PKV Blog
Expert guides on private health insurance in Germany, written for expats by an independent broker.
Health Insurance in Germany for Expats: The Complete 2026 Guide
Mandatory coverage, two systems, expat-specific pitfalls. The 2026 orientation guide to health insurance in Germany: who belongs where, what it costs, and how to register.
Family Health Insurance in Germany: GKV or PKV? (2026 Math)
Family health insurance in Germany 2026: what GKV's free family cover really saves you, when PKV is the better call, and how the mixed-system parent rule decides where your children land.
Private Health Insurance in Germany: PKV Decision Guide
How private health insurance works in Germany: who qualifies, how premiums are set, what happens as you age, and how switching works. The decision guide, not a sales page.
What Health Insurance Really Costs in Germany (2026)
Real 2026 numbers for both German systems: what the public contribution actually comes to, how private premiums are built, and the costs that are missing from most quotes.
Health Insurance in Germany for Americans (2026)
What actually changes for Americans moving to Germany: how the two systems differ from a US plan, which one you are allowed to join, and what an insurer asks for when you have just arrived.
Who Can Get Private Health Insurance in Germany? (2026)
Who may choose private cover in Germany, and who may not: the income threshold for employees, the exceptions for the self-employed and civil servants, and what the switch actually involves.
Does a Rejected PKV Application Go on a Record?
The fear that a declined private health insurance application lands in a national register is mostly a misconception. Here is what the HIS actually is, and why the pre-inquiry still matters.
Health Insurance for the EU Blue Card in Germany (2026)
An EU Blue Card requires you to be insured, but it does not decide which system you enter. That is set by a different, higher salary threshold, and the two are constantly confused.
Kindernachversicherung: Insuring a Newborn in PKV (2026)
German law gives your newborn a guaranteed place in your private policy with no health check, no surcharges and no waiting periods. It expires two months after the birth, with no exceptions.
Maternity Pay in Germany With Private Health Insurance
What privately insured women actually receive during maternity leave in Germany, why the €210 figure is so often misread, and the one decision that has to be made before conception.
Self-Employed in Germany: The GKV Back-Payment Trap
Why so many newly self-employed people in Germany get a five-figure GKV bill a year in, how the provisional-contribution mechanism works, and how to keep it from happening to you.
PKV for Doctors in Germany: The Two Versorgungswerk Gaps
Doctors in Germany default to PKV plus a Versorgungswerk pension. Two structural gaps follow: no DRV health-insurance subsidy in retirement, and no DRV occupational-disability cover.
PKV Health Check for Expats: How the Gesundheitsprüfung Works
Applying for PKV means a written health questionnaire, not a medical exam. Here is what it asks, how pre-existing conditions are priced, and how the anonymous pre-check protects you.
Germany's 2026 Health Reform: What GKV-BStabG Changes for You
On 29 April 2026 Germany's cabinet adopted GKV-BStabG. From 2027 the JAEG jumps to ~€84,800, the GKV Höchstbeitrag to ~€1,394/month, and Familienversicherung tightens.
Will PKV Be Too Expensive When You Retire?
Two statutory mechanics drop your PKV premium at retirement, plus BET and the DRV-Zuschuss as additional levers. Here is how they stack, and how GKV compares.
Your PKV Premium Just Went Up: What You Can Actually Do
A PKV premium increase opens two real routes: restructure within your insurer or switch to a different PKV insurer. Which one fits depends on your insurer's stability.
How GKV Calculates Your Premium (and What It Means for You)
Inside the percentage that runs your GKV bill: the rates, the BBG cap, the Höchstbeitrag trap, and what each one means for you in 2026.
