In short: A family office wishing to employ a small team in Switzerland does not necessarily need to incorporate a Swiss entity first. Setting up a Swiss company means public register entry, a Swiss-resident signatory, audit and ongoing employer obligations. Payrolling through a SECO-licensed provider makes a two-to-five-person team operational quickly and discreetly, and you can still move to your own entity later. What payrolling does not do is settle your tax presence or your regulatory status — those depend on your activity, not your employment set-up.
A family office centralises a family’s wealth, governance and administration into one function. When it establishes itself in Switzerland, one of the first practical questions is deceptively simple: how do you employ the people who run it?
Note: this article gives general information on Swiss law and is not legal or tax advice. Structuring decisions for a family office should be confirmed with qualified counsel.
Why are family offices choosing Switzerland?
Switzerland remains one of the world’s leading wealth-management locations, valued for political stability, a deep advisory ecosystem and an extensive double-taxation treaty network. The single-family-office segment has grown markedly: Swiss single family offices’ assets rose between 2023 and 2025 to around CHF 785 billion (source: University of St. Gallen, Swiss Single Family Office Landscape 2026).
The picture is not one-directional, and it is worth being honest about that. The same research notes that a significant share of families have evaluated relocation scenarios, and some Swiss family offices have opened branches or moved functions to other hubs. Switzerland competes on stability and expertise rather than on being the cheapest or fastest jurisdiction.
What does it take to employ staff in Switzerland without a Swiss entity?
You employ them through a Swiss employer that is not your own company. In practice that means an Employer of Record (EOR) in Switzerland or payrolling: a licensed Swiss provider becomes the legal employer, while the staff work for your family office.
One legal point is decisive here. Staff leasing from abroad into Switzerland is not permitted under the Swiss Recruitment Act (AVG/LSE); the provider must hold a Swiss cantonal and federal SECO licence (source: SECO / AVG, 2026). A foreign EOR platform without a Swiss licence is therefore not a valid route — a real distinction when comparing providers.
Incorporating a Swiss company: what it involves for a family office
Founding your own entity is the fullest form of presence, and also the heaviest. A Swiss limited liability company (GmbH) requires share capital of CHF 20,000; a company limited by shares (AG) requires CHF 100,000, of which at least CHF 50,000 must be paid in (source: Swiss Code of Obligations).
Beyond capital, three points matter for a family office:
- The company and its officers appear in the public commercial register.
- At least one person with signing authority must be resident in Switzerland — often a practical hurdle when the principals live abroad.
- Incorporation takes several weeks and brings ongoing accounting, audit thresholds and full employer obligations.
A branch (Zweigniederlassung) of the foreign entity is a middle path: it must be entered in the commercial register and needs a Swiss-resident representative, but requires no separate minimum capital. It does not create a separate legal person, so the parent remains liable.
How payrolling works for a small family office team
The provider employs your staff and runs everything that comes with being an employer: contracts, salaries, social-insurance contributions, occupational pension and work-permit administration, within the legal limits. Your family office directs the day-to-day work and pays the provider for the assignment. To see the mechanics, read how payrolling works.
For discretion, the concrete effect is the absence of a public footprint: with no own company, there is no commercial-register entry naming the family office or its officers, and payroll data sits with a provider bound by Swiss data-protection law (revised FADP) and contractual confidentiality.
Being precise about discretion: payrolling does not make a family office invisible. The assignment contract names the client, and authorities retain access to the relevant data. Discretion here means no public register presence — not anonymity.
Entity, branch or payrolling: which structure fits?
