Reimbursement of contributions to statutory health insurance and long-term care insurance; application

If you have paid too much for your statutory health insurance and long-term care insurance, you can apply for a refund from your health insurance company.

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This form can be submitted electronically without signature (e.g. via a secure contact form or by e-mail) or in paper form to the responsible authority.

For contact details of the responsible authoritiy and local valid information select under "Select location" a location.

The contribution you pay for your statutory health insurance and social long-term care insurance is determined by your economic capacity. The statutory income threshold determines the upper limit. An annual income above this limit does not further increase your insurance contribution. The statutory income threshold is adjusted regularly.

In certain cases, you may have paid contributions above the income limit. Your health insurance fund will then reimburse you for the excess health and long-term care insurance contributions paid upon request.

This is usually the case if your health insurance fund did not know your actual income when it levied the contributions - for example, because

you had other income in addition to your regular pay
you are self-employed or
you have income from renting and leasing.

Reimbursement of contributions for employees subject to compulsory insurance
Your health insurance fund will automatically inform you if there are indications that you may have paid too much in total. The health insurance fund will then also tell you how to apply for a refund of contributions and what information and proof is required.
As a rule, your health insurance fund will contact you after you have received the annual report from your employer in February for the previous calendar year. Alternatively, you can contact your health insurance fund directly if, for example, you have not received notification or suspect from your records that you have paid too much contribution.
If you are employed subject to compulsory insurance and have other income in addition to your remuneration, this income is also subject to contributions - but in total only up to the income threshold. This is the case, among other things, for

Pension payments such as company pensions,
pensions from statutory pension insurance,
earned income from part-time self-employment.

In addition, one-time remuneration, for example bonuses, can lead to changes in the obligation to pay contributions for the previous months of the calendar year.

If you receive a pension from the statutory pension insurance in addition to your remuneration, you may pay too much contribution from the pension. The background to this is that in this case, the income threshold cannot be taken into account for both incomes together.

Reimbursement of contributions for voluntarily insured persons

If you are voluntarily insured, you must apply directly to your health insurance fund for reimbursement of excess contributions paid for health and long-term care insurance. This applies, among other things, to persons who have paid health and long-term care insurance contributions above the income threshold in the case of

self-employment
income from renting and leasing

The prerequisite is that your actual income subject to contributions together was below the income threshold.

You can apply for a refund of contributions for statutory health insurance if

you are employed subject to compulsory insurance and
your insurance contributions were also based on the part of your pension payments, your earned income from part-time self-employment or your pension that is above the income threshold for assessing contributions.

Or:

You are voluntarily insured;
You are self-employed or work on a freelance basis;
You earn income from renting and leasing, and
Your actual income was lower than the income threshold on the basis of which your health insurance fund calculated the contribution for voluntary health insurance.

Required Documents
Wenn Sie versicherungspflichtig beschäftigt sind und weiteres Einkommen haben:
- Entgeltbescheinigungen Ihres Arbeitgebers für das vorangegangene Kalenderjahr
Wenn Sie freiwillig versichert sind:
- Steuerbescheid für das Kalenderjahr, für das Sie eine Erstattung beantragen
Im Einzelfall können weitere Unterlagen erforderlich sein. Bitte informieren Sie sich dazu bei Ihrer gesetzlichen Krankenkasse.

The procedure differs for employees subject to compulsory insurance and voluntarily insured persons.
If you are employed subject to compulsory insurance:

Your health insurance fund has the legal obligation to inform you if there has been an overrun of the income limit for the assessment of contributions due to your further income in the previous calendar year. The health insurance fund can do this after you have received the annual report for the previous calendar year from your employer in February.
Your health insurance fund will tell you how to apply for a refund of contributions and what information and evidence is required. Alternatively, you can approach your health insurance fund yourself if, for example, you have not been notified or suspect from your records that you have paid too much contribution.
You apply for a refund of contributions.
The health insurance fund will check whether you are entitled to a refund of contributions and will inform you of the result.
The health insurance fund will reimburse you for any overpaid contributions.

If you have voluntary statutory health insurance:

Find out from your health insurance fund how to apply for a refund of contributions. As a rule, you can submit the application by mail as well as - for many statutory health insurance companies - in person at the office or submit it online
Complete the application form provided by your statutory health insurance company and submit it to the health insurance company along with the required documents.
If necessary, you can also apply for reimbursement informally with certain health insurance companies. To do this, write an informal letter to your health insurance company and state the account number (IBAN) of the bank account to which the contributions are to be refunded. The health insurance fund may ask you to provide additional information and submit supporting documents.
The health insurance company will check whether you are entitled to a refund of contributions and will inform you of the result.
The health insurance fund will reimburse you for any overpaid contributions.

You do not have to pay anything for the application.

For employees subject to compulsory insurance:

As a rule, your health insurance fund will inform you about the possibility of reimbursement after the end of the respective calendar year, after it has received the annual notification from your employer in February. In addition, there is a 4-year statute of limitations for reimbursement of contributions. For example, you can apply for a refund of contributions overpaid since 01/01/2018 until 12/31/2022.

For voluntarily insured persons:
You can apply for reimbursement only after the end of the calendar year for which you paid the contributions. You must apply for the refund within the following 3 years.

Processing normally takes about 4 to 7 working days.
For rapid processing and decision-making, your health insurance fund must be provided with the necessary information and any required documents in a complete and meaningful manner.
The health insurance company decides on applications promptly, adhering to the statutory processing time limit in order to protect patients' rights.
Please note that the processing time indicated is an average value for all health insurance funds. It may vary in individual cases.
The exact processing time also depends on the complexity of the individual case and may be longer accordingly. The same applies if documents or records are sent to you or your health insurer by mail.