Health insurance is one of the first things you should sort out after moving to Germany for a job. Without insurance, a visit to the doctor can be very expensive. The good news: for employees, the system is clearly regulated and relatively simple.
As of October 2026. General information, not legal advice. Please check the details with your health insurance fund.
In short: if you are employed in Germany with an employment contract, you must be insured in the statutory health insurance (GKV). In 2026 the contribution is 14.6% of gross pay plus the fund’s additional contribution (2.9% on average), and the employer pays half. Spouses and children without their own income are insured free of charge through family insurance.
Health insurance is compulsory
Employees with an income below the compulsory insurance limit (2026: €77,400 per year) are automatically insured in the statutory health insurance. This always applies to employees in warehouses and production.
Your insurance cover starts on your first working day. The contributions are deducted directly from your pay – more in the article Gross and net.
Choosing a health insurance fund
Germany has many statutory health insurance funds, for example AOK, TK, Barmer, DAK, IKK or BKK. The basic benefits are set by law and are therefore largely the same. The differences are in:
- the amount of the additional contribution,
- extra benefits such as bonus programmes or contributions towards professional teeth cleaning,
- service: local office, app, advice in other languages.
Deadline: you must choose your health insurance fund within two weeks of starting work and tell your employer. Otherwise the employer will register you with a fund.
You can usually apply for membership online. You need your passport or ID card, your address in Germany and your employer’s details. If you do not have a social insurance number yet, the health insurance fund will help you get one.
Membership certificate for the employer
After you register, the fund issues a membership certificate, which the employer needs. Many funds send it electronically straight to the employer. Ask about it and keep a copy.
Contributions in 2026 at a glance
| Part | Rate 2026 | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| General contribution rate | 14.6% of gross pay | 7.3% each for employee and employer |
| Additional contribution | 2.9% on average, depends on the fund | half each |
| Long-term care insurance | 3.6%, childless people aged 23 and over 4.2% | employer 1.8%, the rest the employee |
Source for the GKV rates: Federal Ministry of Health. The average additional contribution is a guide value – the funds’ actual additional contributions are partly lower and partly much higher. It is worth comparing.
Long-term care insurance
With health insurance, you are automatically also insured for long-term care (Pflegeversicherung). Long-term care insurance helps when someone needs care permanently because of illness or old age. You do not need to apply separately. Tell them about your children: childless people pay a surcharge, and parents with several children under 25 pay a little less.
Family insurance
A big advantage of statutory health insurance: spouses and children can be insured free of charge. Conditions:
- The family members live in Germany.
- Their regular income is not more than €565 per month (2026), or not more than €603 for a mini-job.
- They are not required to be insured themselves, for example through their own job subject to social insurance.
You apply at your health insurance fund, usually with a marriage or birth certificate and a translation. If your family is coming later, read our article on family reunification with EU citizens.
Electronic health card (eGK)
After a few weeks, the fund sends you the electronic health card (eGK). You need a photo for it, which you usually upload via the app or website. Take the card with you to every doctor’s appointment. Until it arrives, the fund can issue a temporary insurance confirmation. The back of the card usually has the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for travel.
EHIC from Romania or another EU country
Many applicants come with the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) from their home country. Important:
- The EHIC is for temporary stays, for example for a trip or the first days before you start work.
- From the start of your job in Germany, under the EU coordination rules you are insured in the country where you work, that is, with a German health insurance fund.
- Tell your previous insurance in Romania, Bulgaria or another country that you now work and are insured in Germany.
Citizens of the Republic of Moldova or Ukraine are also insured with a German health insurance fund from their first working day.
How to see a doctor
- Find a family doctor (Hausarzt): the family doctor is the first point of contact and refers you to specialists if needed (referral, Überweisung).
- Make an appointment: by phone, on the practice’s website or through online booking portals.
- Take your eGK with you: normal treatment costs nothing extra.
- Prescriptions: for prescription medicines, you usually pay a co-payment of €5 to €10 per pack at the pharmacy.
116117 helps you find a doctor or specialist appointment – by phone or at 116117.de.
Sick note (eAU) and sick pay
If you are ill and cannot work:
- Tell your employer straight away – if possible before work starts.
- Go to the doctor: if you are unable to work for more than three calendar days, a doctor must confirm it by the next working day at the latest. The employer may also ask for the certificate earlier.
- Electronic certificate of incapacity for work (eAU): the practice sends the data to the health insurance fund, and the employer gets it from there. You receive a printout for your records.
Continued pay (Entgeltfortzahlung): the employer continues to pay your wages for up to six weeks for the same illness. The right begins after four weeks of continuous employment (§ 3 Continued Remuneration Act). After that – and usually also in the first four weeks – the health insurance fund pays sickness benefit (Krankengeld). It is 70% of gross pay, but no more than 90% of net pay.
Dentist
The health insurance fund covers check-ups, fillings and the usual treatment. For dentures such as crowns or bridges, there is a fixed subsidy, and you pay the rest yourself. Tip: go for a check-up once a year and have it entered in your bonus booklet (Bonusheft) – this increases the subsidy later. Many funds pay part of the cost of professional teeth cleaning.
Emergency number 112 and on-call service 116117
| Situation | Number |
|---|---|
| Danger to life: severe chest pain, serious injury, unconsciousness | 112 – ambulance and fire brigade |
| Doctor needed at night, at the weekend or on public holidays, no danger to life | 116117 – on-call medical service |
Both numbers are free. The hospital emergency department is for real emergencies.
Common mistakes
- Not choosing a health insurance fund in time: then the employer decides.
- Not registering your family: family insurance is only available on application.
- Still using the EHIC at the doctor: once you start work, treatment goes through the German fund.
- Forgetting to report sick: even with the eAU, you must tell your employer yourself.
Insured with us from day one
With us you work with an employment contract and full social insurance – health, long-term care, pension and unemployment insurance. Pay is from €15.33 per hour gross, and as a forklift driver (m/f/d) from €16.08 per hour gross. We help with moving and address registration, and accommodation can be provided if needed. You do not pay a placement fee.
Take a look at our jobs, for example warehouse worker (m/f/d), and use the application form.
