Learn about private health insurance for children in Germany. Cost of children’s health insurance, how can you get health insurance, etc. Explore German healthcare for children.

Key takeaways

• Everyone living in Germany is legally required to have valid health insurance.
• Children can get public or private health insurance depending on their parent’s health insurance.
  • Both parents have public health insurance: The child is automatically insured under free family insurance. However, parents can also insure their children with private health insurance. But it’s recommended to get supplementary private insurance instead.
  • Both parents have private health insurance: The child must have separate private health insurance. The child cannot have statutory health insurance.
  • One parent has private and other public health insurance: The child can have public or private health insurance depending on certain conditions.
• Children’s health insurance costs between 100 € and 250 € in Germany.
• Private health insurance companies don’t do a health check if the child is insured within 2 months of birth. The prerequisite is that the child’s health insurance company is the same as one of its parents.

This is how you do it

• Check which health insurance, public or private, you want or can get for your child.
• You can contact your health insurance company to insure your child also.
• You can also opt for another insurance provider.
• You can compare and apply for public health insurance for children via Feather*. Feather offers services in English.
• You can compare and apply for private health insurance for children on Tarifcheck*. You can also check private insurance plans from Feather*.

Table of Contents

Do children need health insurance in Germany?

Yes, every child in Germany must have a valid health insurance policy. Depending on the parent’s health insurance, a child will be insured under private or public health insurance.

If you have private health insurance, you must register the newborn within two months of birth with your or your partner’s health insurer.

You don’t need a health check if you register the child within two months of birth. Moreover, there is no waiting period.

However, private insurance companies may demand a health check if you register your child after two months of birth. 

Public or Private health insurance for children in Germany?

Both public and private health insurance offer good healthcare services for children. So, deciding between private or public health insurance depends mainly on the cost.

You can insure your child free of charge with public health insurance (not always). However, in private health insurance, you must pay a monthly premium.

You can also take supplementary private health insurance. This way, you can insure your child under free family insurance and enjoy private health insurance benefits.

You can compare supplementary private health insurance on the comparison portal Tarifcheck*.

Eligibility criteria for free family health insurance for children in Germany

• Both parents have private health insurance. You must get a separate private health insurance policy for the child. Your child cannot be insured in statutory health insurance.
• Both parents have public health insurance. Your child is automatically insured in your public health insurance or family insurance for free. You can still get full or supplementary private health insurance for your child.
• One parent has private, and the other has public health insurance. You can take private or public health insurance for your child. However, you won’t get free family insurance if you meet all of the three conditions:
  • The parents are married or life partners under the Civil Partnership Act.
  • The privately insured parent earns more than the publicly insured parent.
  • The total monthly income of the privately insured parent exceeds the annual salary limit (5,775 euros per month gross as of  2024).

Example

Consider a married couple. One parent has private insurance and earns 6,500 euros gross monthly. Other parent has state health insurance and earns 5,000 euros gross per month. 

In this scenario, the privately insured parent satisfies all the three conditions. 

• They are married.
• The privately insured parent is the main earner.
• The privately insured parent’s income surpasses the annual salary limit.

Hence, the child must get a separate health insurance policy.

You can decide whether to get private health insurance or public. But you must pay a monthly premium regardless of your health insurance, whether public or private.

Private health insurance premiums may cost the same or less than the public insurance premiums for children. 

NOTE: If both parents have private health insurance, the child must also get a private insurance. You cannot insure your child with statutory health insurer.

Cost of Children’s Health Insurance in Germany

Your child can be insured free of charge under public insurance if eligible. Otherwise, health insurance for children in Germany can cost between 100 € and 250 € per month.

Public health insurance for children with no income costs around 179.11 € per month at TK* as of 2024. 

Private health insurance for children starts at 100 € as of 2024.

Health insurance for children may change over time

You can change your children’s health insurance based on your current situation. For example, a change in income or divorce can trigger a change in your child’s health insurance. 

You may either become eligible for free family insurance or may have to take out a separate health insurance policy for your child.

For example, the privately insured parent loses their job. In this case, you can insure the child under free family health insurance.

On the other hand, you must get separate health insurance for the child if one of the parents gets private insurance and is the main earner.

Private healthcare for children in Germany

Are there special private health insurance plans for children in Germany?

Yes, private health insurance companies offer cheap insurance plans for children and youth. Moreover, children without income don’t contribute to long-term care insurance.

The cheapest private health insurance policy for children starts at 100 €.

Why private health insurance for children is cheap?

• Children don’t visit specialists often.
• Children undergo preventive check-ups (U1, U2, etc.). But other than that, they hardly incur any costs. 
• Children don’t require regular medication.
• Private health insurers do not charge retirement provisions until the age of 21. Retirement provisions are used to reduce the private insurance costs in the old age.

You can compare and apply for private health insurance for children on Tarifcheck*. You can also check private insurance plans from Feather*.

Do private insurance companies require children’s health checks?

Both or one of the parents has private health insurance

As with adults, private health insurers calculate the insurance premium based on the child’s health, age, and opted services.

Newborn child

Insuring newborns with private health insurance is easy. There is no health check nor any waiting period. 

Even if a child has a serious illness or disability, there are neither risk surcharges nor exclusions from benefits. However, you must meet the following requirements to enjoy these benefits:

• When the child is born, one parent must have had private health insurance for at least three months.
• The private health insurance company of the child and the parent are the same.
• The child is insured with the private insurer within two months of the birth. 

The child is insured retroactively from the day of birth.

Older child

Suppose you moved to Germany and want to insure your child under private health insurance. In this case, a private insurer will do the usual health check on the child.

Both parents have public health insurance

The child is automatically included in the family insurance for free if both parents have statutory health insurance. Parents can still insure their child with a private insurer.

In this case, the private insurer will carry a usual health check.

You can also take supplementary private health insurance on top of public insurance.

Can a child’s private health insurance plan differ from the parent’s?

Yes, you are free to choose the private health insurance provider and tariff for your child. 

If you decide on another private health insurer, the insurer may ask for a health check. The same applies if you pick a tariff with better services than yours.

Is there a subsidy on children’s private health insurance in Germany?

Depending on your profession, you get a subsidy on your child’s private health insurance.

Employees

Employers in Germany pay half of their employees’ private health insurance premiums. However, the subsidy is capped at the employer’s maximum contribution to statutory health insurance of 422 euros per month.

The good thing is if you have a cheap private health insurance policy. You won’t be using 100% of the employer’s subsidy.

In this case, you can use the employer’s subsidy to cover your child’s private health insurance premiums.

NOTE: Employer will cover a max of what they have to pay for a publicly insured employee, which is 422 € as of 2024. Amount more than that needs to be covered by you. 

Civil servants

Civil servants in Germany receive health benefits from the state. The German government covers 50 to 70% of the medical costs of civil servants and their children.

Civil servants usually need supplementary private health insurance to cover the gap.

Freelancers and Self-employed

Freelancers and self-employed must cover the complete private insurance cost of their children. They don’t get any subsidy.

Can children change their health insurance?

Yes, children can change from public to private or private to public health insurance when they reach a certain age.

Children insured with public health insurance

• Once the child reaches the age of 18, they can switch from public to private health insurance.
• Children can stay insured under free family insurance until they are 18. The age to be insured under free family insurance is extended to 23 if the children don’t have employment.
• Parents can decide to insure their children with private health insurance before they turn 18.

Children insured with private health insurance

• At the start of children’s higher education (university), they can switch from private to public health insurance. 
• Students cannot change from private to public during their studies.
• Students have a chance to switch from private to public when they get employed for the first time after their studies.

How do you apply for children’s health insurance in Germany?

Public health insurance

Your public insurer will already know about your pregnancy. So, you only need to inform your public insurer about the child’s birth.

The public insurance company will need documents like a child’s birth certificate to issue the health insurance card. Your child is automatically insured in your public health insurance since birth.

So, you don’t have to pay anything for your child’s check-ups and medication at the hospital. 

Suppose you recently moved to Germany with your family. In this case, contact your favorite public health insurance company and submit the requested documents.

Every public health insurance provider offers online registration nowadays. But if you are confused, you can compare and apply for public health insurance via Feather*.

Feather offers services in English free of charge. Hence, it makes the bureaucratic process for expats simple. 

Private health insurance

As with public insurance, you only have to inform your insurer about the child’s birth. And the private insurer will enroll your child.

Like with adults, you will get an invoice for medical services used by your child. You have to pay the invoice yourself. The private health insurance company will reimburse it later.

The process is the same if your family recently moved to Germany. You have to contact your private insurance provider to register your family members.

Suppose you decide to change the private health insurance provider for your child. You can compare and apply for private health insurance for children on Tarifcheck*. If you are looking for services in English, check private insurance plans from Feather*.

You can apply for the private insurance tariff at the portal itself.

References

• https://www.finanztip.de/pkv/pkv-kinder/
• https://www.pkv.de/wissen/private-krankenversicherung/leistungen-und-erstattung/privatversichert-als-familie/
• https://www.allianz.de/gesundheit/private-krankenversicherung/kinder-familie/