20.05.2026
You’ve received some initial orders alongside your job, but are wondering: am I even allowed to do this? Do I have to register with OASI? And is it all financially worthwhile? This is precisely where secondary employment comes in: you can test your business idea without sacrificing your financial security.
PostFinance supports you on your journey to self-employment with helpful information and suitable offers.
A business idea often evolves gradually. The first orders arrive, the network grows and, over time, an idea becomes a functioning service. Secondary employment offers a clear advantage in this respect: you remain financially secure and can find out how much potential your business idea has at the same time.
These are the benefits for you:
This creates a solid foundation before making major decisions.
Partial self-employment means that you are self-employed alongside your regular employment. Both activities exist in parallel.
The difference is mainly in income:
If your self-employment is your primary employment, you are entirely dependent on your business. If it is your secondary employment, your permanent position still provides the financial basis. This allows you to build up your business idea gradually. If it is your primary employment, you have to make a living from it.
Secondary employment gives you the leeway to find out whether your business idea is sustainable in the long term. In everyday life, it quickly becomes apparent that the two worlds present different challenges. While your permanent position is clearly structured, your self-employment requires individual professional and organizational responsibility.
| Criterion | Secondary employment | Primary employment |
|---|---|---|
| Criterion Income |
Secondary employment Supplements permanent position |
Primary employment Main source |
| Criterion Risk |
Secondary employment Lower |
Primary employment Greater |
| Criterion Time commitment |
Secondary employment Part-time/flexible |
Primary employment Full-time |
| Criterion Pressure |
Secondary employment Less financial pressure |
Primary employment High financial pressure |
| Criterion Goal |
Secondary employment Testing the business |
Primary employment Running a business |
Secondary employment often arises where existing skills meet a specific demand. Typical examples are:
The specific sector is less crucial than the question: can it be developed into a service for which there is regular demand?
As soon as initial income turns into regular activity, the perspective shifts again. What started off informally suddenly takes on a legal and organizational dimension. Practice shows that many people underestimate this point
A key question is the classification of your activity. OASI checks whether you are considered self-employed. This is based on the criteria of the compensation office, which assesses each situation individually.
Several factors come into play here:
As a rule, the obligation to pay contributions begins when you take up self-employment. There is no fixed turnover limit above which you must register with OASI. The decisive factor is whether your activity is classified as self-employed and serves to generate income. Contributions for the self-employed amount to around 10 percent of profit, depending on income.
You earn 5,000 francs a year with freelance orders. Registration with the OASI may already be required for this amount. The key factor is not the amount of income, but the type of activity.
As soon as your activity is carried out regularly and generates income, you should check your situation and register if necessary. This will ensure that your contributions are calculated correctly and that you have been entered correctly in accordance with social security law. An entry in the commercial register is only mandatory for annual revenue of 100,000 francs or more.
In addition to OASI, there is also the question of how your activity is classified for tax purposes.
For tax purposes, an activity is considered to be commercial if it is long-term, is carried out with the goal of generating profit and involves a certain degree of independence. This classification determines how your income is taxed and what deductions are possible.
Value added tax (VAT) is a different matter. The following applies: if your annual revenue exceeds 100,000 francs, you are liable for VAT. Voluntary registration is possible below this threshold, for example if you wish to claim input tax deductions.
For many people with secondary employment, VAT only becomes relevant when the business grows. However, it is worth keeping an eye on this issue at an early stage in order to avoid having to make changes later under time pressure.
Another important point is your employment relationship. Clarify in good time
The so-called non-competition clause can be explicitly regulated in the employment contract and prohibits activities that compete directly with the employer’s business. Even without an explicit clause, you must not compete with, or harm the interests of, your employer. Early clarification helps to avoid conflicts, especially if activities or customer groups could overlap.
Secondary employment entails additional responsibility. In addition to your job, you also take on tasks that go beyond your actual role.
These include:
Not every idea has to be implemented immediately. Not every order fits in at every stage. It is crucial to make a conscious choice and assess your own workload realistically.
Secondary employment is particularly suitable if you want to test your idea under real conditions. You can also build up your income gradually. This approach is less suitable if your activity demands full availability immediately, requires high initial investment or focuses on rapid growth.
Over time, the secondary employment perceptibly changes. What started off as individual orders becomes regular income, processes repeat themselves and decisions become more binding. Now, at the latest, the question arises as to how you wish to set up your business on a formal basis. Typical next steps are:
This transition does not happen suddenly. It results from the development of your activity and the growing need for structure and clarity.
If you want to look into the next steps, the following articles will help you:
Start your secondary employment with a clear structure. With the PostFinance startup package, you can keep an eye on your income and expenditure right from the start.
In principle, yes. The precondition for this is that your secondary activity is not in direct competition with your employer and does not violate any contractual obligations. You can clarify this by checking your employment contract.
This depends on your activity and your employment contract. If there is a risk of overlap or conflicts of interest, it makes sense to inform your employer in good time. This helps you to avoid misunderstandings and create transparency.
An activity is deemed to be self-employment if you work at your own risk, have multiple clients and organize your work independently. It is the overall assessment of your situation that is of decisive importance, not a single criterion.
For many people in secondary employment, a sole proprietorship is the obvious choice. It is easy to set up, requires no minimum capital and is well suited to smaller-scale activities or ones being built up gradually. Switching to a limited liability company or private limited company may become worthwhile as the business grows.
There is no fixed income limit for secondary employment. The important thing is how your activity is classified legally and with regard to social security law. Income must always be declared correctly.
As soon as your activity generates regular income and is classified as self-employment, you must register with OASI. There is no fixed revenue limit. As a rule, the obligation to pay contributions begins when you take up the activity.
Yes. Income from self-employment must be declared on your tax return – irrespective of the amount. At the same time, business-related expenses can generally be deducted.
It’s worth switching if your income is stable and you have sufficient planning security. Rising demand and increasing organizational effort are also clear signals. The key thing is that your activity is sustainable in the long term.
