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Health insurance cover for applications for national visas
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In Germany, health insurance is generally compulsory. Anyone resident in Germany is required to take out health insurance with a company licensed to do business in Germany to cover their medical costs.
As a rule, proof of sufficient health insurance cover also needs to be presented when applying for a visa. In the case of longer stays of more than 90 days within a period of 180 days, travel health insurance for the Schengen area does not as a rule suffice. Please note that without adequate health insurance, you could encounter major problems as appropriate medical treatment can in some cases lead to considerable financial burdens and resulting liability under civil law.
Statutory or private health insurance?
In Germany, there are two different systems for health insurance.
You always have sufficient health insurance cover if you are insured in the German statutory health insurance system.
You can find a list of the providers of statutory health insurance here. Make enquiries with your chosen provider in good time to find out whether they can offer you insurance. Employers, universities or the company training you can potentially help you. If you are going to be insured within the statutory health insurance system, the provider you choose can issue you with written confirmation which you can submit in the visa process.
In the statutory health insurance system, your insurance cover generally does not begin as soon as you arrive in Germany. To make sure you are covered from day one, you therefore also need travel health insurance or alternatively incoming insurance. You need to provide this documentation in the visa process as well. The insurance must have at least the scope of a Schengen travel health insurance policy. The insurance should as a rule be valid for three months. Please make sure that this travel health insurance or incoming insurance is valid despite your planned longer stay (ensure cover is not excluded if you plan to take up residence).
In principle, private health insurance has to provide the same protection as statutory health insurance. That means that insurance cannot to any major extent exclude treatment or impose limits on amounts to be reimbursed in the case of illness. It must not, as a rule, contain clauses that terminate insurance upon you reaching a certain age, ending a work contract, changing the purpose of a stay or losing residence status thus leaving you without health insurance cover.
For certain temporary stays, though, for example a language course or an opportunity card, insurance is generally only taken out for a certain period of time; however, this insurance must be valid for at least the entire duration of the visa you applied for. Insurance for these stays is usually called incoming or expat insurance. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough. Please make sure that any chronic or underlying illnesses as well as (if applicable) care during pregnancy are covered.
If you are applying for a visa to study or engage in training, to look for a university or training position or receive an opportunity card, you can take up employment to a limited extent. You need to ensure that you have adequate health insurance to also cover incidents connected to this employment.
The only providers authorised to offer such private health insurance are insurance companies subject to supervision by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and those from European countries who are registered as EEA service providers. The insurance providers can provide you with the necessary information. Exceptions may be possible in individual cases. Provided your insurance provider meets this criterion, you are free to choose. The Federal Foreign Office is not allowed to recommend insurance providers.
What do I need for my visa application?
You can find the insurance cover you need for the purpose of your trip below: This is not an exhaustive list. Exceptions are possible in individual cases.
Additional content
Trainees completing an apprenticeship have statutory health insurance. Please submit the provisional confirmation issued by your chosen provider. In the visa process, you also need to present documentation regarding health insurance before your statutory health insurance cover begins. Incoming insurance or travel health insurance valid for the first three months of your stay in Germany is sufficient.
If you are not working as part of your vocational training, you will normally not be eligible for statutory health insurance. Please find out in advance whether you will be insured in the statutory health insurance system. If not, you need private health insurance valid for at least the entire duration of your visa. Insurance documentation has to be presented in the visa process. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
If you are employed as part of a qualification measure, you are generally insured in the statutory health insurance system. Please submit the provisional confirmation issued by your chosen provider. In the visa process, you also need to present documentation regarding health insurance before your statutory health insurance cover begins. Incoming insurance or travel health insurance valid in Germany for the first three months of your stay is sufficient.
If are not going to be insured in the statutory health insurance system, you need private health insurance valid for at least the entire duration of your visa. Insurance documentation has to be presented in the visa process. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
Students up to the age of 30 who are enrolled at a state or state-recognised university are insured in the statutory health insurance system upon matriculation. In the visa process, you need to present documentation regarding health insurance before your statutory health insurance cover begins. Incoming insurance or travel health insurance valid in Germany for the first three months of your stay is sufficient.
