Short answer
As a civil servant on probation during the trainee period, you are entitled to civil servant health aid (Beihilfe). At federal level it pays 50 percent of your eligible medical costs, 70 percent for spouses or registered partners and 80 percent for children. The states have their own rules. You insure the remainder privately. Legal trainees in a training relationship (Ausbildungsverhältnis) have no aid entitlement; they are compulsorily insured under statutory health insurance.
| Key fact | Value | Status and source |
|---|---|---|
| Assessment rate federal level | 50% for you, 70% for spouses and registered partners, 80% for children | § 46 BBhV |
| With two or more children | Own rate at federal level 70% | § 46 Para. 3 BBhV |
| Assessment rate Lower Saxony | 50%, 70%, 80% | § 80 Para. 5 NBG |
| Application | To the aid office of your employer, at federal level the determining office | § 51 BBhV |
| Flat-rate aid | 50% of the health insurance contribution, only in some states | § 3 No. 62 EStG |
Who is entitled to civil servant health aid during the trainee period?
Civil servant health aid is the employer’s contribution towards the medical costs of its civil servants. It reimburses a fixed percentage of the eligible expenses, the assessment rate (Bemessungssatz), and you cover the rest through health insurance.
Civil servants on probation are entitled. Trainee civil servants are generally civil servants on probation, and this usually also applies to trainee teachers. Your appointment certificate, status and employer are decisive. As a civil servant on probation you are not compulsorily insured in health, long-term care or unemployment insurance. The principle of self-provision applies: you insure yourself, privately or voluntarily under statutory insurance, and the aid complements this protection.
An overview of all ways to be insured can be found in the guide Health insurance during the trainee period (in German). The article Teaching: insurance from studies to the trainee period (in German) describes how cover continues from the start of teacher training to starting work.
What applies to legal trainees?
For legal trainees the state decides. Depending on the state, they are civil servants on probation or in a public-law training relationship. The preparatory service lasts two years under § 5b DRiG, and the legal status is governed by state law. As a civil servant on probation, you are entitled to aid just like a trainee teacher. In a training relationship, you are compulsorily insured under § 5 Para. 1 No. 1 SGB V, the contributions are deducted from your salary, and there is no aid entitlement.
Saxony allows legal trainees to choose between a civil service relationship and a training relationship. Requirements include being under 42 years of age and being medically fit (information sheet of the Saxon justice department). Your appointment notice shows what applies in your state. Special features for lawyers are described in the article Health insurance during legal training (in German).
How much civil servant health aid is there during the trainee period?
The amount is determined by the assessment rate, the percentage of the eligible costs. At federal level it is set out in § 46 of the Federal Civil Servant Health Aid Ordinance (BBhV). The states have their own law, so the table only applies to employers whose legal basis was reviewed.
| Employer | Rates | How they are distributed |
|---|---|---|
| Federal level (§ 46 BBhV) | 50, 70 and 80 percent | 50 percent for you, 70 percent for eligible spouses and registered partners and for pension recipients, 80 percent for children and orphans. With at least two eligible children, your own rate is 70 percent. |
| Lower Saxony (§ 80 Para. 5 NBG) | 50, 70 and 80 percent | 50 percent for civil servants, 70 percent for spouses and registered partners and pension recipients, 80 percent for children and orphans. With two or more eligible children, the rate for the aid entitled person is 70 percent. |
| North Rhine-Westphalia (§ 75 Para. 7 LBG NRW) | At least 50, at most 70 and at most 80 percent | The law sets the framework: at least 50 percent for those entitled, at most 70 percent for spouses and registered partners, at most 80 percent for children. The individual rates are set by ordinance. |
| Other states | Not determined | Usually 50 percent for you and usually 80 percent for children, deviations are possible under state law. Your employer’s aid office gives the binding rate. |
If you have children, your own rate can change. At federal level and in Lower Saxony it rises to 70 percent with at least two eligible children. State law may restrict aid for civil servants on probation during the preparatory service, for example after a minimum period in the public service. The relevant ordinance of your state sets this out.
Calculation examples
- Jonas, 26, no children, is a trainee teacher in a state with an assessment rate of 50 percent. A fully eligible dental bill of 300 € results in 150 € of aid. The remaining 150 € are reimbursed by his private residual-cost insurance, insofar as his tariff covers them.
- Svenja, 33, is a civil servant on probation at federal level and has two eligible children. Her own rate is 70 percent. For a fully eligible bill of 200 € she receives 140 € of aid, and for a bill of 100 € for one of her children, 80 €.
What does the residual-cost insurance cover, and what is a trainee tariff?
Residual-cost insurance is private health insurance for the part of the costs that aid does not cover. With an assessment rate of 50 percent, you insure the other 50 percent. The premium can therefore initially be low. There are tariffs for trainees that cost less than the standard tariff. The premium depends on provider, age and tariff. After the trainee period you usually switch to the standard tariff of the same insurer, without your health being checked again.
Before you take out a policy, answer the health questions truthfully (§ 19 VVG). If you have pre-existing conditions, an anonymous risk enquiry before the application makes sense. For civil servants, including civil servants on probation, there is also the opening campaign of private health insurance: the six-month deadline starts with the first appointment as a civil servant, and during a preparatory service at the earliest after its end. The risk surcharge is at most 30 percent, and there are no exclusions of benefits. The entitlement applies to tariffs that comply with aid rules, and only to the first insurer to which you submit a formal application (leaflet of the PKV association, status September 2022).
