Explore the impact of unemployment on health insurance in Germany. Learn about health insurance options during job loss and potential health insurance subsidies available through the Federal Employment Agency. Dive into our guide now to learn how your health insurance changes when unemployed in Germany.

Key takeaways

• You are compulsorily insured with public health insurance if you receive unemployment benefit I.
• You can stay with private health insurance if you were previously privately insured for 5 years before the job loss.
• The federal employment agency pays for statutory health insurance and long-term care insurance during unemployment.
• Privately insured people also get subsidies from the employment agency. The subsidy is as high as what the agency will pay for the statutory insurance.
• No subsidy for people who can be insured for free in family insurance.
• You can continue to stay in public insurance after you find a job. It doesn’t matter if you earn more than the annual salary limit (69,300 as of 2024).
• People aged 55 or older cannot switch to public health insurance. 

This is how you do it

• You can pick a public health insurance company within two weeks after compulsory public health insurance starts. 
• You should Inform your private health insurance provider that you switched to public insurance.
• You must apply for an exemption from public insurance within 3 months to stay in private insurance during unemployment.
• You can switch the private health insurance tariff to reduce insurance costs.
• Consider the pros and cons of private and public health insurance before deciding.
• You can apply to become a public health insurance member via Feather*. Feather offers services in English.

Table of contents

What happens to private health insurance during job loss?

As health insurance is compulsory by law in Germany, you’ll continue to enjoy health insurance coverage. But what health insurance options you’ll have depend on the unemployment benefits you’ll receive.

You don’t receive any unemployment benefits

As health insurance is legally required, you’ll still be insured even if you don’t receive unemployment or citizen’s benefits. The type of health insurance you’ll be insured in depends on where you were insured before becoming unemployed.

You also have the option to insure yourself for free in family insurance if you meet certain requirements. If you don’t receive unemployment benefits, you must pay the whole health insurance premium yourself.

• In public health insurance, you’ll pay the minimum premium (i.e., 219.17 € to 226,24 €).
• In private health insurance, you’ll continue to pay the same premium you did before becoming unemployed. However, you can change your private health insurance plan to reduce the premium.

You receive unemployment benefit I (Ar­beits­lo­sen­geld I (ALG I)

You will be insured with public health insurance as per § 5 para . 1 No. 2 SGB V if you become unemployed.

You’ll also be publicly insured during the blocking period. The blocking period is the time when you don’t receive unemployment benefits.

You also have the option to stay in the private health insurance system. However, to stay in private insurance, you must be privately insured for the past five years before unemployment.

You receive unemployment benefit II or Hartz IV

You’ll remain insured in the private health insurance system if you receive unemployment benefit II (Ar­beits­lo­sen­geld II (ALG II)

. You’ll get a subsidy from the responsible social authority for your private health insurance monthly contributions.

You can also switch to a cheaper private health insurance tariff. Learn more about it in our guide on how to switch private health insurance plans in Germany.

Can you choose a public health insurance provider during unemployment? 

Yes, you can select the public health insurance company during unemployment. But you must do it within two weeks after the start of the compulsory public insurance. 

You can apply for a public health insurer via Feather*. Feather offers the whole application process in English. Thus making it easier for expats to navigate the German bureaucracy. 

Once you register with the statutory insurance provider, submit the membership certificate to the federal employment agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit).

Suppose you don’t register with a public insurer yourself. The employment agency will register you with

• the last public insurer you were registered with or
• pick a public health insurance provider on their own.

You must also inform your private health insurer about the switch to public health insurance. As you switched to public insurance due to unemployment, the private insurer is legally obliged to terminate your insurance contract early.

You’ll continue to pay the private health insurance premiums if you don’t inform your private insurer. 

Can you stay with private health insurance during unemployment?

Yes, you can continue to be insured with the private health system. But it’s only possible if you were privately insured for at least 5 years before unemployment (§ 8 Para. 1 No. 1a SGB V ). 

If you stay with private insurance, you cannot switch to a statutory health insurance fund for the entire unemployment period. Thus, you must think carefully before making the decision.

You can switch to a cheaper tariff to reduce private health insurance costs.

What must you do to stay in private health insurance during unemployment?

You must apply for exemption from compulsory public insurance if you wish to stay in private insurance after you become unemployed.

