If you want to compare private health insurance tariffs as a student, do not start with the price. First check whether you can be exempted from compulsory insurance at all, because that determines which tariffs are open to you. Then compare five things: scope of benefits, reimbursement, excess, premium development and flexibility.
Which tariff fits depends on your health, your budget and your plans after your studies. Tariffs and conditions also change, so criteria matter more than the name of a single provider.
Key points at a glance
- Student tariffs are for students who are exempted from compulsory insurance at the start of their studies. The exemption is irrevocable, and a return to the GKV during your studies is generally closed.
- The premium depends on your age at entry and your health details. Reliable euro figures are only available in the insurer’s own offer.
- Reimbursement is set by the tariff: reimbursement rates, maximum amounts and excess determine what you actually receive.
- As a benchmark, the student statutory insurance costs around €143 to €148 a month in 2026, including long-term care insurance.
- You must answer health questions truthfully. An anonymous risk enquiry beforehand helps.
What are student tariffs in private health insurance?
A student tariff is aimed at students who are exempted from compulsory insurance at the start of their studies. It is partly based on the conditions of private student health insurance (private studentische Krankenversicherung, PSKV), which only a few insurers offer. It is aimed at young first-time policyholders up to the age of 30, and after that it is usually no longer open. The premium depends on your age at entry.
The requirement is the exemption under § 8 SGB V (Social Code Book V), which you apply for within three months of the start of your compulsory insurance. The process is explained in our article on switching to private health insurance as a student (in German). If you do not apply for the exemption, you remain in the student statutory insurance. If you do receive it, you are normally committed for the whole of your studies.
Which criteria count when comparing private health insurance tariffs?
Price is one criterion among several. The table shows what to look at for each tariff.
| Criterion | What to look at |
|---|---|
| Scope of benefits | Outpatient and inpatient treatment, dental care, glasses and aids, protection abroad |
| Reimbursement | Reimbursement rates, maximum amounts, and up to which GOÄ factor the tariff reimburses |
| Excess | Amount per year and what it means for the premium |
| Premium development | Age at entry, premium adjustments, premium refunds |
| Flexibility | Switching tariffs within the insurer, expectancy cover, treatment when you start working |
| Service | How you submit invoices and how quickly the insurer reimburses |
A detailed guide to choosing is available in our article on choosing a PKV tariff (in German).
How do you compare private health insurance benefits?
The GKV gives you a yardstick for this. For dental prosthetics it pays a fixed subsidy of 60 per cent of the standard treatment, and from 1 January 2027, 50 per cent has been agreed. Adults are only entitled to glasses if they have a severe visual impairment or if short- or long-sightedness exceeds 6.0 dioptres, and the insurer never pays for frames. Co-payments are 10 per cent, at least €5 and at most €10, and from 2027 €7.50 and €15 have been agreed. Whether a tariff offers more here is set out in its conditions.
Aids: open and closed catalogue
Tariffs use two models for aids. With an open catalogue, the insurer reimburses all medically necessary aids. With a closed catalogue, it only reimburses those expressly listed. The GKV aids directory is not binding in private health insurance, except in the basic tariff.
Abroad and semesters abroad
If you plan a semester abroad, check in your tariff which countries are covered and for how long. The statutory insurer provides cover in the EU, the EEA and Switzerland with the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) under the rules of the country you are in, and does not cover repatriation to Germany. The article on health insurance during a semester abroad (in German) describes what your tariff covers while you are abroad.
How does reimbursement work in a private health insurance tariff?
Privately insured people first pay the doctor’s invoice themselves and then submit it to the insurer. The amount reimbursed depends on the tariff. For inpatient treatment, the hospital usually bills the insurer directly. You can submit invoices within three years from the end of the year in which they were issued. An invoice from March 2026 can therefore be submitted until 31 December 2029.
Reimbursement rates and maximum amounts
For aids, reimbursement rates of 75, 90 or 100 per cent are common, often with maximum amounts. Example with assumed figures: an aid costs €300, and the tariff reimburses 90 per cent up to a maximum of €200. 90 per cent of €300 would be €270, but the maximum limits the reimbursement to €200. Your share is €100.
GOÄ factors
Doctors bill according to the Scale of Fees for Physicians (Gebührenordnung für Ärzte, GOÄ). For personal medical services, the threshold rate is 2.3 times the standard rate, and the maximum rate is 3.5 times. For technical services the figures are 1.8 and 2.5, and for laboratory services 1.15 and 1.3. Above the threshold, the doctor must justify the invoice. Check in your tariff up to which factor it reimburses, because the rest remains with you.
Excess and premium refund
With an excess, you bear part of your costs yourself in a year, in return for a lower premium. Example with assumed figures: with a €500 excess and invoices of €1,200 in a year, the insurer reimburses €700 if reimbursement is otherwise full. A premium refund returns part of the annual premiums if you submit no invoices for a year and the insurer achieves a surplus. In the usual performance-linked variant, up to around 50 per cent of an annual premium is possible, but this is not certain. Our articles on the excess (in German) and on the premium refund (in German) show how both affect your costs.