Aid does not cover everything on a bill. Gaps can arise, for example, with dentures, therapeutic aids and glasses, and a supplementary aid tariff can close them. If you were already privately insured during your studies, the article What happens to your private insurance after your studies (in German) describes how to continue. If you are statutorily insured in between and want to return to private insurance later, you can check an anticipatory private insurance policy (in German). Whether it makes sense for you depends on your health, budget and plans.
How do I claim civil servant health aid as a trainee?
You submit the claim to your employer’s aid office; at federal level it is called the determining office. Here is how it works:
- Pay the bill yourself first. The reimbursement follows later.
- Submit the aid claim with copies of the receipts to the aid office. At federal level this can be done in writing or electronically (§ 51 BBhV). The states describe forms and procedures in their information sheets.
- Submit the bill to your insurer as well. This is generally possible within three years from the end of the year in which the bill was issued (example: bill from March 2026, deadline 31 December 2029).
- Observe the deadlines of the aid office. They differ between employers and are set out in your aid office’s information sheet.
At federal level aid is only paid if the expenses claimed in the application total more than 200 € (§ 51 Para. 8 BBhV), although the determining office can waive this. Whether and at what level such a threshold applies in your state is set out in your aid office’s information sheet.
What is flat-rate aid?
Flat-rate aid is a tax-free subsidy of 50 percent of the contribution to comprehensive health insurance (§ 3 No. 62 EStG), for statutorily insured people including the additional contribution and excluding long-term care insurance. The requirement is the permanent waiver of individual aid. The application only takes effect for the future, and if you change employer across a state border, the entitlement may lapse.
Trainees in Brandenburg can choose flat-rate aid. The decision is considered irrevocable and can be newly made once with the start of the probationary civil servant relationship (information sheet of the state of Brandenburg for trainees, status March 2021). Hamburg requires a waiver of supplementary aid for hearing aids, glasses, dental services under the GOZ, implants and treatment abroad (leaflet of the city of Hamburg, status January 2024). Only some states offer flat-rate aid, and whether trainees can choose it is up to the state. Your aid office can tell you.
The list of states, a calculation example and the requirements are in the article Trainee teachers in statutory health insurance: when that is possible (in German).
What to do now
- Clarify your status: civil servant on probation or training relationship. Your appointment notice and appointment certificate give the answer.
- Ask your aid office about the assessment rate for you and your family, and whether trainees can choose flat-rate aid.
- Decide whether you want private residual-cost insurance or voluntary statutory insurance. For pre-existing conditions, make an anonymous risk enquiry before the application.
- Note the deadlines of your aid office and the date of your first bills.
- Plan the transition after the preparatory service, as described in the article Health insurance after the trainee period (in German).
Frequently asked questions
Are trainees entitled to civil servant health aid?
Yes, if they are appointed as civil servants on probation. This generally applies to trainee teachers. Legal trainees are entitled if their state appoints them as civil servants. In a training relationship there is no aid, because you are compulsorily insured there. Your appointment notice and appointment certificate show which case applies.
How high is civil servant health aid during the trainee period?
At federal level 50 percent for you, 70 percent for eligible spouses and registered partners and 80 percent for children. With two or more eligible children your own rate rises to 70 percent. In the states, their own law applies, usually 50 percent for you and 80 percent for children. Your employer’s aid office gives the binding rate.
Do I need private health insurance as a trainee?
Not necessarily. As a civil servant on probation you must insure yourself, but you can choose between private residual-cost insurance and voluntary statutory insurance, provided you meet its requirements. With the statutory option, flat-rate aid may apply if your state offers it. Private insurance asks health questions. In a training relationship you have no choice, because you are compulsorily insured under statutory insurance.
How do I claim civil servant health aid?
You pay the bill first and submit it with copies of the receipts to your employer’s aid office, at federal level in writing or electronically. The remaining share goes to your insurer. Deadlines and minimum amounts are set out in your aid office’s information sheet.
What does residual-cost insurance cover?
It covers the part of the costs that aid does not pay. At an assessment rate of 50 percent, that is the other 50 percent. Trainee tariffs are available.
What is flat-rate aid?
A tax-free subsidy of 50 percent of the contribution to comprehensive health insurance, for statutorily insured people including the additional contribution, but excluding long-term care insurance. In return, you permanently waive individual aid. Only some states offer it.
Related reading
- Health insurance during the trainee period: aid, PKV or GKV? (in German)
- Trainee teachers in statutory health insurance: when that is possible (in German)
- Health insurance after the trainee period: statutory, private and anticipatory cover (in German)
- Between the state exam and the trainee period: who is insured? (in German)
- Teaching: insurance from studies to the trainee period (in German)
- Studying over 30: opportunities, financing and everyday life (in German)
- Glossary: health insurance during studies (in German)
- Civil servant health aid (in German)
- Trainee period: trainee allowances by federal state (in German)
Sources and review
- § 46 BBhV (assessment rates), gesetze-im-internet.de, and § 51 BBhV (application), gesetze-im-internet.de
- § 80 NBG, Lower Saxony Civil Servants Act, nds-voris.de
- § 75 LBG NRW, North Rhine-Westphalia State Civil Servants Act, recht.nrw.de
- § 3 No. 62 EStG, gesetze-im-internet.de, § 5 Para. 1 No. 1 SGB V, gesetze-im-internet.de, § 5b DRiG, gesetze-im-internet.de, § 19 VVG, gesetze-im-internet.de
- Verband der Privaten Krankenversicherung, leaflet on the opening campaign for civil servants, status September 2022, pkv.de
Information, not individual advice.
Editorial team: Academycon · Status: October 2026
Status: 20 October 2026
If you want to check your cover during your trainee period, start with the Academycon online check (in German).
Status: October 2026. This guide does not replace individual advice. Information, not individual advice.
