Daily sickness allowance insurance
Daily sickness allowance insurance (Krankentagegeld) protects your income after employer-paid sick leave ends.
If you are sick for more than six weeks, your employer no longer pays your salary. Afterwards, the statutory health insurance provides only 70% of your gross salary, but no more than 90% of your last net income, and a maximum of €128.63 per day (2025 value). For longer illnesses, this can lead to serious financial strain.
You determine the amount of your daily sickness allowance
Krankentagegeld safeguards you against income loss during illness. This is especially important if you have a family to support or loans to repay. You can agree individually on the amount of daily sickness allowance you want. The insurer pays from the seventh week of illness, once employer-paid sick leave ends. Lower premiums can often be secured with a longer waiting period (Karenzzeit)—the period after the onset of illness during which no benefit is paid.
Important: Daily sickness allowance is not the same as hospital daily allowance. Hospital daily allowance only pays while you are actually hospitalized.
Hospital daily allowance insurance
Hospital daily allowance (Krankenhaustagegeld) – coverage while you are in the hospital
Hospital daily allowance provides a financial cushion while you are hospitalized. The insurer pays the agreed daily amount for as long as you are medically required to stay in the hospital. Payments from hospital daily allowance are tax-free.
Cover additional costs with your hospital daily allowance
You can use your hospital daily allowance to pay for phone and TV rentals, travel costs for relatives, or even hire temporary help to take care of household and children during your hospital stay. The allowance is paid without proof of costs; the insurer only requires a hospital certificate stating the duration and reason for treatment.
Tip: During rooming-in, a parent stays with their hospitalized child. Hospitals charge an extra daily fee for accommodation and meals. Many hospital daily allowance plans double the daily benefit for the insured child if a parent accompanies them in the hospital.