Everyone living in Germany has to have health insurance, and everyone who asks about yours wants the same one-word answer: gesetzlich or privat.
The system behind that question is generous once you're in it. Getting in means a phone call, a form, and vocabulary that no language course teaches. This page gives you the words, in the order you'll meet them.
Two Systems
| Question | Gesetzlich (GKV) | Privat (PKV) |
|---|---|---|
Who | most employees, about nine in ten people | high earners, the self-employed, civil servants |
Price | a percentage of your salary, shared with your employer | depends on age, health and the tariff you choose |
Family | children are covered at no extra cost, and so is a spouse with little or no income | every person has their own contract and price |
At the doctor | you show your card and pay nothing | you get a bill, pay it, and claim it back |
Leaving | you can switch between funds | getting back into the public system later is difficult |
Quick notes:
- A statutory insurer is a Krankenkasse, often just die Kasse. There are dozens, and you choose freely among them.
- As an ordinary employee you're in the statutory system automatically. Only above a certain salary can you choose to go private.
- A reform passed in 2026 restricts the free cover for spouses from 2028. Children stay covered free. Ask your Kasse how it applies to you.
The Words
statutory health insurer
die Krankenkasse
health insurance
die Krankenversicherung
contribution
der Beitrag
additional contribution
der Zusatzbeitrag
insurance card
die Versichertenkarte
insurance number
die Versichertennummer
family insurance
die Familienversicherung
membership certificate
die Mitgliedsbescheinigung
benefit
die Leistung
co-payment
die Zuzahlung
exemption
die Befreiung
coverage of costs
die Kostenübernahme
cost estimate
der Kostenvoranschlag
sick pay
das Krankengeld
long-term care insurance
die Pflegeversicherung
supplementary insurance
die Zusatzversicherung
Practice these words
die Krankenkasse
Quick notes:
- The Beitrag has two parts: a general rate that's the same everywhere, and a Zusatzbeitrag that each Kasse sets itself. Your employer pays half of both, and your half is taken from your salary before you see it.
- Krankengeld comes from the Kasse and starts after six weeks of illness. It's about 70 percent of your gross pay. For the first six weeks your employer keeps paying your normal wage, once you've been in the job for four weeks.
- The card is officially the elektronische Gesundheitskarte. People say Gesundheitskarte, Versichertenkarte or just die Karte.
Covered, and Not
| Normally covered | Often not covered, or only in part |
|---|---|
visits to the family doctor and specialists | glasses and contact lenses for adults |
hospital treatment | crowns, bridges and implants beyond a fixed subsidy |
prescription medicine, with a small Zuzahlung | professional teeth cleaning |
pregnancy, birth and children's check-ups | travel vaccinations |
dental check-ups and standard fillings | alternative treatments |
recommended vaccinations | extra tests the doctor offers as IGeL |
Quick notes:
- IGeL stands for Individuelle Gesundheitsleistungen: extras that the Kasse doesn't pay for, offered to you in the surgery for a fee. You're free to decline. Das möchte ich mir erst überlegen ("I'd like to think about that first") is a complete answer.
- Many Kassen pay voluntarily for some things in the right-hand column, such as travel vaccinations or part of a teeth cleaning. It's one of the few real differences between them, so ask.
Phrases for the Phone Call
I'd like to become a member.
Ich möchte Mitglied werden.
I need a membership certificate for my employer.
Ich brauche eine Mitgliedsbescheinigung für meinen Arbeitgeber.
I've lost my insurance card.
Ich habe meine Versichertenkarte verloren.
Does the insurer cover the costs?
Übernimmt die Kasse die Kosten?
Do I have to pay for that myself?
Muss ich das selbst bezahlen?
I'd like to insure my children with me.
Ich möchte meine Kinder mitversichern.
I'd like to switch health insurer.
Ich möchte die Krankenkasse wechseln.
Do you have the documents in English too?
Haben Sie die Unterlagen auch auf Englisch?
Practice these words
Ich möchte Mitglied werden.
Quick note: Übernimmt die Kasse die Kosten? is the question to ask before any treatment that sounds unusual or expensive. For crowns and bridges the dentist sends the Kasse a Heil- und Kostenplan. For aids such as hearing devices, the supplier sends a Kostenvoranschlag. Wait for the written approval before you start.
Joining and Using It
You pick, your employer registers. When you start a job, you tell your employer which Kasse you've chosen, and they do the rest. If you don't choose, they'll pick one for you.
The basics are the same everywhere. The law sets nearly everything a Krankenkasse covers. What differs is the Zusatzbeitrag, the voluntary extras, and how good the service is, including whether anyone answers in English.
The card needs a photo. After you join, you upload a passport-style photo, and the card arrives by post. Until then the Kasse gives you a paper confirmation to show at the doctor's.
It works abroad too. The back of the card is the European Health Insurance Card. It covers necessary treatment while you travel in the EU and a few neighbouring countries.
The Abbreviations
German health insurance is written in capital letters. These are the ones on your payslip, your card and your doctor's forms.
| Short | Stands for | Where you see it |
|---|---|---|
GKV | gesetzliche Krankenversicherung | forms, comparisons, news |
PKV | private Krankenversicherung | the same |
KV | Krankenversicherung | your payslip, as a deduction |
PV | Pflegeversicherung | your payslip, right below it |
eGK | elektronische Gesundheitskarte | letters from your Kasse about the card |
AU | Arbeitsunfähigkeit | the sick note, in full AU-Bescheinigung |
ePA | elektronische Patientenakte | your digital health record |
IGeL | Individuelle Gesundheitsleistungen | price lists in the waiting room |