Private Health Insurance in Germany

Who can choose private health insurance?

Not everyone in Germany can take out private health insurance (Private Krankenversicherung or PKV). You are eligible if you belong to one of these groups:

• Employees with an income of over €77,400 per year (valid for 2026, limit increases annually)
• Self-employed individuals
• Students
• Jobseekers who, for example, do not have a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) and are looking for a job in Germany using a visa
• Civil servants (Beamte)

Costs of private health insurance

The cost of private health insurance depends on several factors:

• Age: The older you are, the more expensive your insurance premium will be.
• Health: Before a private insurance company accepts you, you must answer some health questions. The insurer calculates your personal risk profile based on these health questions. If you have pre-existing health conditions, expect a higher premium as the likelihood of medical expenses is greater.
• Scope of benefits: You can choose from a wide range of tariff options. Whether you want a single room in hospital or extensive dental treatment, there is the right tariff for you.

The easiest way to find out what you personally will pay is by comparing tariffs. Let the Verivox experts help you. The 'tariff jungle' is too complex to navigate alone.

Long-term care insurance (Pflegepflichtversicherung)

In Germany, you need long-term care insurance in addition to health insurance. You usually take this out with the same provider.

The healthcare system in Germany

Health insurance is mandatory for everyone in Germany. You cannot opt out of this requirement.

However, under certain circumstances, you have the choice between statutory (public) and private health insurance.

Statutory health insurance (GKV)

Statutory health insurance (Gesetzliche Krankenversicherung or GKV) is a pillar of the state healthcare system. Around 90% of the population is covered by statutory health insurance. However, we do not have one single state health insurance company in Germany. Instead, there are various insurance providers that are part of the healthcare system but operate independently.

Premiums

Statutory health insurance is financed by member premiums and state subsidies. The premium is calculated according to your salary if you take a job as an employee in Germany. In 2026, the average contribution rate is 17.5%. Employees and employers share this sum. As an employee, you therefore only pay half of the health insurance premium.

If you are self-employed, you must pay the insurance premium alone.

Members

In most cases, anyone can become a member of a statutory health insurance scheme. In some cases, you have no other choice: if you are employed by a company and earn less than €77,400 a year, you must have statutory health insurance. This limit applies to the year 2026, but increases every year.

Statutory health insurance accepts everyone who meets the legal requirements. Age and health status play no role.

Benefits

The benefits of statutory health insurance funds are largely prescribed and are therefore the same for all providers. Policyholders receive a health card (Gesundheitskarte), which they present at the doctor or dentist, in the pharmacy or in hospital. Your data is stored on this card. This allows doctor's surgeries, for example, to settle their services directly with your health insurance provider. As a rule, you do not have to pay anything yourself.

However, there are exceptions: at the pharmacy, for example, you have to pay between five and ten euro per medication yourself. Some treatments are not covered by statutory health insurance. In such cases, you must cover the costs yourself. At the dentist, for example, statutory health insurance does not cover the costs for gold or ceramic fillings.

Private health insurance

Anyone who is not required to have statutory insurance, or who opts out voluntarily, can choose private health insurance. Here, too, you have the choice between different providers.

Premiums

Insurance premiums depend on your personal situation. Employees are entitled to a subsidy from their employer, which makes up half of the premium. However, the employer must pay a maximum of €508.59 (as of 2026). You also receive a subsidy of 50 per cent for your long-term care insurance, but only up to a maximum of €104.63 (as of 2026).

Members

In most cases, the private health insurance provider can decide for itself whether to insure someone. You will therefore have to answer several questions about your health first. If the insurer considers the risk too high due to pre-existing conditions, the application may be rejected.

Benefits

Depending on the tariff, private health insurance covers more benefits than statutory health insurance. In principle, privately insured individuals have access to all doctors, dentists and hospitals.

In addition, depending on the individual policy, you are entitled to:

• Treatment using alternative healing methods such as homeopathy
• A free choice of doctor, access also to private doctors
• Up to 100 per cent coverage of costs for dentures and dental treatment
• No co-payment for medication
• A single or two-bed room in hospital
• Premium refund: You can agree that you will be reimbursed part of your premiums if you have not submitted any invoices to the insurance company for a year.

What do I need to look out for with private health insurance?

If you take out private health insurance, you should be aware of some special features.

Health check

Before you take out insurance, you must answer questions about your state of health. The private health insurance provider calculates your premium based on these questions. Incorrect or incomplete information can lead to a loss of coverage. If you answer the questions incorrectly, you may lose your entire insurance cover as a result.

Waiting periods

Once you have signed your insurance contract, you must observe certain waiting periods. During this time, you cannot claim for any services from your private health insurance provider. The waiting period starts on the first day of your insurance policy. The general waiting period is three months. A waiting period of eight months applies to certain services, such as dentures.

If you had health insurance before, this period will count towards the waiting period.

Excess

You can agree on an excess (Selbstbehalt) with your health insurance company. For example, you could agree on an excess of €800. This means that you would pay the first €800 of any medical costs incurred in a given year yourself. A tariff with an excess is cheaper than one without.

Cancellation

Policies can usually be cancelled with three months’ notice at the end of the insurance year. You can then look for a new provider. However, switching insurance providers is generally not advisable.

Insurance companies set aside some of your premiums to offset future premium increases in old age. However, if you switch provider, you lose part of these savings. You also have to answer health questions again with a new insurer. If you have pre-existing conditions, this could result in a higher premium.

If you leave Germany

If you move your permanent residence to a country outside the European Union/European Economic Area, your insurance policy will generally end when you are deregistered. However, under certain circumstances, you can agree with your private health insurer to continue the policy. Whether this is worthwhile depends on your individual circumstances. If you plan to return to Germany at some point, you can put your policy on hold and resume it upon your return.

If you move to a country within the EU/EEA, your policy remains valid. However, you are only entitled to benefits that you would also receive in Germany.

No return to statutory health insurance

Once you have opted for private health insurance, it is usually not possible to switch to statutory health insurance. However, employees must return to statutory health insurance if their annual salary falls below the compulsory insurance threshold. This only applies as long as they are under 55 years old.

Your path to private health insurance

1. Consult our Verivox experts to clarify your personal needs. This will enable us to find the best tariff for you.
2. First, our consultants submit your application anonymously to various insurance companies. This is because the state of your health is one of the important things for calculating your premium. Your health details are guaranteed to remain confidential and cannot be linked to you as long as you have not decided on a policy.
3. You will then receive various proposals for comparison, which you can check at your leisure before deciding on the most suitable offer. We are available at any time to answer your questions.
4. Once you have chosen an offer, we will submit your application to the insurer, including your personal details and answers to the health questions. Only then will you receive the final policy from the insurer along with the conditions that apply.

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Private health insurance: Providers

• Allianz
• Alte Oldenburger
• ARAG
• AXA
• Barmenia
• Versicherungskammer Bayern
• Concordia
• Continentale
• Debeka
• DEVK
• DKV
• envivas
• Ergo
• Generali
• Gothaer
• Hallesche
• HanseMerkur
• HUK-COBURG
• INTER
• LKH
• LIGA
• LVM
• Mecklenburgische
• Münchener Verein
• Nürnberger
• ottonova
• VGH Provinzial
• R+V
• SIGNAL IDUNA
• SONO
• Süddeutsche Krankenversicherung
• UKV
• uniVersa
• Versicherer im Raum der Kirchen
• vigo
• Württembergische