Managing payroll
Setting up payroll
The settings to make once before the first payroll
The Payroll module prepares the payslips of the people paid by the club (coaches, instructors, staff), calculates Swiss social security contributions and posts the entries to the club's accounts. A few settings are needed before the first payroll: they are made only once.
The module is in the left side menu: open Invoices then click Payroll. It has four tabs: Monthly payroll, Employees, Year & certificates and Settings.
The Payroll menu only appears if the accounts (general ledger) are enabled for the club, and the pages are reserved for administrators with access to the Invoices module. To enable the accounts, see the article Setting up the accounts (general ledger).
Follow the "Before the first payroll" list
Until the setup is complete, the Monthly payroll tab shows the Before the first payroll box with four steps. Each step is a link to the page to fill in; a tick replaces its number as soon as it is done, and the box disappears when all four are done.
The four setup steps
| Step | Where | Considered done when… |
|---|---|---|
| Club insurance | Settings, settings for the year | the settings for a year have been saved (steps 4 and 5 below) |
| AVS office and signatory | Settings, top left card | the office name and the signatory are filled in (step 2) |
| Payroll accounts | Settings, card Accounts | all the accounts exist in the chart of accounts (step 3) |
| First employee | Tab Employees | at least one employee record exists |
Enter the AVS office and the signatory
Open the Settings tab. The AVS office and employer card contains the information printed on the salary certificates. It does not depend on the year.
The compensation office and the contact person for the certificates
- AVS compensation office and Member no.: the name of your office and the club's number with it.
- Certificate signatory and Phone: the contact person for the salary certificates.
- Place (certificate signature): the place printed next to the date on the certificate.
Click Save in the card.
Choose the payroll accounts
The Accounts card shows which accounts in the chart of accounts receive the payslip entries: net salaries payable, gross salaries, reimbursed expenses, compensation office, pension fund, insurance, social charges, etc. Numbers from the Swiss SME chart of accounts are suggested by default (for example 2290 for net salaries payable, 5000 for salaries and 5700 for social charges).
A number missing from the chart of accounts: the button offers to create it
To the right of each number, Plugin.ch shows its status:
- a green tick and the account name: the account exists in your chart of accounts;
- "suggested": the default number did not exist, and Plugin.ch found an existing account in your chart whose name matches (for example "Salaires dus" or "Caisse de compensation");
- "not in chart of accounts": this number does not exist in your chart yet.
- Check the numbers. To change one, type the number or choose it from the list that appears as you type.
- If accounts are still missing, click Create the … missing accounts: the numbers are saved and the missing accounts are created in the chart of accounts, with the names shown on screen.
- Otherwise, click Save.
Paying the salaries through the bank is not posted by the payroll: it settles the "Net salaries payable" account when the bank statement is imported. See the article Paying salaries and reconciling them with the bank.
Check the statutory rates for the year
The settings for the year are made in the large card in the middle of the Settings page. Change the year shown with the arrows in the blue banner.
The Statutory rates 2026 section contains the official federal values, already filled in: AVS/AI/APG (5.3% employee and 5.3% employer), AC (1.1% + 1.1% up to CHF 148,200 per year), LAA ceiling, minor salary (CHF 2,300 per year), pensioners' allowance (CHF 1,400 per month), LPP thresholds, minimum salary for family allowances and minimum hours for ANP. Only change them if the Confederation changes them.
The 2026 statutory rates, already filled in
If you change a value, the official value is still shown below the field ("official: …").
Enter the club's insurance
The following sections of the same card depend on your insurance contracts and your office. Plugin.ch does not suggest any indicative rates: a rate left at 0% is therefore easy to spot on the payslips. Copy the figures from your policies and your office's statement.
Family allowances, accident insurance, supplementary accident insurance and daily sickness benefits
| Section | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Compensation office | Administration costs of the office, as a % of AVS/AI/APG contributions (employee + employer share), paid by the club. |
| Family allowances | The canton, the monthly amount of the child allowance and the education allowance (federal minimum CHF 215 and 268), the increased amounts from the 3rd child if your canton has them, the Employer family allowance contribution and, only in some cantons (VS), the Employee family allowance contribution. |
| Accident insurance (LAA) | One line per category of your policy: Code, Label, AP rate (occupational accidents, paid by the club), ANP rate (non-occupational, deducted from the employee) and, if the club pays part of it, Club ANP share %. |
| Supplementary accident insurance (LAAC) | One line per category: employee and employer rates, and the insured salary band (From (CHF/year), Up to (CHF/year)). |
| Daily sickness benefits (IJM) | One line per category: employee and employer rates, and an annual ceiling if your policy has one. |
| LPP plan (rate-based) | The total savings rates per age band, the Risk and costs rate and the Employer share (at least 50%). Only used for employees with "calculated LPP"; for those whose pension fund provides the amounts, there is nothing to enter here. |
| Other contributions | Any cantonal contributions (day care, GE maternity, vocational training…), with their basis (AVS, AC or gross salary) and their rates. |
To add a category, click Add a category; to remove one, click its bin. Finish with Save 2026 settings (the button shows the year displayed). This year's payslips still in draft are recalculated immediately.
New year: a year without settings takes over those of the last saved year. A banner says so ("Settings carried over from …"). Check the rates, then save to lock in those for the new year.
Adjust the pay items (optional)
Each line of a payslip comes from a pay item: monthly salary, hours worked, bonus, child allowance, expense allowance, AVS/AI/APG, etc. The Pay items card, at the bottom of the Settings page, lists them by type, with the salary certificate box where they appear, the insurance they are subject to and their account. The standard pay items suit most clubs.
The start of the list of pay items
Click a pay item to open its panel:
- Label: the text printed on the payslip. If left empty, the standard label is used.
- Salary certificate box: the certificate box where the amount is reported.
- The account or accounts of the pay item.
- Subject to: click the buttons to choose the insurance whose basis includes this amount (AVS, AC, LAA, LAAC, IJM, LPP).
- Counts towards the 13th salary: the amount is included in the 13th salary calculation.
- Pay item active: an inactive pay item is no longer offered on payslips.
The panel of a standard pay item
Pay items marked "calculated" (monthly salary, holidays, 13th salary, contributions, allowances…) are calculated by Plugin.ch: only their label, account and certificate box can be changed. To return a standard pay item to its original state, click Restore original.
To create a pay item of your own, click New pay item, give it a label, choose its Type (salary, benefit in kind, expenses or deduction) and its Input (Amount or Quantity × rate), then save. A club pay item already used on payslips cannot be deleted: it is only deactivated.
Add the employees
Last step: create a record for each person paid by the club, in the Employees tab. See the article Adding and editing an employee. You can then prepare the first payroll.
What the module does not do: withholding tax is not calculated and the data is not sent via Swissdec. The salary certificate is printed on the official form, without a barcode; it remains valid.
Plugin.ch tutorial — Managing payroll