16. How can I find out if family allowances are already paid out for my child?
To prevent the accumulation of family allowances for the same child, a Family Allowances Register (RAFam) was created (operational since 1 January 2011). Simply enter your child’s date of birth and OASI number, and the register will display if and to whom the family allowances are paid out.
- Since your child is apparently a Swiss citizen, he or she should have an OASI number. You could check this database to determine whether family allowances are being paid.
This is the link to the database (German):
http://www.infoafam.zas.admin.ch/Alf...uest_locale=de
Family allowances must be used to pay for the upkeep of the child. The parent who receives the family allowances must pay these benefits to the parent with whom the child lives. If not, the parent who is the child’s primary caregiver can ask that the family allowances are paid directly to her/him. This is called a “payment to a third party”.
An adult child can also submit such a claim.
The person must apply in writing to the family allowances compensation fund for a payment to a third party. They also must provide a convincing argument as to why they should receive the allowance (e.g. evidence that the other parent has never, or only partially, transferred the family allowances to them). The family allowance compensation fund will examine the facts of the case before deciding whether to authorise the payment to a third party or not.
We recommend that before you submit your application you consult the Family Allowances Register to find out if the family allowances have already been paid out for the child in question (see Question 16).
18. My children live abroad but I work in Switzerland. Can I claim a Swiss family allowance?
You can only claim a Swiss family allowance for children living abroad if Switzerland is obliged to do so under the terms of a bilateral agreement. Switzerland has concluded such agreements with EU and EFTA member states, as well as Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina. According to the terms of these agreements, EU and EFTA nationals are entitled to a Swiss family allowance for their children who are resident in the other contracting State. However, in the case of Serbian, Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina nationals working in Switzerland, a Swiss family allowance will be paid out irrespective of which country the children live in. When one parent works in Switzerland but the child lives in an EU state, for example, that parent may in principle claim a family allowance for the child provided that the parent has Swiss, EU, Serbian, Montenegro or Bosnia-Herzegovina citizenship. In all other instances, these allowances are not exportable except for – and under certain circumstances – salaried employees who are posted abroad by an employer headquartered in Switzerland.
As regards EU and EFTA member states, the “place-of-employment” principle applies. A family allowance claim must be submitted in the country where the applicant works, even if the person entitled to claim or their children live in another country. If both parents are gainfully employed, priority is given to the provisions in the country where the children live. If the other parent works in a country with higher family allowance rates, that country pays out the difference.