Sample cancellation letter

What is a sample cancellation letter?

A sample cancellation letter is a template that you fill in with your details and send to your health insurer to end an insurance policy. It saves time and makes sure no important details are missing. The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH, in German BAG) provides its own sample letters for cancelling and for registering with a new insurer; you can create a completed letter as a PDF with our cancellation letter tool.

A template is not an insurer’s form. Art. 7 of the Federal Health Insurance Act (KVG) prescribes neither a form nor specific wording. What matters is clear content and timely receipt by the insurer.

In health insurance, there are two types of cancellation that you need to keep apart:

• Cancelling basic health insurance (KVG): The deadlines are laid down by law and are the same for all insurers. The new insurer must accept you without health questions.
• Cancelling supplementary insurance (ICA): The deadlines are set out in the contract and in the general terms and conditions of insurance. A new supplementary insurer may ask health questions or turn you down.

Most searches for a template relate to switching health insurer for basic health insurance in the autumn. That is the main focus of this page.

How it works

The dates for basic health insurance

Your insurer must notify you of the new premiums approved by the FOPH at least two months in advance, i.e. by 31 October at the latest for 1 January (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG). You can then cancel with a notice period of one month to the end of December. Your notice of cancellation must reach the insurer by 30 November at the latest. The FOPH recommends sending it by 15 November by registered mail or A-Post Plus, a trackable Swiss Post service.

Regardless of any change in premium, you can cancel with three months’ notice to the end of a calendar half-year (Art. 7 para. 1 KVG), i.e. to 30 June, with your notice arriving by 31 March. However, this mid-year switch is only open to insured persons with the standard deductible of CHF 300 and no special model. With an optional deductible or a GP, HMO or telemedicine model, you can only switch insurer at the end of a calendar year (Art. 94 para. 2 and Art. 100 para. 3 of the Health Insurance Ordinance, KVV). You will find all dates at a glance under deadlines.

What your notice of cancellation must contain

• First name, surname, address and date of birth of each person for whom you are cancelling
• Insurance number or customer number with the insurer
• The exact description: “compulsory health insurance (basic health insurance) under the KVG”
• The cancellation date, for example “with effect from 31.12.2026”
• A sentence on your supplementary insurance: keep it or cancel it separately
• A request for written confirmation of cancellation
• Place, date and signature; for children, the parents’ signature

Registering with the new insurer

Cancelling alone does not end your insurance. At the same time, you register with the new insurer, which then informs your current insurer that you are insured with it without interruption. Only then does the old insurance relationship end (Art. 7 para. 5 KVG). If the new insurer fails to send this notification, it must compensate you for the damage, in particular the difference in premium. The FOPH recommends sending your registration by 15 December.

Legal basis

• Art. 7 para. 1 KVG: Switching with three months’ notice to the end of a calendar half-year.
• Art. 7 para. 2 KVG: After the new premium has been notified, switching with one month’s notice to the end of the month before the new premium applies. The insurer must notify the new premiums at least two months in advance and point out the right to switch.
• Art. 7 paras. 5 and 6 KVG: The insurance relationship only ends once the new insurer has sent its notification. If the current insurer prevents the switch, it must compensate you for the damage.
• Art. 7 paras. 7 and 8 KVG: The insurer may not force you to cancel your supplementary insurance along with basic health insurance, and it may not cancel it solely because you switch.
• Art. 64a para. 6 KVG: Insured persons in arrears cannot switch as long as premiums, co-payments, default interest and debt enforcement costs are outstanding. According to the FOPH, this concerns debts for which a reminder was sent by 30 November and which are unpaid by 31 December.
• Art. 94 para. 2 and Art. 100 para. 3 KVV: With an optional deductible or a special model, you can only switch insurer at the end of a calendar year.
• Art. 35a of the Insurance Contract Act (ICA): Supplementary insurance can be cancelled at the earliest to the end of the third year with three months’ notice, in writing or in another form that allows proof by text. In supplementary insurance, only you as the policyholder have the ordinary right to cancel (Art. 35a para. 4 ICA). Further cancellation rights, for example after a premium increase, are governed by the general terms and conditions of insurance.

Example: cancellation with effect from 31.12.2026

Laura is 29 and has basic health insurance with insurer A, plus supplementary hospital insurance with the same insurer. On 20.10.2026 she receives the premium notification for 2027 and, after comparing, finds a cheaper insurer B. She wants to keep her supplementary insurance.

If Laura had still had an unpaid premium bill from October and received a reminder by 30 November, she would have had to pay it by 31 December; otherwise she stays with insurer A.

What this means for you

1. Compare first, then cancel. Use the premium calculator to check whether switching is worthwhile before you write the letter.
2. Register with the new insurer and cancel at the same time. Register with the new insurer as soon as you send your notice of cancellation. Together, the two steps ensure a seamless transition.
3. Send it early. Send the letter by 15 November by registered mail and keep the receipt. If you have not received confirmation by mid-December, contact the insurer.
4. Handle supplementary insurance deliberately. If you want to keep it, say so in the letter. If you want to cancel it, first check the notice period and the terms and conditions, and only cancel once a new supplementary insurer has accepted you.
5. Pay outstanding bills. Premiums or co-payments for which you have received a reminder block the switch.
6. You do not have to word the letter yourself. The cancellation letter generator fills in the insurer’s address, the date and the sentence on supplementary insurance correctly. The page switching health insurer explains the whole process.

Common mistakes

• Sending it too late. The deadline is based on receipt by the insurer. A letter posted on 29 November often arrives too late.
• Cancelling supplementary insurance by accident. A blanket “I cancel all my insurance policies” also ends supplementary insurance that you may no longer be able to take out again because of your age or health.
• Only cancelling, not registering. Without registering with a new insurer, your old insurance does not end.
• Trying a mid-year switch with a model. If you have an optional deductible or a model, you can only switch at the end of the year.
• Forgetting family members. Each person has their own contract. List everyone who is to switch, including the children.

Special cases without a notice period, for example if you have to leave your insurer because you move or change jobs (Art. 7 para. 3 KVG), are explained on the page extraordinary cancellation. The deadline for switching summarises the dates over the year. If an insurer does not accept your notice of cancellation, the Office of the health insurance ombudsperson can help free of charge.