Internship health insurance rarely changes if you are a student. A required internship is exempt from social insurance contributions and does not change your insurance status. With a voluntary internship, your earnings matter: up to €603 per month the mini-job rules apply, above that the working student rule with its 20-hour limit. If you are not enrolled, for example during an internship before or after your studies, you are subject to social insurance contributions.
Key takeaways
- An internship prescribed by your study or examination regulations is exempt from social insurance, regardless of working hours and pay. There is no minimum wage for it.
- If a voluntary internship lasts longer than three months, the minimum wage of €13.90 applies. If a shorter internship is extended, it applies retroactively.
- Family-insured students may earn at most €565 per month in total in 2026. For a mini-job, the limit is €603.
- With a paid internship and no enrolment, you have to insure yourself from €603 if you were previously family-insured.
Which type of internship is it, and what follows from it?
Three points decide: whether your internship is prescribed, whether you are enrolled and how much you earn. The title in the contract plays no role. The table shows the most common cases.
| Type of internship | Social insurance | Health insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Prescribed required internship (study or examination regulations) | Exempt, regardless of pay and duration | Your student status remains in place |
| Voluntary internship up to €603 per month | Mini-job rules | Family insurance remains possible |
| Voluntary internship above €603 per month, enrolled | Working student rule with 20 hours per week during the lecture period | Insurance through compulsory student insurance |
| Internship before or after your studies, not enrolled | Subject to social insurance, mini-job rules do not apply | If you were previously family-insured, you insure yourself for a paid internship above €603 |
Internship health insurance during a required internship
An internship that your study or examination regulations prescribe does not trigger an insurance obligation. As an employee, you are exempt from social insurance, no matter how many hours you work or what you earn. Compulsory student insurance remains possible and takes precedence if you are enrolled (§ 5 para. 1 no. 9 SGB V). You will find the wording in the legal text of § 5 SGB V.
If you complete a prescribed internship without pay, you are also compulsorily insured, up to the age of 30 at most (§ 5 para. 1 no. 10 SGB V). Here too, the obligation as an enrolled student has priority. Whether an internship allowance counts towards the income limit for family-insured persons should be clarified with your health insurance fund before you start.
You do not receive the minimum wage in a required internship, regardless of its duration. A salary is still possible; it then remains exempt from social insurance.
What applies to family insurance and student insurance during a voluntary internship?
With a voluntary internship, your pay counts. Up to €603 per month the mini-job rules apply, and family-insured persons may remain insured as long as the job is exclusively marginal employment. Without a mini-job, the family insurance limit in 2026 is €565 total income per month. With dependent employment you can deduct the flat-rate work-related expense allowance of €102.50, so that up to €667.50 in earnings is possible. The details on age limits and income are also set out in our overview of health insurance during your studies (in German).
If you earn more than €603 in a voluntary internship, the working student rule applies. With no more than 20 hours per week during the lecture period, you remain exempt from health, long-term care and unemployment insurance and are insured through compulsory student insurance. Pension insurance remains compulsory. In exceptional cases, extra work can be harmless, for example up to 26 weeks per year if it falls in the semester holidays or only in the evenings, at night or at weekends. The requirements are explained by the Consumer Advice Centre.
Worked example: Lea, 22, family-insured
Assumptions: Lea is family-insured through her parents, remains enrolled and completes a voluntary internship that lasts longer than three months.
- Case A: €500 per month. This is below €565 and below the mini-job limit of €603. The family insurance remains in place.
- Case B: 20 hours per week at the minimum wage of €13.90. That is around €1,205 gross per month (€13.90 × 20 × 52 ÷ 12). Lea is therefore above all family insurance limits and is insured through compulsory student insurance. In 2026 the contribution for health and long-term care insurance is €118.16 plus the insurer’s additional contribution. She remains compulsorily insured in pension insurance.
From when does the minimum wage apply to an internship?
In a voluntary internship, the minimum wage of €13.90 gross per hour applies (Federal Government) as soon as the internship lasts longer than three months. If a shorter internship is extended, the minimum wage is due retroactively. There is no minimum wage for the required internship. From 1 January 2027 the minimum wage rises to €14.60, and the mini-job limit to €633. What else a required internship involves is explained in our article on internships during your studies (in German).
What applies to an internship before or after your studies?
If you are not enrolled, for example between your Abitur and the start of your studies or after deregistration, you are subject to social insurance as an intern. The mini-job rules do not apply then. If you were previously family-insured, you must insure yourself for a paid internship above €603.
How family insurance works in the time between school and university is explained in our article on health insurance during a gap year (in German).
What changes for students with private health insurance?
If you were exempted from compulsory insurance at the start of your studies, you remain privately insured. The exemption is irrevocable and normally applies for the entire course of study. A switch into statutory insurance is normally only possible after your studies have ended, for example through employment subject to compulsory insurance. Whether a paid internship changes this should be clarified in advance with your health insurance fund and your insurer. Beitragsfreie family insurance is excluded for the duration of the exemption.
How does an internship work during a leave of absence or at 30?
In principle, compulsory insurance also applies to students on leave. A paid internship can still touch the limits mentioned above. What applies during a leave of absence for insurance purposes (in German) is set out in a separate article.
Compulsory student insurance ends with the end of the semester in which you turn 30. After that, extensions are only possible with reasons. What applies then is explained in our article on health insurance after 30 during your studies (in German).
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to take out new health insurance for a required internship?
Usually not. A prescribed internship is exempt from social insurance and does not create a separate insurance obligation. You remain insured as you are as a student. If you are family-insured and receive pay during the internship, ask your health insurance fund in advance whether the pay counts towards the income limit.
Do I stay family-insured during a voluntary internship?
Yes, as long as your income stays within the limit. In 2026 that is €565 per month, or €603 with a mini-job. With dependent employment you deduct the flat-rate work-related expense allowance of €102.50 and reach up to €667.50 in earnings. If you permanently exceed the limit, family insurance ends, and you inform your fund.
Is an internship treated differently for working students?
Yes, once you are enrolled and earn more than €603 in a voluntary internship. Then the working student rule applies: no more than 20 hours per week during the lecture period, so that you remain exempt from health, long-term care and unemployment insurance. Pension insurance is always compulsory.
What happens if I do an internship abroad?
Within the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, the European Health Insurance Card covers medically necessary treatment under the rules of the country you are staying in. Statutory insurance does not pay for the repatriation to Germany, for which a private travel health insurance is common. For other countries, ask your health insurance fund in advance. More is set out in our article on health insurance during an internship abroad (in German).
How to proceed now
- Check your study or examination regulations to see whether the internship is prescribed, and have the university confirm this.
- Note the duration, weekly hours and pay before the contract starts, because the minimum wage and your insurance status depend on them.
- Compare the pay with the limits: €565, €603 and €667.50 for family insurance, 20 hours per week for the working student rule.
- Inform your health insurance fund if you are family-insured and the internship is paid.
- If you want to discuss your situation, you will find the way to advice on the Academycon homepage.
You can find reviews of us on ProvenExpert, Trustlocal and Trustindex. Academycon has been mentioned, among other places, in a press release at the General-Anzeiger Bonn. An overview of all mentions is on our press page (in German).
Related reading
- Health insurance for students: compulsory cover, options and special cases (in German)
- Finding an internship: how to convince companies (in German)
- Health insurance during a gap year: how you stay covered (in German)
- Health insurance during a leave of absence: what applies to you (in German)
- Family insurance for students under 25 (in German)
- Insured between bachelor and master (in German)
- Medical studies: electives, practical year and health insurance (in German)
- Pharmacy and psychology (in German)
- Internships during your studies: minimum wage and social security contributions (in German)
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice. The German version is authoritative.
