Health Insurance for Freelancers in Germany
Every resident in Germany must have sufficient health insurance coverage. This obligation is called Versicherungspflicht.
Health insurance also is one of the most important requirements for a German Freelancer Visa application and resident permit.
Learn about short term and long term health insurance for freelancers in Germany.
Short Term Health Insurance in Germany for Expats
If you are coming to Germany for less than a year or applying for a German freelancer visa you can take out an expat or travel health insurance as a first-time German visa applicant.
Most foreign offices in Germany accept international health insurance plans for first-time visitors to Germany.
However please note that these insurance plans do not suffice for visa renewals and if you intend to stay in Germany for several years, your visa officers want you to take out ‘full’ health insurance in Germany.
Travel Health Insurance for German Freelancer Visa
Some foreigners’ offices (Ausländerbehörde) in Germany accepts travel health insurance for first-time freelancer visa applicants.
Here are some of the most well-known travel health insurance providers in Germany.
Minimum Duration: 1 day
Maxinum Duration: Two years
Coverage: Care Economy provides coverage against the costs of diseases and accidents abroad.
Other Features: You can sign up for this plan for as little as one day of coverage as opposed to a long term contract.
It makes Care Economy very suitable for expats who are still waiting for the results of their visa application and want to wait until signing a more comprehensive two-year-long health insurance contract.
Cost: Starts from €1 per day
Minimum Duration: 30 days
Maximum Duration: 12 months
Coverage: This insurance covers inpatient and outpatient treatment while living in Germany.
Other Features: This insurance plan is suitable for individuals who are in Germany for less than 12 months or need insurance coverage while waiting for their German freelancer resident permit.
Cost: Get an individual quote here
Click here to learn more about Foyer Global Health Protect plan here
Expat Insurance for Freelancers in Germany
Some foreigners’ offices (Ausländerbehörde) in Germany accepts expat health insurance for first-time freelancer visa applicants.
Here are some of the most well-known expat health insurance providers in Germany.
Minimum Duration: 6 months
Maximum Duration: 5 years
Coverage: This insurance protects you against the costs of medically necessary treatments
Other Features: There are three types of Care Expatriate tariffs – Basic, Comfort and Premium. All these tariffs provide various health care coverages and have varying monthly premiums.
Cost: Starts from €58 per month
Click here to check out the details of Care Expatriate tariff.
Minimum Duration: One year
Maximum Duration: Ongoing
Coverage: This insurance covers inpatient treatments such as: General hospital treatment and accommodation and care in a single or twin-bed room, medical services, hospital costs, surgery and anaesthesia, drugs and dressing etc.
It also covers outpatient treatment such as: consultations (including pathology, radiology, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography and palliative medicine), psychiatric treatment, over-the-counter drugs.
Other Features: This insurance plan is suitable for individual or family cover. There is no overall limit for reimbursement. Pre-existing conditions can also be included after a risk assessment.
Cost: Get an individual quote here
Click here to learn more about Foyer Global Health Essential plan here
Minimum Duration: One year
Maximum Duration: Ongoing
Coverage: This coverage includes preventative treatments, major dental treatments and medical services, makes it the most often chosen plan.
Other Features: It also includes maternity care and childbirth, services of a midwife or obstetric nurse in the hospital. Various dental care services are also included in this plan.
Cost: Get an individual quote here
Click here to learn more about Foyer Global Health Special plan here
Long Term Health Insurance for Freelancers in Germany
Long term health insurance is sometimes also called Vollversicherung – full insurance in Germany.
When you want to extend your German freelance resident permit, your local foreigner office can ask you to get ‘full’ health insurance. Without proof of full health insurance, your visa renewal may not be successful.
In Germany, freelancers can choose Private or Public health insurance. Some freelancers in artistic or journalistic professions may also have access to Künstlersozialkasse.
Here are some of the most important FAQs about private and public health insurance for freelancers in Germany.
The monthly premium for public health insurance for freelancers in Germany is based on the following factor:
- Average gross monthly income
Freelancers with public health insurance in Germany pay between 14.6 to 16 per cent of their gross income.
The age or health condition of the applicant do not play a role.
The monthly premium for private health insurance for freelancers in Germany depends on the following factors:
- Age
- General health condition
- Profession
- Family’s medical history (This is relevant for those who have dependents)
- Any preexisting health conditions or certain health risks
Anyone can take out private health insurance in Germany.
Employees whose salary exceeds the annual income threshold of 64,350 euros gross (as of 2021) can also take out private health insurance in Germany.
Anyone can sign up for public health insurance in Germany.
Students, self-employed persons and other voluntarily insured persons with low incomes have to pay a minimum contribution.
International freelancers who are completely new to German system are sometimes unable to become a member of German public health insurance network.
