Premium Refund in Private Insurance for Young Employees

The premium refund (Beitragsrückerstattung) in private health insurance (PKV) for young employees is a payment from your private insurer when you claim few or no benefits in a year. It is not guaranteed and depends on your tariff. This guide explains how it works and how it interacts with the employer subsidy.

The Most Important Points at a Glance

• The insurer pays the refund to you when you claim no benefits or only small ones in a calendar year.
• The rules are set out in the tariff conditions and differ between insurers and tariffs.
• A refund is not guaranteed and can fail to materialise in years with benefit claims.
• The employer subsidy is based on half of your premium. Clarify in writing beforehand how a refund is treated there.
• Refunds can be relevant for tax. Your tax adviser or the tax office can clarify this.

How Does a Premium Refund in Private Insurance Work?

Many private tariffs provide that the insurer repays part of the premiums if no benefits or only small benefits were claimed in a calendar year. The logic is simple: those who claim benefits less often receive part of their premiums back. The share, the payment date and the conditions are set out in the tariff conditions of each insurer. For the basics see our guide on premium refunds in the PKV (in German).

Assumption: your premium is 400 euros per month, which is 4,800 euros per year. Your tariff pays back two monthly premiums in a year without benefits, which is 800 euros. This is an illustration, not a value from a specific tariff.

What Does the Refund Mean for the Employer Subsidy?

The employer subsidy is also capped at half of the amount you pay yourself for health insurance (§ 257 para. 2 SGB V). A refund reduces your own share over the year. Whether it also changes the ceiling of the subsidy depends on how your employer and your insurer certify the premiums. Clarify this in writing before payments start.

Assumption: your premium for health insurance is 500 euros per month, and your salary is above the contribution ceiling. A refund of 800 euros per year corresponds to 66.67 euros per month. The table shows the two variants that are conceivable.

Which variant applies to you is determined by your employer’s payroll in combination with the certificates from your insurer. The table is an illustration, not the result of a specific payroll calculation.

How Do You Work Out the Value of a Tariff?

A tariff with a low premium is not automatically the cheaper one. What matters is your total yearly outlay. Proceed in three steps:

1. Work out the annual premium of each tariff, that is the monthly premium times twelve.
2. For a year without benefits, deduct the refund and compare the results.
3. For a year with benefits, add your own share of the costs and compare again.

Assumption: tariff A costs 400 euros per month and refunds 800 euros in a year without benefits. Its benefits carry no deductible. Tariff B costs 320 euros per month, has no refund and requires an own share of 600 euros when you claim benefits of 600 euros.

In this example tariff B is cheaper in both cases, because the refund does not offset the premium difference of 960 euros per year. If tariff A refunded 1,000 euros, it would be cheaper in a year without benefits at 3,800 euros. A small change in the refund can therefore reverse the comparison. Check each tariff with your own figures rather than comparing only the monthly premium.

What Should You Look for in a Tariff?

• When a refund becomes payable and how many monthly premiums it covers.
• Which services count as a claim. Even small invoices can prevent a payment.
• When the payment is made and whether it is tied to the running contract.
• How a refund behaves if you change tariffs.
• Whether the insurer has announced premium adjustments that change your calculation. The guide on dealing with premium adjustments (in German) helps: premium adjustments in the PKV.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the premium refund guaranteed?

No. It depends on the tariff and on how your contract develops. As a rule there is no guarantee, so do not build a fixed figure into your budget.

Do I still get a refund if I visit a doctor once?

That depends on the tariff. Some tariffs treat even small benefits as a claim, while others only count larger amounts. The tariff conditions tell you which applies.

Does my employer pay the refund?

No. The insurer pays the refund to you as the policyholder. Your employer pays only its subsidy.

Do I have to pay tax on the refund?

This depends on the individual case. Whether and how premium refunds affect the deductibility of your premiums is a question for your tax adviser or the tax office.

What happens when I change jobs?

The private policy usually continues. The employer subsidy, however, is tied to the employment relationship. A job change therefore changes the subsidy, not the contract.

What to Do Next

1. Read the tariff conditions on premium refunds and note the rule that applies to you.
2. Ask your employer in writing how the subsidy is calculated when a refund is paid.
3. Have your insurer explain the calculation with examples before you choose a tariff with a high own share.
4. Clarify the tax side with your tax adviser if the refund in a year is significant.

Related Reading

• Employer Subsidy for Private Health Insurance: How It Is Calculated
• Switching to PKV at Career Start: Deadlines
• Health Insurance Income Limit 2026: What It Means
• Contribution Assessment Base 2026: Ceiling and Floor
• PKV After Your Studies: What Happens to Your Contract (in German)

Sources: § 257 SGB V, employer subsidy (accessed October 2026), § 61 SGB XI, subsidy for long-term care insurance (accessed October 2026), § 193 VVG, duty to hold health insurance (accessed October 2026), GKV-Spitzenverband, fact sheet on 2026 reference values (status 1 January 2026).

Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice.