Good to know: The higher the deductible, the lower the premium. -
Retention fee
If your costs rise higher than the deductible, you then pay 10% of any further costs as a ‘retention fee’. The rest is paid by the health insurance provider.
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Basic insurance models
When setting up your basic insurance, you can choose between different models, which determine whom you are to contact first before using medical services: free choice of physician, general practitioner, telemedicine or a combination of general practitioner and telemedicine.
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Accident insurance
If you are employed and work more than 8 hours a week, you are insured against accidents through your employer.
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Premium reduction
People with low incomes can apply for financial support, so-called ‘premium reduction’.
The Swiss health insurance system
If you register within three months, you will be insured from the date on which you made Switzerland your home. The health insurance provider will cover any costs that have arisen between that date and the insurance start date.
You will also have to pay the premiums for that period. If you miss the three-month deadline for taking out health insurance, your insurance cover will only begin on the date when you register, and you will also have to pay a premium supplement.
Why switch to Visana?
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Quick calculation of benefits and reimbursement
In the independent customer-satisfaction study conducted by Bonus.ch, we came out on top as the best health insurance company in the category ‘processing of benefits’, with a score of 5.5. Also in the overall ranking for 2022, Visana was awarded 1st place and achieved the highest score: 5.4.
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Free health-related legal protection insurance
All our basic insurance models include health-related legal protection insurance.
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The myVisana app: Simply do everything digitally
With the myVisana app, you can do everything digitally and always have your insurance card with you.
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Well: The health platform for Switzerland
Free access to the doctor chat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
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24-hour hotline, 365 days a year
We are here for you around the clock.
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Changeover service
If you choose Visana, you can confidently leave all the changeover formalities to us. We will gladly and reliably take care of them for you.
Frequently asked questions
When do I have to take out insurance in Switzerland?
Everyone who lives in Switzerland for longer than three months is required by law to take out compulsory health insurance. All family members, adults as well as children, must be insured individually.
Also, cross-border commuters must take out insurance in Switzerland. Everyone who lives abroad and works in Switzerland generally has to take out health insurance in Switzerland. Exceptions are possible, depending on the employee’s country of residence and nationality. Information on such exceptions is available from the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH/BAG).
You do not have to take out insurance in the following cases:
- You work in an EU/EFTA country or receive a pension exclusively from an EU/EFTA country and move to Switzerland.
- You are posted to Switzerland for a period of up to 24 months by an employer based in the EU or EFTA and move to Switzerland temporarily for that reason.
- You are a member of a diplomatic mission or international organisation and have privileges under international law.
You will find more information on the requirement to take out insurance in Switzerland here.
Do I have to take out insurance immediately after arriving?
After your arrival, you have three months to take out health insurance for yourself and your family members. The same deadline applies to parents of a newborn child. If you are pregnant and planning to move to Switzerland, you can even register your baby before the birth.
Where can I take out insurance?
With any health insurance company in Switzerland. There are currently around 60 providers. Visana is one of the largest. About seven percent of the Swiss population are insured with Visana.
Why are premiums so high in Switzerland?
Switzerland has one of the best healthcare systems in the world. The basic medical care is comprehensive and of a high standard. This system comes at a cost, which is reflected in the premiums.
Why do people I know in rural areas pay lower premiums than I do?
Switzerland is divided into various ‘premium regions’. This means you pay higher or lower insurance premiums, depending on your commune and place of residence.
How can I save on premiums?
By changing the deductible or the insurance model, for example. The higher the deductible, the lower the premium. You can always change the deductible as of the 1st of January or choose a different, cheaper insurance model, such as Combi Care.
You can suspend (pause) your insurance if you stay abroad for longer than three months, or if you have to take out other insurance due to your professional activity. In the event of a suspension, you pay 10% of your premium and are unconditionally able to reactivate the top-up insurance after your return, without having to make a health declaration.
How you can save
- If you pay your premium once every half-year, we grant you a 1% premium discount. If you pay once a year, we even make it 2%.