Please find out in advance whether you will be insured in the statutory health insurance system. Students aged 30 and older are generally no longer eligible for statutory health insurance. Younger students are free to choose and can opt for adequate private health insurance instead. Insurance documentation has to be presented in the visa process and insurance must be valid for at least the entire duration of your visa. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
Please note that you are not covered in the statutory health insurance system if you are attending a Studienkolleg preparatory course or a language course to prepare for studies, see Studienkolleg preparatory course and/or Language course (numbers 4 and 5 below)
While you attend a Studienkolleg preparatory course, you are not covered by the statutory health insurance system. In the visa process, you need to provide proof of private health insurance for this purpose (often called incoming insurance) which is valid for the entire duration of your visa or until you enrol for study.
Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
If you are attending a language course, you need private health insurance (often called incoming insurance) which is valid for the entire duration of your visa. You need to provide the relevant documentation in the visa process.
Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
Pupils need health insurance that covers at least the treatment laid down in Article 15 of the Visa Code. Group insurance is often taken out for school exchanges. In the visa process, you need to submit proof of insurance which is valid for the entire duration of your visa.
In the visa process, you need to submit proof of private health insurance (often called incoming insurance) which is valid for the entire duration of your visa.
Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
People who work in Germany are in many cases obliged to join the statutory health insurance system. You can choose your insurance provider yourself. Usually the insurance provider can issue a certificate confirming that you will be insured once your term of employment begins. In the visa process, you also need to submit proof of insurance for the period before you enter the statutory health insurance system. Incoming insurance or travel health insurance valid in Germany for the first three months of your stay is sufficient.
There are exemptions from compulsory insurance, for example, if your earnings exceed a certain amount. If you are not going to be insured through the statutory health insurance system, you need to provide proof that you will be privately insured and on what terms. A non-binding quote from an insurance provider is usually not enough.
As a rule, self-employed persons need to have private health insurance.
Insurance documentation has to be presented in the visa process and insurance must be valid for at least the entire duration of your visa. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
As an au pair, you need private health insurance that also covers treatment relating to pregnancy and childbirth. You also need insurance to cover damages incurred due to your employment as an au pair.
In the visa process, proof of travel health insurance or incoming insurance which complies with Article 15 of the Visa Code is, as a rule, sufficient. The insurance must be valid for the entire duration of the stay.
Please note that depending on your type of employment, you may be subject to mandatory statutory health insurance.
Researchers with an employment contract are subject to mandatory statutory health insurance (see number 8).
Researchers who have a scholarship for coming to Germany or are financing their own stay as a rule need private health insurance with proof being provided that it is valid for the entire duration of the visa. Alternatively, researchers can opt for statutory health insurance on a voluntary basis.
In the visa process, you need to submit proof of private health insurance (often called incoming insurance) which is valid for the entire duration of your visa.
Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. That is why travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
For stays connected to the Federal Voluntary Service, a voluntary social year, voluntary ecological year or the weltwärts (worldwards) development volunteer service, you will be insured in the German statutory health insurance system. In the statutory health insurance system, your insurance cover generally does not begin as soon as you arrive. To make sure you are covered from day one, you therefore need in addition travel health insurance or alternatively incoming insurance that complies with Article 15 of the Visa Code. You need to provide the relevant documentation in the visa process.
Participants volunteering in the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) have group insurance and do not need to provide additional documentation.
If the internship is compulsory according to the study or examination regulations, you are not as a rule subject to statutory health insurance. Therefore you need private health insurance (as a rule incoming or expat insurance) and must provide proof in the visa process that this insurance is valid for the entire duration of your visa. Insurance must at least cover the reimbursement of costs for outpatient and inpatient treatment and must not be restricted to emergencies. Risks connected to activities performed during your internship must not be excluded. Travel health insurance is as a rule not enough.
In the case of voluntary internships, you are as a rule insured as an employee in the statutory health insurance system. You can find out more about the documentation you need to present under number 8.
Persons being reunified with a spouse or parent (applies only to minors) who is insured through the statutory health insurance system, can also benefit from their cover. You should take out travel health insurance or incoming insurance for the period until statutory health insurance takes effect so that you have insurance cover for your journey and the first period in Germany. You should present proof of this in the visa process.
If the family member you are moving to join is privately insured in Germany, you also as a rule need private health insurance. Please present the relevant documentation in the visa process.
If family members are coming to Germany to join a German citizen, they generally do not need to prove health insurance cover. Do, however, make sure you have adequate health insurance.
Germany has concluded social security agreements that also apply to the field of health insurance with the following countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey and Tunisia.
If you continue to be insured in your home country, you can apply for a certificate confirming your cover from your health insurance provider. This must then be presented in the visa process. This certificate outlines what costs the health insurance provider in your home country will cover and during what period of time. This certificate has to be valid for the entire duration of your visa.