The Ausgleichskasse Zürcher Arbeitgeber (AZA) was founded at the time when the Federal Act on Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (AHV) came into force in 1948. It is a legal person under public law and is subject to the control and supervision of the federal government.
The private Familienausgleichskasse Zürcher Arbeitgeber (FZA) was founded as an affiliation within the meaning of Art. 60 ff. of the Swiss Civil Code upon the introduction of the Zurich Child Allowance Act in 1959. It also implements the regulations on family allowances for the organizations belonging to the AZA. Since 2009 the FZA has been recognized in all cantons and implements the regulations on allowances in all 26 cantons. The AZA and the FZA are operated by the same team.
As a not-for-profit service provider, we exist solely for the benefit of our customers: our member companies, the persons entitled to benefits, and policyholders. We aim to act as a sympathetic, helpful partner and offer a competent, practical service.
The e-business platform «connect» enables our member companies to process all business cases paperlessly, thus offering a real administrative saving.
The AZA is of manageable size, having 36 employees. Our communication channels are short and direct. We have several expert contact persons for each specialist area, and can thus offer individual advice and straightforward transaction processing.
The AZA is a member of the Schweizerische Vereinigung der Verbandsausgleichskassen (the Swiss Union of Compensation Fund Associations) (VVAK). Its members are the only non-governmental specialists in implementing the First Pillar. As private-sector, independent and neutral service providers, they guarantee a high level of reliability in processing social insurances.
The compensation fund affiliations, together with the cantonal compensation offices, ensure the decentralized implementation of AHV, as enshrined in the Swiss Constitution, and of the related social insurances such as IV, LEC and family allowances. This model is laid down in accordance with the Constitution and has proved its worth for the past 70 years. It is accessible to citizens, flexible, easily run, and supports efficient and competitively priced implementation. The compensation offices are typical non-profit organizations.
The AZA carries out the following social welfare and delegated tasks:
The founding organization and thus the body responsible for the AZA and the FZA is the Association of Employer Organizations in Zurich (VZA). As the umbrella organization for employers in Zurich, the VZA unites four sub-groups
The boards of the AZA and the FZA are composed of delegates from these four organizations. Their competencies, responsibility and functions are similar to those of a board of directors.
The rules regarding which compensation office handles invoices for AHV are set forth in the AHV legislation and leave little room for manoeuvre. In principle, the AZA is open to all self-employed persons and employers who are members of the four associated organizations: Arbeitgeber Zürich VZH, the Zurich Banking Association (ZBV), the SME and Trade Association of the Canton of Zurich (KGV) and the Federation of Zurich Industrial Employers’ Associations (VZAI). The legal followon regulations state that the affiliation members must settle their obligations regarding AHV·IV·LEC, ALV, FAK and other social welfare benefits through us.
If a company is a member of more than one of the founding organizations for compensation offices, it is free to choose which one to use. In the absence of such membership, the cantonal compensation office must be used.