Three ways, and what to clarify for each
Way A
End the contract
- Which deadlines and proof does your insurer require when you move away?
- What do you lose if you come back later?
- From when must the new cover be in place so that no gap arises?
Way B
Pause it
- Does your insurer offer an Anwartschaft, in what form and under what conditions?
- What is preserved in the meantime, and what does it cost on an ongoing basis?
- How long is an Anwartschaft possible, and when does it end?
Way C
Continue it
- Does your contract apply at all if you have a permanent residence abroad?
- For what period and which countries?
- Is it worth it if insurance is needed in the destination country anyway?
What an Anwartschaft is, briefly explained
With an Anwartschaft insurance you put your private health insurance contract on hold in return for a reduced premium. This secures your state of health: if you return to Germany permanently, report it in good time and meet your insurer’s other conditions, your previous cover revives without a new health assessment. During the Anwartschaft you receive no benefits.
Two forms are common, and they differ in the Alterungsrückstellung (ageing provision). This is the cushion your insurer builds from part of your premiums for the higher costs in old age. The large Anwartschaft extends the small one in exactly this respect: the cushion keeps growing, and after your return your premium is based on your original age at entry. In return, its ongoing premium is higher. With the small Anwartschaft the cushion does not keep growing, and your premium is based on your age when you return. Whether a cushion already saved up is credited is set out in your insurer’s terms; some insurers do this. Premium adjustments to your plan in the meantime apply in both cases.
What exactly applies is set out in your insurer’s terms: which form it offers under which conditions, how long the Anwartschaft can run, what it costs and by when you must report your return. For a stay abroad in particular, some insurers limit the Anwartschaft in time, require proof of your health insurance abroad, or do not let the cover revive if treatment is one of the reasons for your return. If you become subject to statutory health insurance after your return, for example through employment below the Jahresarbeitsentgeltgrenze (annual earnings threshold; special rules apply from age 55), you generally join statutory health insurance. You can then cancel your private contract and the Anwartschaft within three months; whether you are subject to compulsory insurance is conclusively determined by the Krankenkasse. We look at your contract terms and the options they leave you with you, before you cancel or deregister.
Most recently in statutory health insurance?
Then different questions arise than with private insurance. We sort these out in advance too, so that you know whom you need to clarify what with.
Moving outside the EU and EEA?
If you move to another country in the EU or EEA, your health insurance continues by law, with benefits at most as in Germany (§ 207 (3) VVG, German Insurance Contract Act). For other countries, such as the UAE, the model terms of the PKV association (MB/KK) provide that the contract for you ends with the move unless you agree otherwise with your insurer. If you move away only temporarily, you can demand conversion into an Anwartschaft under these terms. In addition, for a private comprehensive health insurance with an Alterungsrückstellung the law gives you the right to continue a contract you have cancelled as an Anwartschaft; it does not specify which form (§ 204 (5) VVG). A cancellation is subject to deadlines. As long as you have a Wohnsitz (residence) in Germany and do not become a member of statutory health insurance, it also only takes effect if you are insured without a break with another insurer and this new contract meets the obligation to have health insurance in Germany. Not every international health insurance does. You can still have a residence in Germany even if you already live abroad, for example because you keep your home here (§ 193 (3), § 205 (6) VVG). Which way is open to you depends on which terms your insurer uses and when and how your contract ends. That is why: clarify first, then cancel or deregister.
The questions before the decision
- Residence
- Are you deregistering your residence in Germany, and from when?
- Period
- How long do you plan to stay abroad, and how certain is this plan?
- Return
- Which scenarios should be taken into account: return for a job, for family, in retirement?
- Contract
- Which plans and supplementary policies are running today, and what applies to long-term care insurance (Pflegeversicherung)?
- Timing
- Have you already cancelled or deregistered? If not: good. Deadlines and transitions are easier to plan beforehand.
Plan a return, do not promise one
Whether and how a later return to German health insurance is possible depends on the individual case. We make no blanket promise on this. What we do: go through the scenarios with you before you create facts.
Documents only at the call
Please do not send us policies and health information by email in advance. We discuss which documents we need during the call.
Sources and last updated
Here you can read the legal bases and bodies behind the questions on this page yourself. Page last updated: .
- § 205 VVG, Kündigung des Versicherungsnehmers (cancellation by the policyholder)gesetze-im-internet.de · Versicherungsvertragsgesetz (German Insurance Contract Act)
- § 193 VVG (German Insurance Contract Act), insured person; insurance obligation (German-language source)gesetze-im-internet.de · German Insurance Contract Act
- § 17 BMG, Anmeldung, Abmeldung (registration, deregistration)gesetze-im-internet.de · Bundesmeldegesetz (Federal Registration Act)
- § 191 SGB V, Ende der freiwilligen Mitgliedschaft (end of voluntary membership)gesetze-im-internet.de · Sozialgesetzbuch Fünftes Buch (Social Code, Book V)
- DVKA, German Liaison Agency for Health Insurance – International (German-language source)GKV-Spitzenverband, DVKA department
This page asks questions and puts things in context. It does not replace advice in an individual case. What is binding are the law, the terms of your contract and the competent bodies.
Related topics
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep my German health insurance when I emigrate?
That depends on your destination and your insurance. According to the PKV association, private health insurance continues if you move within the EU or EEA; outside that area it usually ends.
For statutory health insurance, cover can continue in certain situations in the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, for example for pensioners with form S1. If a return is possible, ask about an Anwartschaft (a German option to keep certain rights in private insurance while abroad). Get everything in writing before you deregister or cancel. More in Expat health insurance when moving abroad from Germany.
What happens to my PKV if I emigrate?
