Health insurance in Germany

Without proof of health insurance, you cannot study at a German university. Proof of health insurance is also needed if you want to apply for a residence permit.

In Germany there are two kinds of health insurance: public, e.g. Die Techniker (TK), and private health insurance, e.g. EDUCARE24.

What kind of health insurance do I need?

As a student you can take out public health insurance up to your 30th birthday. Public health insurance applies from the start of the 1st subject-related semester at a university or university of applied sciences.

However, you cannot be insured in public health insurance if your studies have not officially started, yet. The same applies to the time after your studies or to preparatory courses for university studies, internships or language courses. Moreover, you can only be insured in public student health insurance until your 30th birthday. Private health insurance is the ideal solution for all periods of time in which you cannot be insured in public student health insurance.

Please note that the following applies after the official beginning of your studies: Once you have taken out private health insurance, you cannot switch to public student health insurance anymore.

You do not know if you meet the requirements for public student health insurance? You will get the answer from our consulting tool.

We recommend the following health insurances

Language students, intern and doctoral students
The private health insurance EDUCARE24 provides comprehensive cover for language students, intern and doctoral students. EDUCARE24 can be taken out in various insurance combinations (S, M, L, XL), so it is tailored to your individual needs.

Students up to age 29
You will be comprehensively covered by the student insurance of Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) during your subject-related studies. If you arrive in Germany before the beginning of their subject-related studies, GERMAN STUDENT INSURANCE will provide you with a free additional health insurance cover up to 31 days.

Students from the age of 30
Students from the age of 30 cannot take out public student health insurance. We recommend our comprehensive cover EDUCARE24 XL for the complete duration of your stay. EDUCARE24 XL consists of private health insurance, accident insurance, private liability insurance and deportation costs insurance.