Health Insurance for Researchers

If you have an employment contract which which is subject to social insurance contribution (at least three months with a minimum income of €556* per month) and your salary is below the compulsory insurance threshold (€73,800* per year), you must be insured in the statutory health insurance scheme. You are welcome to contact the HR department if you have any questions.
_{*As of: 2025}

There are various providers and you can choose which one you would like to insure yourself with. Please make sure to register yourself and do not wait for automatic registration.

In addition to statutory health insurance, you can take out supplementary insurance to cover benefits that are not covered by statutory health insurance.

If your income is above the compulsory insurance threshold (€73,800* per year), you can choose whether you want to take out statutory or private insurance. In that case, you will need to take out a private full health insurance. Therefore, please make sure to inform yourself about the consequences before deciding.

If you are a civil servant, part of the medical bills will be paid by your employer (“Beihilfe”). The rest will be covered by your health insurance. You can find information on this in this FAQ. If you have any questions, please contact Department 3.2.

If you are financing your stay in Germany with a scholarship, you must either take out private health insurance or you may be able to join the statutory health insurance scheme on a voluntary basis.

• Researchers with a residence permit for the purpose of research (§18d) whose research stay begins on March 1, 2024 at the earliest can join the German statutory health insurance scheme, provided they were not previously a member of a German private health insurance scheme (exception: travel insurance). Registration must take place within the first three months of entry to Germany.

  The contribution fee amounts to 18% + an additional contribution (this is determined by the health insurance company and is between 0.9% and 2.7%) of the scholarship. Co-insured family members do not have to pay a contribution.

  This option is quite new, we recommend that you contact the health insurance company of your choice if you are interested.

If you cannot or do not want to take out statutory health insurance, you must take out private health insurance.

• Some scholarship providers offer health insurance for their scholarship holders. Otherwise, you will need to inform yourself.

  There are big differences in the offers. Some private health insurances are rather inexpensive and cover little, others are more expensive and cover more. Please compare different providers and offers and decide for yourself what suits you best. You are welcome to contact us for further information.

  There are health insurance policies that are specifically for international researchers and students; these can be used for up to five years. There are also private full insurance policies.

If your stay in Germany is self-funded, you must either take out private health insurance or you may be able to join the statutory health insurance scheme on a voluntary basis.

• Researchers with a residence permit for the purpose of research (§18d) whose research stay begins on March 1, 2024 at the earliest can join the German statutory health insurance scheme, provided they were not previously a member of a German private health insurance scheme (exception: travel insurance). Registration must take place within the first three months of entry to Germany.

  The contribution amounts to 18% + an additional contribution (this is determined by the health insurance company and is between 0.9% and 2.7%) of income. In the case of self-funding, the calculation basis is a flat amount of €1,248.33. Co-insured family members do not have to pay a contribution.
  _{*As of: 2025}

  This option is quite new, we recommend that you contact the health insurance company of your choice if you are interested.

If you cannot or do not want to take out statutory health insurance, you must take out private health insurance.

• Some scholarship providers offer health insurance for their scholarship holders. Otherwise, you will need to inform yourself.

  There are big differences in the offers. Some private health insurances are rather inexpensive and cover little, others are more expensive and cover more. Please compare different providers and offers and decide for yourself what suits you best. You are welcome to contact us for further information.

  There are health insurance policies that are specifically for international researchers and students; these can be used for up to five years. There are also private full insurance policies.

If you are currently a member of a statutory health insurance scheme in another EU country, you can take your health insurance cover with you in most cases. You can find more information here; please contact your health insurance company for further details.

If you were previously a member of a statutory health insurance scheme in another EU country, you may also be able to join the German statutory health insurance scheme.

In the case of statutory health insurance, spouses and children (up to the age of 25) can be co-insured under certain conditions.