Private health insurance for the self-employed

• Individually selectable private health insurance tariff:

• More comprehensive benefits:

• Faster to the doctor:

• More doctors to choose from:

Your private health insurance premium is based on your age and state of health, not on your income. Private health insurance is as flexible as you are: you get to choose the insurance cover that suits you best. Your health is reliably protected through fast access to specialists and modern treatment methods.

As an entrepreneur, with private health insurance you can collect provisions for the future with aging reserves and options to further reduce premiums in old age.

Your digital lifestyle is covered everywhere – depending on the tariff there is worldwide protection and care for your health.

1. Coverage: Think about which benefits matter the most to you. Maybe a shared room in a hospital is enough for you, but you want to cover your teeth with 100 % reimbursement for dental replacements? Set priorities and think about what they are worth to you.
2. Deductible: Would you rather have less co-pay or more? A high deductible often goes with favorable rates. Calculate whether you are likely to spend below your annual deductible cap and whether it really brings a saving. At ottonova, there is only a percentage deductible: You pay 10 or 25 percent of your medical bills yourself, until you reach a limit of 500 or 1,250 euros per year. This way, you benefit from the reimbursements right from the start and you won't be tempted to skip annual preventive examinations to save money.
3. Costs: It is important to consider not only the current costs of your private health insurance, but also the contribution development over time. After all, you want your costs to still be in line when you go into well-earned retirement. At ottonova, we calculate our premiums using a particularly future-proof actuarial interest rate.

Self-employed people and freelancers must pay the entire health insurance contribution, regardless of whether they are publicly or privately insured, since they do not have an employer who pays an employer subsidy for health insurance.

If you join private health insurance as a business founder or a self-employed person, your contribution depends on your age, your pre-existing conditions and your health condition, as well as your preferred tariff. With ottonova, for example, the monthly contribution is around 552 to 654 euros for a person at the age of 32.

• Adjustable contribution independent of income
• Family members co-insured at their own premiums
• Change to public health insurance only with employment

Your contribution in private health insurance depends on:

• age
• health history
• coverage

You can adjust your contribution with a deductible or a daily sickness allowance. As a young entrepreneur or tradesman with a good income, you often pay less than in the public health insurance.

Contribution for public health insurance

• Contribution depends on income
• Family members insured free of charge
• Change to private health insurance possible at any time

Your contribution for self-employed persons in public health insurance depends on this:

• Reduced contribution rate: 14% (without sick pay), general contribution rate: 14.6% (with sick pay)
• Additional contribution for individual health insurances: on average 1,70% (varies depending on the health insurance company)
• Nursing care insurance: 4.0% (without children), 3.4% (with children)

Important: The calculation basis for your public health insurance rate is your income tax assessment or a profit estimate if you are just starting out. If you earn more than expected, you will have to pay extra.

The only possibility to influence your public health insurance premium is the “additional contribution” which is individual for each public health insurance fund.

Self-employed are those who work freely and without a dependent employment relationship. A private health insurance for entrepreneurs or tradespeople is part of being independent too. The forms of self-employment are further differentiated: Freelancer or tradesperson? It depends:

Freelancer

Freelancer is a term for different professions.

It can mean that you work for a company without a fixed employment contract or that you have a freelance profession like writing, artistic or scientific work, or teaching. §18 of the Income Tax Act provides a catalog of activities: Among others, engineers, tax advisors, consultants, physicians, or lawyers are freelancers and do not pay trade tax.

Tradesmen

If you do not carry out a "catalog profession”, you are a trader and pay trade tax. In your

tax return, you can deduct your private health insurance for the self-employed.

Exception: artists and publicists

If you are working as a freelancer in an artistic or journalistic capacity, your

obligation to be in the public health insurance continues as it would in an employment relationship.

In this case, the Künstlersozialkasse (artists’ social fund) pays the employer's share of your public health insurance premium. You can only join private health insurance if your income is above the annual income limit (€ 69,300 ).

• Full control

• Digital services take the work off your hands

• All-round protection for your health

In contrast to public health insurance, as a privately insured person you receive the best benefits without having to worry about possible restrictions - even for your dental care and during hospital stays. So, you are quickly able to run your business again.

Many self-employed opt for private health insurance to benefit from the extensive benefits of private health insurance. However, choosing the right policy needs to be well thought out! Take your time to compare the different tariffs.

If you want to change to private health insurance, you must submit an application. It is best to take care of this before you become self-employed to ensure seamless insurance coverage.

When you are having a status change, e.g. starting a full-time self-employment, the notice period for your public health insurance is 2 months. So if you cancel on October 1st, you can take our private health insurance the month after next, i.e. January 1st.

1. Private health insurance protects

When you are your own boss, you have to compensate earnings lost due to illness out of your own resources. With private health insurance, you can determine the beginning and the amount of your daily sickness allowance yourself. In contrast, the public health insurance sets upper limits for sick pay.

2. Take care of your future with private health insurance

You have your future in your hands. Why don't you choose a future-proof health insurance?

Public health insurance contributions will increase due to demographic change. With private health insurance, you can save for your old age - for example, with the premium relief component.

The money you save compared to public health insurance can be invested on the financial market.

3. Deduct private health insurance from your taxes

Private health insurance for entrepreneurs is tax-deductible, so make sure to include it in your tax return every year. As a self-employed person, you must take care of your contributions to the private health insurance for tax purposes. You can also deduct the basic coverage of your family from your tax return.

4. With private health insurance you set priorities

You don't want to risk an illness slowing down your drive?

The best health services are offered by private health insurance: high-quality dental treatments and more. In contrast to public health insurance, you don't have to fear any reduction in benefits.

5. Private health insurance fits your life plan

If your business is growing moderately and you want to have a big family, public health insurance may be the better choice. If, on the other hand, you want to start early and later only have a small family with a maximum of 3 children, private health insurance is ideal for you. It also protects you if you are independent of location and want to go abroad often. Your insurance cover with ottonova is valid throughout Europe without time limits and even worldwide for six months at a time.

No matter where you are, ottonova Concierge is always there for you, and if necessary, you can use the digital doctor's visit at any time.