Bundesportal | Apply for reimbursement from the statutory health insurance fund

Complete online now

More Information

Publisher

Federal Ministry of Health

Last update or date of publication

April 24, 2025

Contact

The government service telephone number 115 – your point of contact for questions related to the federal, state and local.

Monday through Friday from 8:00 to 18:00 (and beyond these times in some regions).

Call 115 now

Government service telephone number calls are charged at local rates.

If you have statutory health insurance, you can receive necessary treatments and therapies without having to pay in advance, for example by presenting your electronic health card (eGK) at the doctor's surgery or hospital. This is the principle of benefits in kind. Alternatively, you can have yourself treated privately and pay the bill for the treatment yourself first. This is called the reimbursement principle.
Under certain conditions, you can apply for reimbursement from your health insurance fund if you have informed them of your decision to undergo private treatment before starting treatment.

You can choose to have your costs reimbursed for the following services:

outpatient medical care,
outpatient dental care,
inpatient care, for example in a hospital,
medically prescribed services such as home nursing care, physiotherapy, patient transportation or aids such as wheelchairs.

If you opt for reimbursement, you are bound to it for at least one calendar quarter for the respective service area.

Invoice for the treatment or medical service
Proof of payment
Your health insurance company may require further proof, for example a doctor's prescription, if this is necessary for the respective service. Please contact your health insurance company for more information.

Label

Preconditions

You have informed your health insurance company in advance of your decision to have your costs reimbursed.
You are taking advantage of services that are medically necessary and are included in the so-called service catalog of the statutory health insurance.
The service provider, for example your treating doctor, has a health insurance license. This means that, in principle, he or she could also bill via the electronic health card. Otherwise, you will need the approval of your health insurance provider.

Hints

There are no indications or special features.

Your health insurance company can only reimburse the costs up to the maximum amount that would have been incurred according to the principle of benefits in kind, i.e. as with billing via the electronic health card. This means that you may incur additional costs.
As a rule, your health insurance company will charge you for part of the processing costs. A maximum of 5 percent of the reimbursement amount is permitted by law.

Basis for legal action

§ 13 Absatz 2 Sozialgesetzbuch Fünftes Buch (SGB V)

§ 8 Zweites Gesetz über die Krankenversicherung der Landwirte (KVLG 1989)

Legal Remedies

Objection
Action before the social court

Procedure

Please contact your health insurance company for information on the exact procedure for reimbursement.
As a rule, the procedure is as follows:

Inform your health insurance company of your decision to have your costs reimbursed before treatment begins. You can usually do this by telephone, e-mail or online on the portal of the respective health insurance company.
You will initially pay the bill yourself after the treatment.
You can submit the application for reimbursement by post or - with many statutory health insurance companies - in person at the office or online.
As a rule, you fill out the application form from your statutory health insurance company and submit it to the health insurance company together with the necessary documents and your bank details.
The health insurance company will check your application and pay you the reimbursable amount if all requirements are met.

Deadlines

You must inform your health insurance company of your decision to reimburse the costs before you start treatment or make use of the medical service.

Processing time

Processing normally takes around 2 to 5 working days.
In order for your application to be processed and a decision made quickly, your health insurance company must have all the necessary information and any required documents in a complete and meaningful form.
The health insurance company decides on applications promptly, whereby the statutory processing period is adhered to in order to protect patients' rights.
Please note that the processing time stated is an average value for all health insurance companies. It may vary in individual cases.
The exact processing time also depends on the complexity of the individual case and may be longer. The same applies if documents or records are sent to you or your health insurance company by post.