Swiss staff-leasing and recruitment licence checker
do you need one, and what it costs
A Swiss business that places candidates with employers, or leases its own staff to a client, needs a cantonal licence once that activity is regular and paid: more than ten contracts or placements in twelve months, or CHF 100,000 in leasing turnover.
Cross-border work adds a federal SECO licence on top of the cantonal one; leasing from abroad is not allowed. Staff leasing carries a CHF 50,000–150,000 deposit. Figures from our own casework, as of September 2026.
Staff leasing and recruitment: what triggers a Swiss licence
Figures from our own casework: what the licence and the company behind it actually cost.
- Threshold (leasing)
- >10 lease contracts / 12 months, or CHF 100,000 turnover
- Threshold (placement)
- Regular readiness, or 10 placements / 12 months
- Security deposit (leasing)
- CHF 50,000–150,000
- Licence fee
- CHF 750–1,650 per licence
- Cantonal decision
- About 6–8 weeks
- Federal SECO decision
- About 4 weeks after the cantonal one
- Licence term
- Indefinite
A Swiss staff-leasing and recruitment licence
The figures that shape whether you need a licence, the deposit and the fees.
Security deposit
Base level for staff leasing, blocked before the licence is issued. Rises with volume and cross-border work.
Contracts a year
Lease or placement contracts in 12 months, the threshold that makes the activity regular and licensable.
Maximum fine
For operating without a licence, under AVG Art. 39. A client using an unlicensed provider risks up to CHF 40,000.
Licences, cross-border
A cantonal licence plus a federal SECO licence, once you place or lease across the Swiss border.
From deciding the model to a licence in force
A deliverable-driven sequence. The cantonal decision is the longer step; the federal SECO licence, where it applies, follows it.
- Day 0
Decide the model
Placement, leasing, or both, once you know which of your client relationships fit each.
- Week 2 or 6–8
Swiss company on the register
A ready-made shelf company transfers in about two weeks; a new company takes six to eight weeks.
- Week 8–10
Premises, person, deposit
Business premises, the responsible person, and the security deposit go in place, largely in parallel.
- 6–8 weeks
Cantonal decision
Indicative processing time at the cantonal labour office once the application is filed, from our own casework.
- +4 weeks
Federal SECO decision
Only where the activity crosses the Swiss border, filed alongside or after the cantonal decision.
- Indefinite
Licence in force
No renewal date, but the conditions must hold, with annual reporting to the cantonal authority.
Do you need a licence, and what will it cost? Answer a few questions.
Real figures from our own casework, not numbers scraped off the internet. Work out whether you need a licence, the deposit, the fees and the timeline, in about two minutes.
Step 1 of 9 · What you do
What does your business actually do? Tick everything that applies.
The legal label does not matter; the real process does. Placement means the client becomes the employer. Staff leasing means you stay the employer and the client directs the work.
Step 2 of 9 · Volume
How much of it do you expect in the next 12 months?
This decides whether the activity counts as regular under the AVV.
Step 3 of 9 · Geography
Where are your clients and workers?
This decides whether a federal SECO licence sits on top of the cantonal one.
Step 4 of 9 · Canton and branches
Which canton, and how many offices?
The cantonal licence is granted where your company is seated; a branch in another canton needs its own.
Offices
Step 6 of 9 · Leasing volume
Expected leasing volume per year
This sets the security deposit band.
Step 7 of 9 · Responsible person
The person who will run the licence
The licence attaches to a named responsible person, not just the company. In practice, one qualified person can be responsible for two or three companies.
Their nationality or permit
Their background
Step 8 of 9 · Company
Do you already have a Swiss company with suitable business premises?
The commercial-register entry and the premises are both standing conditions of the licence.
Step 9 of 9 · Advisor
What would you like to go through with an adviser?
Pick any. We prepare these before we call you.
Your result
Later changes to an existing licence cost CHF 220–850 in amendment fees.
A registered address is not enough on its own: the licence needs real, suitable business premises.
Would you like to talk your case through with an adviser?
How it runs, and how long
How the licence works
Placement. Placement (Arbeitsvermittlung) means you introduce a candidate to an employer, the two of them sign a contract with each other, and you take a fee for the match.
Staff leasing. Staff leasing (Personalverleih) means you stay the employer, pay the salary, and hire the worker out to a client who directs the day-to-day work. Both activities need a licence; only leasing carries a security deposit, because only the leasing firm owes the wages it must be able to honour.
Cantonal versus federal. The cantonal labour office of the canton where your company is seated grants the basic licence, for domestic activity. SECO, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, adds a federal licence on top wherever a candidate or client sits abroad. The federal licence is never a substitute for the cantonal one; a cross-border business holds both.
The closed direction. Leasing staff into Switzerland from a company seated abroad is not permitted under the AVG, with or without a foreign licence. Placement into Swiss jobs from abroad works only through a Swiss partner agency that already holds the licence, or by setting up your own Swiss company and applying for the licence on it.
The responsible person. The licence attaches to a named individual, not just the company, who must genuinely run the business. In practice, one qualified person can be responsible for two or three companies.
- Nationality or permit. Swiss nationality, an EU/EFTA residence permit, or a settlement permit.
- Standing. Of good standing.
- Background. Relevant training, or several years of experience.
What goes into the budget
- Licence fees. CHF 750 to CHF 1,650 per licence, counted once per authority: cantonal and, where it applies, federal SECO.
- Security deposit. Leasing only, CHF 50,000 to CHF 150,000, blocked before the licence is issued. It is your own money, not a fee, and it is not part of the government-fees total.
- Company setup. CHF 2,200 in paperwork and capital for a new company, or a ready-made shelf company from our list, only if you do not already have one.
- Business premises. Real, suitable premises are a standing condition of the licence; a registered address alone is usually not enough.
- The responsible person. If yours does not qualify yet, we can source a qualified one; price on request.
Swiss staff-leasing and recruitment licence: FAQ
01Do I need a licence to place candidates or lease out staff in Switzerland?
02What is the difference between placement and staff leasing?
03When does SECO grant the licence instead of the canton?
04How much is the security deposit for staff leasing?
05Can a foreign staffing agency lease staff into Switzerland from abroad?
06Who can be the responsible person named on the licence?
07What happens if we operate without the licence?
08How long does the licence take?
Talk it through with a partner
Send us what your business actually does. A partner confirms whether you need a licence, the deposit and fees, and the timeline, before you commit to anything.