That depends on your contract and on where you are moving; there is no answer for all plans.
Whether your contract continues, ends or can be paused when you move away is set out in the terms of your plan. The model terms of the private health insurers contain their own rules for moving abroad. In principle you have three ways: end the contract, put it on hold for a reduced premium (Anwartschaft) or continue it.
Which of these your insurer offers and under what conditions, you clarify with it in writing before you cancel or deregister. Ask specifically: Does my contract apply with a permanent residence abroad, for which countries and for what period? Does my insurer offer an Anwartschaft, in what form? Which deadlines apply? What applies to supplementary and long-term care insurance? Whether and how a later return to German health insurance is possible depends on the individual case. We make no blanket promise on this.
If you move to another country in the EU or EEA, your health insurance continues by law, with benefits at most as in Germany (§ 207 (3) VVG; likewise § 1 (5) MB/KK). If you move your habitual residence to another state, the contract ends to that extent unless it is continued under a different agreement; for this the insurer may charge a reasonable premium surcharge. If the move is only temporary, you can demand that the contract be converted into an Anwartschaft (§ 15 (3) MB/KK). With a comprehensive health insurance of the kind operated like life insurance, you also have the right to continue a cancelled contract as an Anwartschaft (§ 204 (5) VVG). Which of this applies to you depends on your terms and on how your contract ends. Whether the statutory right also applies when a contract is not cancelled but ends automatically is, according to our research, not settled.
Can I simply keep my German PKV running abroad?
Not without more: your contract applies abroad only as far as its area of cover and the rules for moving away provide, and both are set out in the terms of your plan.
Under the model terms of the private health insurers, cover applies to medical treatment in Europe and can be extended to non-European countries by agreement. In the first month of a temporary stay in a non-European country, cover also applies without a special agreement. This is meant for trips, not for a move.
Statutory and often private health insurers do not cover repatriation to Germany, not even in an emergency; travel health insurance with repatriation is advisable for this. Ask your insurer in writing whether and under what conditions it continues your contract with a permanent residence abroad, for which countries and for what period.
Separate rules apply to moving away (see the answer “What happens to my PKV if I emigrate?”): within the EU and EEA your health insurance continues by law, with benefits at most as in Germany (§ 207 (3) VVG; likewise § 1 (5) MB/KK); for other states it ends to that extent if you do not agree otherwise with the insurer (§ 15 (3) MB/KK). The Verbraucherzentrale names Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway as exceptions to the rule of thumb that outside the EU private cover regularly lapses as well.
May I cancel my PKV if I move abroad?
Yes, in principle you can cancel a private health insurance, but only within the deadlines and conditions of your contract and the law, and when moving away you should never cancel before the new cover is in place.
Deadline, form and proof matter. Anyone who takes out a new contract later is assessed on their age and state of health at that time. You therefore do not simply get a terminated contract back on the same terms. So also check the other ways with your insurer: pausing (Anwartschaft) or continuing.
Ask in writing: By what date and in what form can I cancel? What proof do you require? What happens to supplementary and long-term care insurance? And what options remain for me if I come back later? Whether and how a return to German health insurance is possible depends on the individual case.
A health insurance with a term of more than one year can be cancelled at the end of the first year or of any following year with three months’ notice, subject to any agreed minimum insurance period (§ 205 (1) VVG). As long as you have a Wohnsitz (residence) in Germany and do not become a member of statutory health insurance, the cancellation also only takes effect if you are insured without a break with another insurer and this new contract meets the obligation to have health insurance in Germany. Not every international health insurance does. You can still have a residence in Germany even if you already live abroad, for example because you keep your home here (§ 193 (3), § 205 (6) VVG). With a comprehensive health insurance of the kind operated like life insurance, you can continue a cancelled contract as an Anwartschaft (§ 204 (5) VVG). How this applies in your individual case when you move away, you clarify with your insurer before cancelling.
Does a German PKV stay in place automatically if I emigrate?
There is no general answer to this. The actual status depends on the contract, residence and duration and has to be checked.
Is an Anwartschaft always sensible?
No. Whether it is sensible and possible depends on your contract and your life plan.
When should I take care of this?
Before you cancel or deregister. Then most ways remain open.
Sources for the answers
- Model terms 2009 for health expense and hospital daily allowance insurance (MB/KK 2009), PKV association (German-language source) Last updated June 2024, accessed 10 October 2026Model terms are a recommendation of the association, not mandatory terms. The terms of your plan may differ.
- Verbraucherzentrale: Krankenversicherung im Ausland – Wie lange bin ich geschützt? (health insurance abroad – how long am I covered?) Page last updated 19 May 2026, accessed 10 October 2026 (German-language source)
- § 204 VVG – Tarifwechsel (change of plan) (gesetze-im-internet.de) Statutory text (German-language source), accessed 10 October 2026
- PKV-Verband: refusal and cancellation of German private health insurance (PKV) (German-language source) no date given, retrieved 10 October 2026Describes German private health insurance. International plans from other insurers may differ.
- § 205 VVG – Kündigung des Versicherungsnehmers (cancellation by the policyholder) (gesetze-im-internet.de) Statutory text (German-language source), accessed 10 October 2026
- § 193 VVG – Versicherte Person; Versicherungspflicht (insured person; compulsory insurance) (gesetze-im-internet.de) Statutory text (German-language source), accessed 10 October 2026
- Imprint and initial information (German), insurance4expats.com
- § 207 VVG – Fortsetzung des Versicherungsverhältnisses (continuation of the insurance relationship) (gesetze-im-internet.de) Statutory text (German-language source), accessed 11 October 2026 (R1)
This page provides orientation and does not replace individual advice. The law, your contract terms and the competent authorities are binding.
