Research Assistants

You are employed at HU as a Research Assistant?

The following applies for Humboldt-Universität employees: You will generally have compulsory insurance from a statutory health insurance scheme. You can choose the statutory health insurance scheme from which you wish to obtain your insurance. You can research the statutory health insurance schemes yourself and decide which one to choose.

Cost: The cost of statutory health insurance is calculated on the basis of income. The premium rate amounts to 14.6% of gross income (2019), half of which is covered by the employee and half by the employer. This means that as an employee you will pay 7.3% of your income. Most health insurance schemes also require an additional contribution that you must cover, currently a maximum of 1.3% of your income. For an overview of all statutory health insurance schemes and the additional contributions, visit the Spitzenverband Bund der Krankenkassen ("National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds") website.

How to join a statutory health insurance scheme

1. Choosing a health insurance scheme

Pick a health insurance scheme. Some of the biggest health insurance schemes are the Techniker Krankenkasse (TK), AOK, DAK, Barmer GEK and BKK. Statutory health insurance schemes offer comparable basic services but will differ in some additional services, for example, in whether they cover special services such as health classes or homeopathic treatments.

2. Applying to join the scheme of your choice

Submit an application for membership to the health insurance scheme of your choice. You can generally also do this online, on the health insurance scheme’s website. Indicate on the application that you will be employed by Humboldt-Universität.

3. Submitting your documentation to the HU personnel department

You will generally receive confirmation of your membership and your social insurance number shortly after submitting your application for membership. Both of these items should be forwarded to the personnel department as quickly as possible, as they are required before your salary can be paid. Once the personnel department has received your documentation, contributions will be paid directly into your health insurance scheme by the employer (in this case Humboldt-Universität).

4. Waiting for your health insurance card

In order to visit the doctor, you will need a ‘health insurance card’, which you will receive from your health insurance scheme. Some health insurance schemes require you to fill out a form and send in a passport photo before issuing the health insurance card. Contact your health insurance scheme if you have not received a health insurance card after a few weeks. You must take this card with you when you visit the doctor.

Exemptions from the requirement for statutory insurance

As an employee, you will not have compulsory insurance with a statutory health insurance scheme if your gross income is more than € 60.750 (2019). In this event, you can obtain insurance from a private health insurance scheme.