Private Health Insurance for Visiting Scholars and (Visiting) Doctoral Students
If you do not have an employment contract with the university but are funding your stay by yourself or through a scholarship (e.g. as a visiting scholar or doctoral student) you are exempt from the social insurance obligation with exception of health insurance. In this case, you can usually only purchase private health insurance.
If you require visa for entry, you will have to supply proof of health insurance coverage upon applying for a visa.
Important notice: You also need to have health insurance for the period between entry and the beginning of your private health insurance contract. That means that if your are planning on purchasing private health insurance after entering without requiring visa, you should take out a travel insurance policy while still in your home country to cover the first few days of your stay.
As a scholarship recipient, you can ask your funding organization for recommendations regarding health insurance.
Short-term stays
Check if your current health insurance scheme at home will cover medical bills that you might incur during your stay in Germany. In this case, your health insurance provider needs to issue a written statement confirming your coverage in Germany. If your current health insurance does not provide sufficient coverage, you will need to take out an additional policy. If you are unable to provide proof of health insurance upon applying for a visa, the embassy will deny the application.
Long-term stays
Special health insurance
Visiting professors and doctoral students may consider taking out a private travel insurance policy especially designed for international visiting scholars.
Private health insurance providers determine the amount of insurance payments based on an individual risk assessment. The individual scheme depends on factors such as age, health status, contract duration, etc. Please check the policies offered carefully before entering a contract.
There a many private health insurance providers. The following health insurance providers offer plans suitable for research stays of up to 5 years:
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) – group insurance
- Tariff 762 – for doctoral students from EU member states
- Tariff 780 – for doctoral students and researchers from EU member states who receive funding from the DAAD
- Tariff 790 – for doctoral students and researchers from abroad
Educare 24
Online insurance, liability and accident insurance for up to four yearsMawista
Online insurance, contract duration between one and sixty monthsCare Concept
Online insurance for up to two years, day-to-day contracts availableHanseMerkur
Online insurance for stays of up to five years, combined insurance including health, private liability, accident, and deportation costs insuranceInternational Science HealthCare Plan
Health, liability and accident insurance for international scholarship recipients and visiting scholarsProvisit
Online insurance for stays of up to one year, combined insurance including health, private liability and accident insurance as well as insurance against deportation costs.
Further information can be found on the EURAXESS Germany website.
The health insurance providers listed here are known to the Welcome Center of the University of Mannheim. The Welcome Center does not assume responsibility for the quality or completeness of the information/
