Cancelling Swiss health insurance: deadlines, model letter and how to get it right

Two ordinary dates – and the cancellation right on premium changes

You can cancel mandatory basic insurance ordinarily as of 31 December. What counts is not the postmark but receipt: the cancellation must arrive at your current insurer by 30 November at the latest. Miss that date and you stay insured with your current insurer for now – for most insured people, the next ordinary opportunity only comes at the end of the following year; the 30 June exception follows just below.

There is also a second ordinary date that many people do not know about: cancellation as of 30 June. It is only open to insured persons on the ordinary deductible of CHF 300 (the «Franchise») and the standard model with free choice of doctor. If you have chosen a higher voluntary deductible or a savings model such as family doctor, HMO or Telmed, you are limited to the year-end date. For a cancellation as of 30 June, the letter must have arrived at the insurer by 31 March.

If your insurer announces a premium change, the law (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG) lets you cancel as of the end of the month preceding the date the new premium takes effect. Since new premiums normally take effect on 1 January, in practice this right leads to the very same deadline: the cancellation must arrive at the insurer by 30 November – it usually grants no extra time. Only when a premium is exceptionally adjusted mid-year (a rare special case) does an earlier cancellation date open up. Important: the deadline follows from the law, not from the insurer's announcement letter – and the ordinary year-end switch is open to you regardless of whether your premium goes up.

The form: written, registered, with your insured number

The cancellation is made in writing. What matters is less the wording than the proof: it is receipt at the insurer that counts, not the day you posted the letter. Send the cancellation by registered mail («eingeschrieben») – the postal receipt documents when the letter arrived and is your evidence in case of dispute.

Build in a buffer: if you only post the letter in the last days of November, you risk it arriving in December – and thus taking effect a whole year too late. Always state your insured or policy number so the insurer can assign the cancellation beyond doubt, and ask for written confirmation of the termination. That confirmation is your proof if invoices or reminders from the old insurer turn up later.

Model letter: this is all it takes

A cancellation needs neither a reason nor legal boilerplate. The following structure is enough – replace the placeholders with your details and sign by hand:

• Sender: first name, surname, street, postcode and town
• Recipient: name and address of your health insurer
• Subject: Cancellation of mandatory basic health insurance, insured number …
• Body: «I hereby cancel my mandatory basic health insurance (policy no. …) as of 31 December. Please confirm the termination in writing.»
• Place, date and handwritten signature

The cancellation only takes effect with a new insurer in place

A cancellation of basic insurance only takes effect once the new insurer has confirmed to the old one that it will insure you seamlessly – a coverage gap simply cannot arise. So cancel only once your application with the new insurer is under way; acceptance is a formality thanks to the obligation to accept. The full switching process in the right order is covered in our guide «Switching Swiss health insurance» (linked below).

Two stumbling blocks remain: if you are under debt enforcement for outstanding premiums or cost sharing, you cannot switch – the cancellation stays ineffective until the arrears are settled. And special situations such as permanently leaving Switzerland end the insurance obligation entirely and run outside the normal cancellation cycle – clarify these directly with your insurer.

Supplementary insurance: separate contracts, separate deadlines

Cancelling basic insurance does not touch your supplementary policies: these are private-law contracts under the VVG with their own, often three-month notice periods – your policy is decisive. If you only send the letter for basic insurance, the supplementary contracts remain in force; but you do not have to cancel them at all, because basic and supplementary insurance may run with different providers. What that means for your switching strategy is covered in the guide «Switching Swiss health insurance».

Checklist: cancelling in six steps

This is how to get cancellation and switch safely over the line – ideally in this order:

• Compare premiums: our calculator shows the official FOPH premiums for your region and deductible – so you know whether cancelling is worth it at all.
• Apply for the new basic insurance and wait for the confirmation of acceptance.
• Write the cancellation: use the model letter, state your insured number, request written confirmation.
• Send it by registered mail – early enough that it safely arrives before 30 November.
• Settle premium arrears that are under debt enforcement – with an enforcement pending, you cannot switch.
• Review supplementary policies separately: their own deadlines, their own decision – they may stay with the old provider.