Well I was not aware of that, but if I was I would contribute. Could anyone provide a link to the official regulations?

your pension fund statement and pension fund contact person should be able to tell you exactly how much you can contribute and what is the process to do so.

tax man always want a slice, so you cannot reduce your income tax liability by a HUGE amount, large maybe, but not HUGE i.e. your gross taxable income after all deductions! you should ask the tax office first for large contributions and get agreement with them first. I've reduced my gross taxable income using 2nd pillar additional payments by about 10% each year for several years, more than that I was advised to talk tot he tax man first.

In my personal experience, never had to pre-advice or seek approval from tax office. Never had any issues in the deductions being accepted. Know of people who got to zero taxable income after voluntary pension contribution.

Promoting pension saving is encouraged. Of course, your mileage must have varied.

thanks for that. i believe you but a little surprised, it's not in line with the advice I have been given. it may come down to personal circumstances. I've never asked for 10--15% gross salary reduction, and never had an issue (c;

Does the three year lock-in period on the additional contribution vary from canton to canton, or is it the same all over the country?

Federal law based on a federal court ruling.
See Art. 79b BVG https://www.admin.ch/opc/de/classifi...ndex.html#a79b

Any idea if this 3-year lock after a voluntary contribution to pillar 2 also applies to a pledge for home ownership?

I checked Art79b but it only explicitly mentions withdrawals.

Just wondering if someone could hypothetically make additional contributions in the next 2 years to reduce annual income tax significantly and also pledge the funds as part of a mortgage application in year 3 without incurring any tax charge or other penalties?

Thanks