- You can get discounts by taking out multi-year contracts. A 3-year contract enables you to get a 2% discount; with a 5-year contract, it is even 3%.
- With outpatient top-up insurance, you benefit from our wellness cheques for fitness, courses and recreation. This can save you up to CHF 350 a year.
- With our digital bonus programme myPoints, you can receive up to CHF 120 each year in return for exercising and for customer loyalty.
Do I need to include accident cover in the basic insurance?
If you work at least 8 hours a week for an employer, you do not need your own accident insurance, as you are insured against accidents through your employer.
Why do children have no deductible?
For children, there is no annual deductible required by law. As parents, you only pay the retention fee that is levied on the child’s medical costs. This will not exceed CHF 350 per year. If multiple children from the same family are insured with Visana, the family will not have to contribute more than CHF 950 to the children’s combined medical costs each year.
How do I read the benefits statement?
You receive benefits statements whenever you make use of a service – for instance when you have visited a doctor. The doctor usually sends the invoice directly to us and we pay it, before reclaiming your portion from you. The benefits statement for outpatient treatment contains a lot of important information.
- Details of the insured persons
- Details of the service provider / invoicing party (doctor, therapist, pharmacy, laboratory, medication etc.)
- Date and duration of treatment
- Details of how the benefits are calculated
The first part states whether the provided service is covered by the basic insurance (as per HIA/KVG) and/or top-up insurance (as per IPA/VVG). In the next three columns, you will find more information:
- Deductible: This is the amount that you have selected as your contribution towards costs relating to doctors, hospitalisation, medication etc.
- Retention fee: The health insurance provider contributes 90% of the treatment costs that exceed the agreed deductible. You have to pay the remaining 10% as a so-called ‘retention fee’, up to a maximum of CHF 700 per year
- Uninsured sum: Services that neither the basic insurance nor the top-up insurance covers. You have to pay these costs yourself
Below the list, you can see how much the health insurance provider has paid the service provider. Visana pays the full invoiced amount, then turns to you to reclaim the portion that you have to pay.
In some cases, you pay the invoiced amount directly to the service provider yourself. Visana then pays you the portion that it covers as your health insurance provider. At the bottom of the page, you will find an overview of your out-of-pocket expenses for the current calendar year.
The benefits statement for inpatient treatment contains more or less the same information. The only difference is that you have to pay a legally prescribed hospital contribution of CHF 15 per day from your own pocket for an inpatient stay. You will find this information, the total amount and the retention fee in the cost-breakdown table, under ‘your share’.
What advantages does the Visana app bring me?
You can download the Visana app free of charge from App Store or Google Play. With the Visana app and the customer portal myVisana, you can conveniently handle your insurance matters online. At the customer portal, you can:
- access the whole family’s policies, invoices and benefits statements
- photograph and upload medical invoices, and send them directly to Visana in digital form
- check the portion of costs paid by Visana, as well as your retention fee
- check deductible options and change them online
- get push notifications when new documents arrive
- call up and view insurance cards for the whole family
- ‘translate’ invoices from doctors and hospitals into easily understandable language
You can also access the digital bonus programme myPoints with the app. This enables you to receive up to CHF 120 each year for exercising and for customer loyalty. Note: Only insured persons who hold Visana top-up insurance and are over 12 years of age can use myPoints.
The Swiss health app Well is also included in the Visana app. Thanks to Well, you can, for example, discuss any complaints with a doctor free of charge in the doctor chat, use the symptom checker, or make appointments with doctors.
Why do I no longer receive invoices on paper when I use the app?
To reduce paper consumption, all insured persons only receive their documents and invoices directly in the app.
How can I cancel my insurance?
The insurance ends in accordance with the Swiss laws HIA/KVG and IPA/VVG. Notice of cancellation must be given in writing and on time, meaning it must reach Visana no later than on the last working day before the start of the notice period.
To cancel basic insurance, the letter must reach Visana by the last working day in November at the latest. In the case of top-up insurance, there is a three-month notice period, so the letter must reach the insurer by the last working day in September at the latest.