Family insurance in Germany: the income limit for 2026 and 2027

In 2026 spouses and children are covered free of charge as long as their income stays at or below €565 a month, or €603 with a minijob.

Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate

a month, all income together

Is it a minijob?
Year
Covered person is
Child under 12 at home?

Family cover 2026

possible

free through the member

Limit 2026€565
That person’s total income€450
Room below the limit€115
Surcharge from 2028 for the member (2.5 %)€105 a month
Step-by-step calculation
  1. Limit: one seventh of the reference value (€3,955 ÷ 7 = €565), or the minijob limit of €603 for a minijob (section 10(1) SGB V).
  2. Total income: pay, profit, pension (excluding child-raising credits), rent and investment income above the saver’s allowance, as a monthly average.
  3. Spouse surcharge: 2.5 % on the member’s rate from 1 January 2028, not with a child under 12 in the household, caring, pension age or reduced earning capacity (section 242b SGB V).

Your health fund decides on family cover from its questionnaire. How we calculate

In Germany’s statutory health insurance, a member’s spouse, registered partner and children are covered free of charge (Familienversicherung) if their regular total income does not exceed one seventh of the reference value (section 10(1) no. 5 of Book V of the Social Code): €565 a month in 2026 and, with the 2027 reference value, €590. With a minijob they may earn up to the minijob limit, €603 in 2026 and €633 in 2027. Children are covered until 18, until 23 if not working and until 25 in school, training or university. New is a surcharge introduced by the contribution stabilisation act of 24 July 2026: from 1 January 2028, members pay 2.5 % more for a spouse in family cover, alone and with no employer share (section 242b SGB V). On €4,000 gross that would be €100 a month. Exempt are, among others, couples with a child under 12 in the household, spouses who care for a relative or have reduced earning capacity, and spouses of pension age.

The limits for 2026 and 2027

Under section 10(1) SGB V; 2027 using the reference value from the cabinet decision of 7 October 2026
20262027 (provisional)
Income limit (one seventh of the reference value)€565€590
Limit with a minijob€603€633
Reference value a month€3,955€4,130

The spouse surcharge from 2028 in euros

What the surcharge costs depends only on the member’s income, not on the fund. Worked out with the 2027 contribution ceiling, as the 2028 ceiling is not yet set:

2.5 % under section 242b SGB V, no employer share
Member’s gross paySurcharge a montha year
€2,500€63€750
€3,500€88€1,050
€4,500€113€1,350
€6,375€159€1,913

For comparison: an employee on €4,000 gross pays €350 health insurance a month today, so the surcharge is a noticeable increase. It does not apply while a child under 12 lives in the spouse’s household or a disabled child cannot support itself, or if the spouse cares at least ten hours a week for a relative with care grade 2 or higher, takes care leave, has reached pension age, has care grade 3 or higher, has full reduced earning capacity or a disability degree of at least 60. Funds apply exceptions they know of even without an application.

When your own cover makes sense anyway

Just above the limit, a voluntary membership costs at least the contribution on €1,318.33. A minijob up to €603 keeps family cover, and a job in the transition zone costs little at first (work out a midijob). Students over 25 move to student cover.

What members ask

What counts as total income for family insurance?

All income in the tax sense as a monthly average: wages, self-employed profit, rent, investment income above the saver’s allowance and pensions excluding the child-raising component. Tax-free benefits such as parental allowance (Elterngeld) do not count. The 2026 limit is €565, or €603 with a minijob.

What happens if my minijob goes over the limit?

Family cover ends and your own insurance starts: through the job if it is more than marginal (transition zone from €603.01), otherwise as a voluntary member. Occasional, unforeseeable overruns in at most two months a year are allowed (section 8(1b) SGB IV).

Who pays the spouse surcharge from 2028?

The member alone, not the employer: 2.5 % on their contributory income up to the ceiling, deducted through payroll for employees (section 242b(2) SGB V). It is not charged on pensions before 1 July 2028. Children stay free of charge in every case.

Can my child stay in family cover if one parent is privately insured?

Only if the statutorily insured parent earns more, or the privately insured parent stays below the compulsory insurance threshold. If the privately insured spouse is the higher earner and above the threshold, the child is not in family cover (section 10(3) SGB V) and needs insurance of its own.

Continue with

Students

€143 a month at the average additional rate, from €137 to €156 depending on the fund.

Midijob and health insurance

From €603.01 to €2,000 you pay less than half the contribution; on €1,000 gross about €60 instead of €106.

Voluntary membership

Contributions on all income, assessed on at least €1,318.33 a month; without an employer you pay it all yourself.

List of all rates

All 91 funds with a rate, filter by state and type, your cost in euros and every change since recording began.

Care insurance contribution

3.6 % base rate, 0.6 points more if childless, 0.25 points less per child from the second: your care contribution in euros.

Laws and official data

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