The deadline to apply for the exemption is three months from when you start receiving unemployment benefit I ( § 8 Para. 2 SGB V). 

Apply for the exemption with any public health insurance company within the first two weeks of receiving unemployment benefit I.

Suppose you couldn’t apply for the exemption within 2 weeks. You must apply for an exemption to the public insurer you became a member of.

You’ll get the exemption confirmation from the public insurer if your application is successful. The exemption applies retroactively from the start of the compulsory public insurance requirement. 

NOTE: If you used the statutory health insurance benefits in the meantime, the exemption applies from the month you applied. Moreover, you cannot be exempted from compulsory public insurance if you miss the three-month deadline.

Will you get a subsidy if you stay in private insurance during unemployment?

• The federal employment agency will pay the subsidy if you are exempt from compulsory insurance.
• The subsidy will be as high as the statutory health insurance cost during unemployment. You must cover the rest of the contributions to private health insurance yourself.

When does staying with private health insurance if you become unemployed make sense?

• You think unemployment is short-term and you’ll find a good job soon. 
• You can’t switch to public health insurance in Germany.

When does switching to statutory health insurance after a job loss make sense?

• You have kids, and you are the only earner in the family. 
• You think getting a high-salary job will be difficult in the future.
• You can be insured for free under family insurance. In this case, social security authorities don’t provide any subsidies. So, if you decide to stay with the private healthcare system, you must pay the whole premium yourself.

Health insurance for older unemployed people in Germany

People aged 55 or older cannot move to public health insurance even if they are unemployed. They must continue with their private insurance.

The responsible social authority provides a subsidy for private health insurance contributions.

You can continue your current health insurance policy or switch to a new, cheaper tariff. You also have the option to change to standard or basic tariff.

Both standard and basic tariffs offer insurance coverage similar to public health insurance.

What happens to your health insurance when you find a new job?

Four scenarios may come into play after you find a new job.

• You must stay insured with compulsory public health insurance
• You decide to insure yourself with public health insurance voluntarily
• You continue with your private health insurance plan
• You switch to private health insurance

You must stay insured with compulsory public health insurance in Germany

Suppose you find a new job but earn less than the annual salary limit. Then, you must stay insured with compulsory public insurance.

The annual salary limit to be eligible for private insurance is 69,300 € as of 2024.

You decide to insure yourself with statutory health insurance voluntarily

If you were publicly insured during unemployment, you could continue with public insurance afterward. It doesn’t matter if you earn more than the annual salary limit.

It applies to everyone; high-earning employees, self-employed, and civil servants.

You continue with your private health insurance plan

You chose to stay with private insurance during unemployment. Then, you can continue with private health insurance.

Another scenario where you must continue with private insurance is if you are exempt from public insurance during unemployment.

You switch to private health insurance in Germany

You had public insurance during unemployment. In the new job, you earn more than the annual salary limit (69,300 € as of 2024).

In this situation, you have two options.

• Continue with public insurance voluntarily.
• Switch to private health insurance.

If you get private health insurance, you can either revive your old plan or get a new one. 

FAQ

What is the subsidy on health insurance contributions during job loss?

• The “Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit)” pays the complete public health insurance and long-term nursing care insurance contribution. Assuming you receive unemployment benefit I.
• The “Federal Employment Agency” also provides a subsidy if you remain privately insured during unemployment. The subsidy is the same amount the employment agency would pay if you had public insurance.
• You don’t get any subsidy if you could be insured for free in family insurance.

Can I return to private health insurance after getting a job?

You can keep the option of returning to private insurance open by taking continuance insurance. In continuance insurance, you pay a premium so that you can return to the same private insurance tariff at the same price and conditions. 

Continuance insurance doesn’t offer any health services. It only keeps the option of returning to private insurance open.

So, you should get continuance insurance only if you are sure to return to private insurance once you get a job. 

References

• https://www.finanztip.de/sperrzeit-arbeitslosengeld/
• https://www.aok.de/pk/krankenkassenbeitraege/arbeitslosigkeit/
• https://www.allianz.de/gesundheit/private-krankenversicherung/arbeitslosigkeit/
• https://www.pkv.de/wissen/private-krankenversicherung/leistungen-und-erstattung/privatversichert-bei-arbeitslosigkeit/
• https://www.finanztip.de/pkv/pkv-arbeitslosigkeit/