If you have been living in Germany with public health insurance as a student, salaried employee or spouse of a German resident, then you can stay in the public health insurance system as a voluntary insured member.
Private health insurance in Germany offers several benefits:
- Shorter waiting times for an appointment with a specialist.
- Treatment by highly paid specialists and with the latest medical techniques.
- Full control over the choice of a doctor in Germany.
- Choice of a single or double room in the hospital
- Young, healthy people often pay lower monthly premiums.
There are a few advantages of taking out public health insurance in Germany.
- Public health insurance in Germany is a solidarity-based system in which all insured members are treated equally and enjoy the same protection – regardless of how much they pay in.
- It is very simple to switch to another health insurance provider with public health insurance. You can switch to either one of the other public health insurance providers or even to private health insurance for freelancers in Germany.
- With public health insurance in Germany, your monthly contributions do not change with changes in your health conditions or age. You always pay a % of your gross monthly income.
There are a number of disadvantages of taking out long term private health insurance in Germany.
- Many of the ‘advertised’ benefits of private health insurance are only covered by higher tariffs. Most of the basic tariffs offer very little protection. For some treatments, they even provide less coverage than private health insurance.
- Private health insurance premiums often increase with the age of the member. Even in the retirement phase, when the income of the insured is lower, monthly contributions to private health insurance continue to rise.
- It is extremely hard to switch from private to public health insurance in Germany. Only in some exceptional circumstances, you might be able to switch to public health insurance as a freelancer in Germany.
Public health insurance for freelancers in Germany can have some disadvantages as well.
- Low earning freelancers may find public health insurance quite expensive because of the minimum contribution limit (Mindesbetrag). Public health insurance providers in Germany assume a monthly minimum income of 1,038 €. This threshold is currently at EUR 177 per month.
- Patients with public health insurance often experience long waiting times for appointments than privately insured patients.
The reason for this is that doctors and medical practices in Germany can charge a higher fee from private insurance companies for treating their patients. On the other hand, public health insurance pays a ‘flat rate’ per patient.
Depending on the type of diagnosis, private insurance reimburses a higher rate of the physician’s fee schedule (GOÄ). Even when private health insurance does not pay for parts of the treatment, the doctor can still get their money from the patient directly.
Considering all the benefits and drawbacks of both types of insurance in Germany:
Public health insurance might be the better choice for freelancers who
- have preexisting health conditions
- intend to stay in Germany for long term (several years)
- can afford to pay 14% – 16% of their gross monthly income towards health insurance
Private health insurance might be the better choice for freelancers who:
- are young and healthy with no preexisting medical conditions
- intend to stay in Germany for a short term (1-5 years)
- earn a low gross monthly income
Public Health Insurance for Freelancers in Germany
Statutory or public health insurance is the most popular health insurance for residents in Germany. Freelancers in Germany can sign up as voluntary members of the public health insurance system.
Over 70 million residents in Germany have public health insurance.
Here are some of the most well-known public health insurance for freelancers in Germany.
Minimum Duration: 1 month
Maximum Duration: Ongoing until formal cancellation or switch
Coverage: This insurance covers the costs of medically necessary treatments in Germany. It also covers the cost of necessary preventive care and visits to the doctors in Germany.
Other Features: DAK offers customer services in English, Arabic, Polish, Russian, Turkish and several other languages making it very suitable for foreign citizens in Germany.
Cost: 16.1% of your gross monthly income.
Private Health Insurance for Freelancers in Germany
Private health insurance in Germany is available to almost all occupational groups. About nine million people in Germany have opted for private health insurance.
Here are some of the most well-known private health insurance for freelancers in Germany.
Minimum Duration: One year
Maximum Duration: Ongoing
Coverage: This is basically a full-health insurance plan – also known as Vollversicherung in German. It covers all your medical costs and needs, preventive health screenings, inpatient and outpatient treatments.
Other Features: This plan is suitable for foreign citizens moving to Germany for the long term and require real international health insurance instead of travel insurance.
Cost: Get an individual quote here
Click here to learn more about Foyer Global Health Exclusive plan here
Minimum Duration: 1 month
Maximum Duration: Ongoing until formal cancellation or switch
Coverage: AXA’s private comprehensive health insurance cover you for a lifetime. Their coverage includes:
- Reimbursement of doctor’s fees in Germany for outpatient or inpatient treatment
- Extensive cost coverage for medical aids
- Participation in the statutory preventive programmes.
Other Features: You can also add several modules to your insurance cover, such as:
- Individual dental insurance cover with up to 90% reimbursement for dental prosthesis
- Daily sickness benefit
- Private nursing care provision
Cost: Get your individual quote here
Click here to check out the details of AXA’s ELEMENTAR Bonus plan.
Read our Beginner-Friendly Guide to
German Freelancer Taxes