How does the premium develop?
The student statutory insurance serves as the benchmark. With an assessment base of €855 and 10.22 per cent, the basic contribution is €87.38 a month, the same across Germany. Add the additional contribution (average in 2026: 2.9 per cent or €24.80) and long-term care insurance of €30.78 (under 23) or €35.91 (23 and over, childless). That gives around €143 and €148. Because the basic contribution is the same everywhere, the city where you study makes no difference to this.
Private insurance, by contrast, calculates each contract individually, based on age at entry, health details, tariff and excess. The ageing provisions usually include a statutory surcharge of 10 per cent on the premium. It starts in the calendar year after the 21st birthday at the latest and ends in the calendar year of the 60th birthday (§ 149 VAG, Insurance Supervision Act). The insurer reviews premiums at least once a year. By law, adjustment is provided for when the deviation exceeds 10 per cent. Tariff conditions may lower that threshold to 5 per cent, and a trustee must agree. Our article on premium development in private health insurance (in German) explains what this means in practice. Ways to keep the premium low are covered in our article on the cheapest private health insurance for students (in German).
The calculation looks different for children of civil servants during their studies. With state aid (Beihilfe), the private premium can be low at first, for example with 80 per cent aid for eligible children in Hamburg. The aid usually ends on the 25th birthday, when the family allowance ends, and the burden then rises significantly.
How flexible is the tariff?
Your life changes during your studies, so what matters is what the tariff permits. Under § 204 VVG, you can switch to a tariff with equivalent cover with your own insurer, with your accrued rights and the ageing provisions carried over. For additional benefits, the insurer may impose an exclusion or an appropriate risk surcharge, and lowering your excess counts as an additional benefit. Our article on switching within the insurer (in German) explains the process.
The basic tariff offers the scope of benefits of the GKV, with a maximum premium equal to the GKV maximum contribution. Dependants cannot be covered under family insurance there, and people who are already privately insured can only switch there under certain conditions, for example from the age of 55. Our article on basic or comfort tariff (in German) shows where it differs from the comfort tariff. For the time after your studies, an expectancy cover secures your health status: the small one without further building up ageing provisions, the large one with further building-up. According to providers, this costs about 5 to 10 per cent or 25 to 45 per cent of the tariff premium respectively. Our article on expectancy cover in private health insurance (in German) helps you decide whether it suits you.
What applies to health questions?
In the application you answer health questions, and you must answer them truthfully. Ongoing treatment and recommended operations often lead to rejection. An anonymous risk enquiry before the application is recommended. Under § 19 VVG, you must disclose known circumstances that are material to the insurer and about which it has asked in text form. If you breach this duty, the insurer can withdraw. Without intent and gross negligence, withdrawal is excluded, and the insurer can then terminate with one month’s notice. Find out more in our article on the health check in private health insurance (in German).
Insurance brokers or comparison portals: what do they offer?
An insurance broker or a comparison portal pre-sorts tariffs. Still check the results against the criteria in this article and read the tariff conditions, because they are binding. Also ask how the intermediary is paid and which insurers they work with. If you want to talk through your situation, you will find the route to advice on the Academycon homepage.
Frequently asked questions
What is a student tariff in private health insurance?
A student tariff is a private health insurance tariff for students who are exempted from compulsory insurance. Usually only young first-time policyholders up to the age of 30 can take one out. The premium depends on your age at entry and can be adjusted later.
How do I compare private health insurance tariffs as a student?
Compare scope of benefits, reimbursement, excess, premium development and flexibility. Use the student statutory insurance at around €143 to €148 a month as a benchmark, check dental prosthetics, aids and cover abroad in detail, and ask for the tariff conditions before you apply.
Is there a best private health insurance for students?
There is no best tariff for everyone. It depends on your health, your budget, your excess and your plans after your studies. Even a tariff that is cheap today can rise in price later.
How does reimbursement work?
You first pay the doctor’s invoice yourself and submit it to the insurer. The amount reimbursed depends on the tariff, that is, on the reimbursement rate, the maximum amount and your excess. For inpatient treatment, the hospital usually bills the insurer directly.
Is private health insurance worth it for students?
That only becomes clear from a calculation over several years. Include the premium, the excess, possible premium adjustments and the route back to the GKV. A worked example is in our article Is private health insurance worth it during your studies? (in German).
How to proceed now
- Decide whether you want to apply for the exemption, and note the three-month deadline.
- Set your criteria: benefits, excess, cover abroad and budget.
- Get several offers and compare the tariff conditions.
- If you have pre-existing conditions, first make an anonymous risk enquiry and complete the application truthfully.
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Related
- How to find the right private health insurance tariff as a student (in German)
- Affordable private health insurance for students: how to find it (in German)
- The best cities for students in Germany: where should you study? (in German)
- Disadvantages of private health insurance for students: what to know in advance (in German)
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice. The German version is authoritative.
