Beamte

Who counts as a Beamter?

In German employment law, Beamte are career civil servants with a special public-law relationship to the state (Dienstherr), not ordinary employees under a private employment contract. The group includes federal officials, state officials, teachers, police, tax officers, most university staff, and the judiciary. Legal basis: § 80 BBG (federal) plus each state's own Landesbeihilfeverordnung (LBhV).

The Beamte framework is a self-contained insurance ecosystem separate from the GKV/PKV system that applies to employees. The central concept is Beihilfe.

Beihilfe: the government as partial insurer

Beihilfe is a reimbursement of medical costs paid directly by the state employer to the civil servant. It is not an insurance policy; legally it is a Fürsorgeleistung (welfare duty) under § 78 BBG, protected by the constitution through Art. 33 Abs. 5 GG.

Federal Bemessungssätze (§ 46 BBhV, state rates broadly similar):

• 50 % for active Beamte

• 70 % for Beamte with at least two eligible children during active service

• 70 % for pensioners

• 70 % for eligible spouses

• 80 % for eligible children

The PKV fills the remaining share with a Beihilfeergänzungstarif, a tariff that covers exactly the percentage Beihilfe does not. Because the insurer only has to underwrite the residual, premiums for Beamte are substantially lower than for a private-sector employee of the same age and health. This is the single biggest reason the PKV-Quote among Beamte is very high.

Eligible family members

Family members are not automatically Beihilfe-eligible. Under § 4 BBhV:

• Spouses are eligible only below an income threshold (the "Gesamtbetrag der Einkünfte" limit under § 2 Abs. 3 EStG)

• Children are eligible as long as they qualify for Kindergeld (§ 32 EStG), typically up to the end of a first vocational or university education

• If the spouse earns above the threshold, they need their own full insurance (GKV or full PKV)

• Children over 25 or graduates generally transition out of the 20 %-tariff into full cover, a classic advisory touchpoint

Each state's LBhV has its own detail on the exact income limit and edge cases, the federal BBhV is only the starting point.

The Öffnungsaktion

For civil-service candidates (Anwärter) and Beamte with pre-existing conditions, the PKV industry offers the Öffnungsaktion, a voluntary industry-wide agreement (not a statutory right under § 193 VVG):

• Access guaranteed even with pre-existing conditions

• Risk surcharges capped at 30 %

• Application must be filed within 6 months of being appointed to the civil service

Missing the 6-month window is a common and costly mistake, after expiry, conditions can be rejected, excluded, or surcharged without any cap.

Pauschale Beihilfe: the Hamburger Modell

Some states now offer a Pauschale Beihilfe as an alternative: the civil servant joins the GKV voluntarily, and the state employer pays a flat subsidy toward the contribution, comparable to what a private employer would add for an employee. As of 2026, nine states allow this route:

• Hamburg (2018, the original model)

• Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Thüringen (2020)

• Baden-Württemberg (2023)

• Sachsen (2024)

• Niedersachsen (2024)

• Schleswig-Holstein (2024, as a GKV-subsidy variant)

The math typically favours GKV for Beamte with several children or chronic conditions; classic PKV + Beihilfe tends to win for smaller family setups with good health. Both routes are defensible; the choice is not neutral and deserves a proper comparison.

Heilfürsorge: a separate system

Police officers on active duty receive Heilfürsorge (BPolHfV / Landesrecht). Soldiers on active duty receive unentgeltliche truppenärztliche Versorgung (§ 69a BBesG, BwHFV), technically a separate scheme, but with the same effect: it replaces the Beihilfe + PKV structure during active service. When they retire or move into administrative roles, the regular Beihilfe framework kicks back in.