If you are considering private health insurance for your family, you might have a bunch of questions. To help you make the right choice, we have put together this comprehensive guide for you.
You might also be interested in:
Part 2 of our family series compares public and private health coverage during pregnancy.
Part 3 of our family series covers all requirements, the signup process for your kids, and related FAQs.
Part 4 of our family series covers all you need to know about benefits during parental leave.
1. Check if your family meets the requirements
Income requirements
At least one family member needs to earn more than the threshold of €69.300 per year (for employees) or €30k per year (for self-employed, freelancers, or others)
If you are the provider of the family and you also want to cover your partner, they need to earn less than €538 per month. If they earn more than that, they'll need their own health insurance and can get a personal recommendation here.
Medical requirements
With the following health conditions and treatments, it is not possible to get private health coverage: asthma, arthritis, autoimmune diseases, cancer, diabetes, ADHD, mental health conditions, and recent or longer-term psychotherapy.
For other diagnoses, we're happy to check the options once the application is handed in.
Proof of insurance or medical check-up
For all 12 months prior to the application and the start date of their new private coverage, you and every dependent must have had comprehensive coverage. That means either public health insurance (like the NHS or other statutory systems), private health insurance, or expat insurance.
Don't worry, if you have only had travel insurance or no coverage! You can still join private insurance once you do dental and general medical check-ups. Our team will automatically guide you through the steps once you apply.
Family status
You can cover ...
Yourself
Your biological or adopted children
Your spouse or registered life partner
2. Choose between public and private health insurance
Maybe you and your family members meet all requirements but you are still not sure how to choose. To help with the decision-making, we've listed the main differences below!
Under public health insurance, your children and your spouse or life partner can be covered for free, as long as they earn less than €470 per month. Under private health insurance, there is a monthly contribution for every added person. However, private health coverage offers more benefits:
Travel coverage
Better dental coverage: orthodontics for children, dental cleanings, inlays, and dentures.
Faster medical appointments: most doctors and pediatricians reserve appointments for private insurance patients.
Access to any doctor and clinic: many clinics and doctors only cater to patients with private health coverage.
Coverage for vision aids (only in some plans)
Coverage for alternative medicine (only in some plans)
Other benefits, depending on the package you chose
3. Submit the application
If you already know that private health insurance is the right choice, you can submit your own application here and apply here for your dependents! Within a couple of days, you'll receive an email invite to confirm your dependents' information. If we need more information, you'll hear back automatically. Once the coverage is confirmed, any documents like proof of coverage and tax statements will be uploaded to your Feather account automatically.
Our FAQs
My partner and I are married and we both work. One has public health insurance, and the other has private health insurance. How do we cover our kids?
This is regulated by the German state and depends on income. If the partner with private health insurance earns more, the children have to get private health insurance or public health insurance against a fee.
If the partner with public health insurance earns more, the children can join public health insurance for free.
I have another insurance provider. Can I still get private health coverage for my dependent?
Yes, you can still sign-up for your dependent with us! In case you're also checking out other insurance providers, please don't hesitate to ask the same question - it is not always handled the same way.
Once you submit the application, we'll need to check that your family is financially eligible for private health insurance, so make sure to have your work contract at hand if you're employed. You'll receive step-by-step guidance if you're a freelancer or live off investment.
Can my spouse still join public health insurance after being privately insured?
Your partner will switch to public insurance by default if they currently do not work but get a job sometime in the future that earns less than €69.300 per year as an employee or €30.000 as a self-employed or freelancer.
If they currently do not work but land their first job in Germany and earn more than €69.300 per year, they can decide between public and private insurance.
How much does my employer contribute?
If you have a German employer, they are legally required to pay half of your public or private health insurance, and the maximum they pay is €467.58.
Example: Your private health insurance costs €400 per month. Hence, your employer will pay €200 for that.
Example: You chose premium private health insurance for yourself, your spouse, and your two children. The total monthly cost is €1,200. In this case, the employer's portion is €467.58.
Do you still have questions? Our support team is right there to help you!