The PKV premium for students is determined by three factors: your age on entry, your health status when you apply, and the tariff with its scope of benefits and excess. Unlike statutory health insurance, there is no premium that is the same for every student. If you want to calculate the PKV premium as a student, you can only check the influencing factors. The actual figure is only given by the insurer’s offer.
Student PKV premiums at a glance
- The premium depends on entry age, health status and the chosen tariff.
- For comparison: in statutory health insurance, students paid 118.16 € in 2026 including long-term care insurance if under 23, or 123.29 € if childless and 23 or older, plus the insurer’s additional contribution.
- The route into private insurance runs through exemption from compulsory insurance. It applies for the entire course of study and cannot be revoked.
- Even after the contract has been signed, the premium can change. Insurers review premiums at least once a year.
How is the PKV premium for students calculated?
The insurer calculates the premium individually for each person. It takes into account the age at which you enter, the outcome of your health check and the tariff you choose. The table below shows which factors play a role and where you can influence them yourself.
| Factor | Effect on the premium | Your influence |
|---|---|---|
| Entry age | In the student tariff, the premium depends on your age on entry | Timing of the application |
| Health status | The health check can lead to a surcharge, an exclusion of benefits or rejection | Truthful answers, anonymous risk enquiry beforehand |
| Scope of benefits | Determines what share of invoices the tariff reimburses | Choice of tariff |
| Excess | A higher excess lowers the premium | Amount of your annual share of costs |
| Entitlement to civil service allowance | The premium is initially low and rises when the allowance ends | Depends on your parents’ status |
What do you need to clarify before the premium question?
When you enrol, you are initially compulsorily insured with the statutory health insurance. You can only move into private insurance if you apply for exemption from this obligation. The application must reach your health insurer within three months of the start of compulsory insurance. It takes effect retrospectively if you have not claimed any benefits by then. The exemption only takes effect once you prove that you have other cover, in practice a private policy.
The exemption usually applies for the entire course of study and cannot be revoked. Family insurance, which is free of charge, is no longer possible during this time. A return to statutory insurance is normally only possible after your studies, for example through employment that is subject to compulsory insurance. The article how to switch to private insurance as a student (in German) describes the process from application to contract. The options for student health insurance are summarised by the Verbraucherzentrale (German consumer advice centre).
For comparison: how is the premium calculated in statutory insurance?
Student health insurance uses a fixed assessment base of 855 €. This is the BAföG requirement for basic needs and the housing allowance, and it applies regardless of whether you receive BAföG. The table shows the building blocks for 2026.
| Building block | Value 2026 |
|---|---|
| Health insurance contribution rate | 10.22% (14.6% of 70%) |
| Basic contribution on 855 € | 87.38 € per month |
| Additional contribution | Depends on the insurer; at the average rate of 2.9% it is 24.80 € |
| Long-term care insurance under 23 or with a child | 30.78 € |
| Long-term care insurance, childless from age 23 | 35.91 € |
Example: Lea is 24, childless and studies at a state university. Her insurer charges the average additional contribution of 2.9%. She pays 87.38 € plus 24.80 € plus 35.91 €, which makes around 148 € a month. Insurers publish their rates, for example the Techniker Krankenkasse. There is no formula in private insurance that you can use to calculate the premium yourself, as there is in statutory insurance.
How does your age on entry affect the PKV premium?
Entry age is the factor that the student tariff explicitly takes into account. Student tariffs are aimed at young people taking out insurance for the first time up to age 30, and after that they are usually no longer available. Some are based on the conditions of private student health insurance, which only a few insurers offer.
Another building block is linked to age: for comprehensive private insurance, a statutory surcharge of 10% applies to the premium. It starts at the latest in the calendar year after your 21st birthday and ends in the year you turn 60. The money goes into the ageing provision and later dampens premiums in old age. It does not apply to fixed-term contracts and some special cases.
Special case civil service allowance: if you receive allowance as the child of a civil servant, you initially pay little, for example with an 80% allowance for eligible children in Hamburg. The allowance usually ends at age 25, when the family supplement stops. The burden then rises considerably, so take this point into account in your planning.
What role does your health status play in the premium?
The application contains health questions, and you must answer them truthfully. Known pre-existing conditions and ongoing treatment can lead to a risk surcharge, an exclusion of benefits or rejection, depending on the insurer. Ongoing treatment or a recommended operation is a particularly common reason for rejection.
An anonymous risk enquiry before the application is worthwhile. It shows how insurers assess your health before you commit. Inaccurate information in the application, on the other hand, can be expensive: under section 19 of the German Insurance Contract Act (VVG), the insurer can withdraw from the contract if you fail to disclose known circumstances that were asked about. Without intent or gross negligence, withdrawal is excluded and the insurer can then terminate with one month’s notice. These rights expire five years after the contract is concluded, or after ten years in cases of intent or fraud.
Which tariff building blocks determine the premium?
The tariff sets out what the insurer pays for and how much you bear yourself. For the premium, these building blocks are the most important.
- Reimbursement rates: 75, 90 or 100% of the invoice are common, often with maximum amounts.
- Aids catalogue: An open catalogue reimburses all medically necessary aids, a closed one only the aids explicitly listed. The statutory aids directory is not binding in private insurance, except in the basic tariff.
- Excess: You bear a fixed part of the costs yourself each year, and in return the premium is lower.
- Premium refund: Some tariffs refund part of the annual premium if you submit no invoices for a year.
Always compare tariffs using these criteria, because the monthly premium alone says little. A low premium with a high excess and a closed aids catalogue is something different from a low premium with full cover.
Why does the premium change later?
At least once a year, the insurer compares the benefits required with the benefits calculated for each tariff. If the difference exceeds the threshold, it reviews the premiums and adjusts them if necessary. By law the threshold is 10%, but the policy conditions may lower it to 5%. A trustee must approve the adjustment. After receiving the notice, you can terminate within two months. The article why PKV premiums rise (in German) explains the background.
How can you lower the PKV premium during your studies?
A higher excess lowers the premium, but only if you can pay the share yourself in an emergency. If you later choose a lower excess, you are moving into more extensive cover. The insurer may then require an exclusion of benefits or a reasonable risk surcharge for that. The right to change tariffs with your own insurer is set out in section 204 VVG, and the tariff change guidelines of the PKV association set 15 working days as the time limit for replying to an enquiry.
Further levers in an existing contract are covered in how to lower PKV premiums (in German). As a rule of thumb, up to around 50% of an annual premium can be refunded. Whether and how much depends on the tariff and on the insurer’s surplus. How this works is explained in the article on premium refunds (in German).
Frequently asked questions
How is the PKV premium for students calculated?
The insurer calculates it individually from your age on entry, your health status and your tariff. In the tariff, the reimbursement rates, aids catalogue and excess determine which benefits you receive. There is no single formula for all students, so only an offer shows the actual amount.
Does entry age matter for the PKV premium during studies?
Yes, in the student tariff the premium depends on your age on entry. The tariffs are intended for young people taking out insurance for the first time up to age 30 and are usually no longer open after that. How much the premium rises with a later entry only becomes clear when you compare several offers. Also keep in mind that the exemption applies for the entire course of study.
Which pre-existing conditions increase the PKV premium?
Each insurer decides for itself how particular conditions affect the premium in its health check. Possible outcomes are a risk surcharge, an exclusion of benefits or rejection. An anonymous risk enquiry before the application shows how your information is assessed. Give all the information asked for in the application, because otherwise withdrawal or termination may follow.
Can I change my tariff later?
Yes. Under section 204 VVG, you have a right to switch to tariffs with equivalent cover with your own insurer. Accrued rights and the ageing provision are credited. For additional benefits, the insurer may require an exclusion of benefits or a risk surcharge. Reducing the excess counts as an additional benefit.
What to do now
- Check the deadline: the exemption application must reach your health insurer within three months of the start of compulsory insurance.
- Make an anonymous risk enquiry before you sign an application.
- Compare tariffs by reimbursement rates, aids catalogue, excess and premium refund.
- Determine when your civil service allowance or student tariff ends for you, and check what applies afterwards.
If you want to talk through your situation, you will find the route to advice on the Academycon homepage.
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Related articles
- What does private insurance cost for students? An overview of premiums (in German)
- PKV or GKV as a student: what pays off more? (in German)
- Requirements for private insurance during your studies: who qualifies? (in German)
- What is PKV for students? Structure, principle and process (in German)
- Contribution assessment base (in German)
- Long-term care insurance and childless surcharge (in German)
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice. The German version is authoritative.
