The German health care insurance system consists of the following three kinds of possible insurances:
Gesetzliche Versicherung (insured by law), which is also known as Pflichtversicherung and is the most common insurance, is most typical coverage as it compulsory for people earning less than €50.850 a year. You have to be insured by a public insurance company that your employer will most likely pick for you if it is your first job in Germany. Your employer will directly take over the payment of the coverage by paying its share and yours through your wage. The rate is set by law at 14.6%. The good news is that what you pay is directly related to what you earn so if you face a sudden decrease in income, the fee will also be lower. If you are moving to Munich with family, the family is also insured. Family members (spouse or children) without an own income source can be co-insured without paying any premium. The contribution rate remains the same for the member, no matter how many family members are co-insured. Self-employed people pay a reduced rate of 14 percent – plus a small, place of residence-dependent additional contribution – if they select a health insurance scheme that does not include a sickness allowance. If you are studying, the public system only costs 80€ until you turn 30 years old or until you finished your 14th semester.
Freiwillige Versicherung (Voluntary insurance) is basically the same as the above, except that you have to have it if you earn more than the €50.850 a year. You will then pay your share directly to your Krankenkasse (health insurance company) while your employer adds your half to your gross (brutto) salary.
Privatversicherung (private insurance) means that you choose to insured at a private Krankenkasse provided you earn more than 56K€ a year. Private Krankenkassen have more complex offers than public ones in terms of what get covered and so on, so choose wisely. You also get different advantages like reduced waiting time at the clinic or at-home nurses. However, it does come with drawbacks. If you have kids, you have to pay extra for each of them to have them covered. Coming back to the public system after being in the private one is also extremely difficult if not impossible. Also, the older you get, the higher the fee.
Some German Krankenkasses are TKK, AOK and BKK.All in all, depending on your Krankenkasse, you usually pay directly or indirectly minimum 100€ per month to be covered by your health insurance in Germany. Public health insurance plans from the following countries are also valid in Germany:
Member states of the European Union, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iceland, Israel, Liechtenstein, Morocco, Macedonia, Montenegro, Norway, Switzerland, Serbia, Tunisia and Turkey.
Germany has signed social security agreements with these countries. With your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), any medical treatment you require in Germany is covered. Private domestic and foreign health insurance policies from other countries may also be recognised in Germany. You can get further information in English at the official AOK site.
