Health insurance for students

No enrolment without digital insurance registration

According to Section 5 (1) No. 9 of the Fifth Book of the Social Code (SGB V), students are required to have statutory health insurance if they are enrolled at state or state-recognised German universities.

Therefore, every applicant must contact a competent health insurance company before enrolment in order to trigger a digital insurance notification, a so-called M10. The health insurance company then digitally notifies Leuphana University Lüneburg whether

• he/she is insured or

• he/she is exempt from insurance, exempt from compulsory insurance or not subject to compulsory insurance.

Which health insurance company is responsible for the digital insurance notification?

Applicants must apply for the digital insurance registration required for enrolment with the health insurance fund with which they are insured as a member or family member at the start of their studies or are expected to be insured. The health insurance company will then automatically forward this registration to the university.
Applicants who wish to be exempted from compulsory insurance must also apply to a statutory health insurance fund for a corresponding digital registration (exempt or free of insurance).

The sender number of Leuphana University of Lüneburg is H0000606. 

Compulsory insurance for students 

All students at German universities are subject to compulsory statutory health insurance. This usually applies until the end of the semester in which the student reaches the age of 30. After that, there is the option of voluntary continued insurance.

Exceptions to compulsory insurance

• Students are not subject to compulsory student health insurance as long as they are covered by family insurance (in statutory health insurance funds), usually until they reach the age of 25. 

• Students who are subject to compulsory insurance under other regulations or who are exempt from insurance by law (e.g. civil servants, salaried employees, recipients of survivor's pensions, self-employed persons, etc.) are exempt from insurance. 

• Doctoral students are exempt from the registration requirement, i.e. they do NOT need to register digitally with a statutory health insurance fund. 

Exemption from compulsory insurance

Students can apply for exemption from compulsory insurance. The application can be submitted within three months of the start of compulsory insurance (first enrolment at a German higher education institution or, for example, leaving family insurance due to age). The exemption is valid for the duration of the entire course of study and cannot be revoked.
In the case of private health insurance, (family) insured students must apply for exemption from compulsory insurance with a statutory health insurance fund if they wish to remain privately insured and not join a statutory health insurance fund.

Which health insurance fund is responsible? 

The following statutory health insurance funds are responsible for issuing the insurance certificate and all other matters related to compulsory student insurance:

• the general local health insurance funds (AOK)
• Company and guild health insurance funds (BKK)
• maritime health insurance funds
• the miners' health insurance funds, and
• the substitute health insurance funds (e.g. BEK, DAK, KKH, TK).

In terms of insurance status, this can mean:

1. Compulsory insurance 
   If you are already insured with a statutory health insurance fund, this fund is responsible. However, another of the above-mentioned health insurance funds can also be chosen. (The insured person must declare the choice to the chosen health insurance fund no later than two weeks after becoming subject to compulsory insurance. Family members do not have a choice; for them, the choice made by the member applies).
2. Exception to compulsory insurance 
   If a health insurance relationship already exists with one of the above-mentioned health insurance funds, the latter is responsible. If there is no insurance relationship with a statutory health insurance fund, the fund with which there was last an insurance relationship is responsible, otherwise one of the above-mentioned funds is responsible.
3. Exemption from compulsory insurance
   Exemption from compulsory insurance is only possible upon application. The application must be addressed to the health insurance fund with which insurance exists or last existed. If you have not previously been insured with a statutory health insurance fund, the application for exemption must be addressed to one of the above-mentioned funds.
4. Voluntary student insurance 
   For voluntary (continued) insurance after reaching the age of 30 or exceeding 14 semesters of study, either the statutory health insurance fund with which insurance already exists or one of the above-mentioned funds is responsible.  

Further information can be obtained from the statutory health insurance funds.

European insurance card for international students

To enrol, you must present proof of health insurance. You can obtain this proof either from a German statutory health insurance fund (if you have health insurance in Germany) or from your health insurance fund in your home country. There you will receive a European Insurance Card, which you should use to contact any German statutory health insurance fund. The German statutory health insurance fund sends us an electronic message about the insurance status (not subject to compulsory insurance in Germany).

It is therefore not necessary for you to send proof of insurance, as only the digital notification from the health insurance company is accepted by Leuphana University Lüneburg.

Registration requirement for Universities

Universities have a reporting obligation to statutory health insurance companies. This is regulated in detail by Section 199a of the Social Security Code 5 (SGB 5).

In addition to processing each enrolment, universities notify health insurance companies of all de-registrations. Health insurance companies report cases in which the insured status changes to the universities. In addition, health insurance companies report the termination of an insurance relationship and the non-fulfilment of the obligations imposed (contribution payments) to the universities, which leads to the refusal of enrolment or re-registration.