The three routes differ mainly in speed, visibility and overhead. The table compares them for a small team.
| Criterion | Swiss company (AG/GmbH) | Branch of the foreign entity | Payrolling via a SECO-licensed provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to first hire | Weeks to months | Weeks | Days |
| Public commercial register entry | Yes (company and officers) | Yes (branch and representative) | No |
| Swiss-resident signatory required | Yes, at least one | Yes, a representative | Not required from the family office |
| Set-up and running costs | High (capital, audit, accounting) | Moderate | Low, usage-based |
| Employer obligations and payroll | Fully with the entity | With the branch | Handled by the provider |
| Work permits for staff | The entity sponsors | The branch sponsors | Via the provider, within legal limits (EU/EFTA vs third-country restrictions) |
| Suitability for 1–5 employees | Often oversized at the start | Possible | Well suited |
| Exit or restructuring later | Liquidation required | Deregistration | Simple, no structure to unwind |
| Tax presence | Requires tax advice | Requires tax advice (a branch is typically a permanent establishment) | Requires tax advice (staff may still create a permanent establishment) |
What payrolling does not solve: tax presence and regulatory status
Two questions sit outside the employment set-up, and it would be misleading to imply otherwise.
Tax presence. Employing people in Switzerland can, depending on what they do, create a permanent establishment — particularly if they conclude contracts or take decisions on the family’s behalf. Payrolling does not change this by itself; the analysis turns on the activity, not on who issues the payslip. This must be assessed with tax counsel.
Regulatory status. Whether a family office needs a licence from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) depends on whom it serves, not on how its staff are employed. A single family office that manages only the wealth of one family with family or business ties is generally outside the scope of the Financial Institutions Act (FinIA); a multi-family office managing assets for unrelated families generally requires a FINMA portfolio-manager authorisation (source: FinIA / FINMA, 2026). Payrolling is neutral to this question.
When should a family office move from payrolling to its own entity?
When the engagement outgrows the light structure. Good indicators are a team beyond a handful of people, decisions and contracts increasingly taken in Switzerland, a wish for the family’s own governance and audited accounts, or a permanent-establishment position that already argues for a formal presence.
The advantage of starting with payrolling is that the transition is orderly: you can be operational within days, test the location, and incorporate later from a position of knowledge rather than assumption.
Conclusion
For a small, cross-border family office team, incorporating first often involves more administrative overhead than the situation requires. Payrolling through a SECO-licensed provider allows the team to become operational quickly, keeps the family office out of the public register, and leaves the door open to establishing a Swiss entity later — while tax and regulatory matters are addressed separately with appropriate counsel. To discuss a specific set-up, consider payrolling in Switzerland. Book a call to talk it through, or request a simulation.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreign family office employ staff in Switzerland without a Swiss company?
Yes. Through payrolling or an employer of record, a SECO-licensed Swiss provider becomes the legal employer, so the family office can have staff working in Switzerland without incorporating. Tax and regulatory questions are assessed separately.
Is payrolling legal for family offices in Switzerland?
Yes, provided it runs through a provider holding the required cantonal and federal SECO licence for staff leasing under the Swiss Recruitment Act (AVG/LSE). Using an unlicensed provider is not a valid route.
Can we use a foreign employer of record for staff in Switzerland?
No. Staff leasing from abroad into Switzerland is not permitted under the AVG. The employer must be a Swiss-licensed provider, which is a key difference from international EOR platforms without a Swiss licence.
Does employing staff through payrolling create a permanent establishment?
It can, depending on what the staff do — especially if they conclude contracts or take decisions for the family. Payrolling does not remove this risk; a permanent-establishment position depends on the activity and must be reviewed with tax counsel.
Does a family office in Switzerland need a FINMA licence?
It depends on whom it serves. A single family office managing only one family’s wealth is generally exempt from FinIA authorisation; a multi-family office serving unrelated families generally needs a FINMA portfolio-manager licence. The employment model does not affect this.
Can non-EU staff be employed through payrolling?
Only within limits. Staff leasing of third-country (non-EU/EFTA) nationals is restricted under Swiss law and is often not possible; each case must be checked individually. EU/EFTA nationals are generally more straightforward.
Can we move from payrolling to our own Swiss entity later?
Yes. Payrolling is well suited as a first step: the team is operational within days, and you can incorporate a company or open a branch later, once the engagement justifies the added structure.
