Accident insurance for students (LAA vs LAMal)
To verify This page has 2 items that could not be confirmed on an official page. Check them yourself before relying on them:
Who covers you if you get hurt in Switzerland: your health insurance, your employer's accident insurance, or both. Orientation for international students near EPFL, not insurance advice. This page quotes no premiums except one published Suva price; ask your insurer or employer for your own figures.
Companion pages: LAMal · Working while studying · AVS number & payslips · Sports & fitness
Two different insurances
| Name (FR / DE) | What it is | Who arranges it |
|---|---|---|
| LAMal / KVG, compulsory health insurance | Covers illness, and accidents as far as no accident insurance pays | You, with a Swiss health insurer (or an approved exemption) |
| LAA / UVG, compulsory accident insurance | Covers accidents and occupational illness of employees | Your employer, with Suva or another approved insurer |
Inside LAA there are two parts you may see on a payslip:
- Occupational accidents (accidents professionnels, AAP / BU): at work, for every employee.
- Non-occupational accidents (accidents non professionnels, AANP / NBU): leisure accidents (sport, home, travel), only for employees who work enough hours (see below).
"Accident insurance is mandatory for anyone living in Switzerland," says EPFL. For a student, the question is simply which of the two insurances carries the accident risk.
Sources: EPFL, Accident insurance · FOPH, Who is subject to compulsory insurance? · KVG / LAMal art. 1a and 8 (Fedlex)
Which situation are you in?
| Your situation | Accident at work / on the way to work | Leisure accident | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not working | n/a | LAMal accident cover | Keep accident cover included in your LAMal policy. FOPH lists students among people not covered by LAA. |
| Job under 8 h/week with the employer | Employer's LAA (occupational). The shortest home-work commute also counts as occupational for you. | LAMal accident cover | Keep accident cover in LAMal. No AANP should be deducted from your salary. |
| Job of at least 8 h/week with the same employer | Employer's LAA | Employer's LAA (AANP) | AANP premium is deducted from your salary. You may ask your health insurer to suspend LAMal accident cover (see below). |
Key wording from official pages:
- FOPH: "People who work at least 8 hours per week for the same employer are also insured against non-occupational accidents." People not gainfully employed, including students, "are required to obtain accident cover as part of their compulsory health insurance."
- EPFL: if you work for the same employer at least 8 hours per week, you are automatically insured against professional and non-professional accidents by that employer; otherwise you must take accident cover as part of your compulsory health insurance.
- SECO (SME portal): occupational premiums are paid by the employer; AANP premiums are paid by the employee, deducted monthly from salary. For people under 8 hours a week, accidents on the shortest work-home commute are covered as occupational.
The 8-hour threshold is counted per employer. If you hold several small jobs, ask each employer whether you have AANP cover there; do not assume hours from different jobs add up (To verify with HR if your hours are irregular or split).
Foreign students are limited to 15 hours a week of work during the semester (full-time during university vacations), so many student jobs sit close to the 8-hour line. See Working while studying.
Sources: FOPH, Who is subject to compulsory insurance? · EPFL, Accident insurance · SECO SME portal, OAI and NOAI · EPFL, Working
If you are LAMal-exempt
If you have an exemption from Swiss LAMal (for example via the European Health Insurance Card, or a recognised foreign policy, granted through OVAM in Vaud), EPFL says the foreign medical and accident insurance must give unlimited cover for treatment in Switzerland. Check that your foreign policy covers accidents in Switzerland before you rely on it.
Source: EPFL, Health insurance · kit: LAMal
Suspending LAMal accident cover (only if you have full LAA cover)
If you work at least 8 hours a week for one employer, you are fully covered by LAA and may ask your health insurer to suspend ("pause") the accident part of LAMal:
- Send a written application to your health insurer with proof of full LAA cover (for example a confirmation from your employer).
- The suspension starts at the earliest on the first day of the month after your application arrives.
- Your LAMal premium is reduced accordingly.
This is optional. If you are unsure your hours qualify, keeping LAMal accident cover is the safe default.
When the job or AANP cover ends, tell your health insurer. Under the KVG, your employer must inform you in writing that you have to notify your health insurer when you leave the job or the AANP cover. If you do not, the insurer can claim the accident-premium share with late interest back to the date LAA cover ended. Accidents are covered again under LAMal as soon as LAA cover stops.
Sources: FOPH, Insured persons eligible to suspend accident cover · KVG / LAMal art. 8 and 10 (Fedlex)
When a job ends
- LAA cover ends on the 31st day after the day your entitlement to at least half of your previous salary ends (FOPH).
- If you were under 8 hours a week (no AANP), cover ends as soon as you have completed your journey home on the last day of work.
- Interim accident insurance (assurance par convention / Abredeversicherung) lets you extend non-occupational cover by up to six months. It must be arranged and paid before the 31-day period ends.
Suva's published price for its own interim insurance (5 Oct 2026): CHF 65 per month, total CHF 390 for six months; minimum one month, cannot be cancelled or refunded. Only people who worked at least 8 hours a week for a Suva-insured company are eligible with Suva. If your employer used another accident insurer, ask that insurer (price To verify).
Alternative: rely on LAMal accident cover again (re-activate it with your health insurer). Suva notes that benefits differ: under LAA you pay no deductible or co-payment on accident treatment and can receive daily allowances, while LAMal applies your usual franchise and co-payment.
Sources: FOPH, When does accident insurance cover begin and end? · Suva, Interim accident insurance
Reading your payslip
Monthly payslips and the annual salary certificate (ESTV Form 11) show employee contributions together, including AANP (non-occupational accident) in ch. 9 with AVS/AI/APG/AC. If you see an AANP line, you have non-occupational cover through that employer; if not, your leisure accidents fall under LAMal.
Details: AVS number & payslips
Where accident cover comes up in student life
- Sport: UNIL+EPFL Sport Santé says you need accident insurance and civil liability, and declines responsibility in case of accident. Your LAMal accident cover (or AANP) is what pays treatment. See Sports & fitness.
- Internships: EPFL asks students to check they are covered for occupational and non-occupational accidents in Switzerland or abroad, and to take out cover before the internship if not.
- Car sharing: Mobility recommends its customers take out personal accident insurance on top of the car's passenger cover. See Mobility car sharing.
- Teeth: dental care after an accident, and what LAMal covers for teeth: see Dental care and LAMal.
- Advice: EPFL points CMS / Bachelor / Master students to AGEPoly for insurance advice and webinars: assurances@agepoly.ch.
Sources: EPFL, Insurance · EPFL, I have found an internship · Mobility GTC, section 18
Quick checklist
- Not working: check your LAMal policy includes accident cover.
- Starting a job: ask HR how many hours a week you are contracted for, which accident insurer the employer uses, and whether AANP will be deducted.
- 8 h/week or more with one employer: optionally apply in writing to suspend LAMal accident cover (from the next month at the earliest).
- Job ending: tell your health insurer to reinstate accident cover, or arrange interim accident insurance within 31 days.
- LAMal-exempt: confirm your foreign policy covers accidents in Switzerland.