Health insurance during your studies

If you are insured with a German statutory health insurance company, please ask your health insurance company to send proof of your insurance status to the Ruhr Universität Bochum. The health insurance company may need a sender number (Absendenummer). This is: H0002220. The proof is sent digitally by the health insurance company to Ruhr University Bochum. For that, please contact your statutory health insurance company directly.

When registering online, please enter the company number (Betriebsnummer) of your health insurance company. The company numbers of the statutory health insurance companies are listed on this page. In addition, please enter your health insurance number (Krankenversicherungsnummer), as we need this for the data comparison with the health insurance company. You can usually find this number on your insurance card.

If possible, please upload a scan of your insurance card so that we can correct any typing errors in the health insurance number or company number more easily.

If you are privately insured and want to remain so during your studies,

• please apply for a so-called exemption from the statutory insurance obligation (Befreiung von der Versicherungspflicht) at your last statutory health insurance company or - if you have never had statutory health insurance in Germany - from any statutory health insurance company. Please include the sender number (Absendenummer) of the Ruhr University Bochum: H0002220
  The statutory health insurance company sends the required certificate directly and digitally to the Ruhr University.

Please note that a private health insurance company cannot send the required digital report to Ruhr University Bochum itself. It is important, that you contact a statutory health insurance company and order the digital report from there. If the digital report is not submitted, there is a risk of exmatriculation.

Attention: You can only apply for an exemption from the statutory insurance obligation within three months of the start of your insurance obligation (usually after the start of the first semester in Germany). Therefore, get advice on the subject from a statutory health insurance company in good time.

Important note in advance: Foreign health insurance is only sufficient for studying in Germany in a few cases. This is the case, for example, with some health insurance companies within the EU or in certain non-European countries on the basis of corresponding social security agreements (e.g. partly in Turkey, etc.).

Please seek advice from a statutory German health insurance company in good time before you begin your studies, as we must receive a digital report from this statutory German health insurance company about your insurance status.

The statutory German health insurance company may ask for a sender number (Absendenummer) of Ruhr University Bochum. It is H0002220

Please make sure to take care of the formalities in good time before you start your studies, otherwise you may face higher costs. This is the case, for example, if you do not obtain exemption from statutory insurance in Germany due to foreign health insurance within a maximum of three months after the start of your studies.

For reasons of social law, the Registrar's Office always needs up-to-date data on how and where you have health insurance.

If you change the governmental health insurance company, then apply to your new insurance company for a "Notification of the health insurance change" (M11) to the sender number of the Ruhr University Bochum (H0002220).

The insurance company sends the proof directly and digitally to the Ruhr University.

Students can take out family insurance with the statutory health insurance of their parents, spouse or registered partner. However, there are prerequisites for this. Here are the most important:

• Students with family insurance in Germany are not to exceed a regular gross monthly income of 470 euros (as of 2022). This does not apply to short-term employment during the lecture-free period (Semesterferien) or jobs that are limited to three months or 70 working days in advance. Here the amount of earnings is basically irrelevant. Benefits under the BAföG or the maintenance of the parents are also not taken into account when determining the total income.
  To be on the safe side, get advice from your health insurance company before starting work!

Students who are no longer insured free of charge in the family insurance (in Germany) can join the student health insurance. However, this option only exists up to the age of 30.

The prerequisite is that the study takes precedence over employment. So you don't work more than 20 hours a week and are usually in a so-called working student contract (Werkstudierendenvertrag).

Exceptions:

• During the lecture period, you may only work more than 20 hours if it can be proven that the working hours are predominantly outside of the regular study times (at the weekend, in the evening or at night).
• There are certain regulations for working during the semester break. Please consult your health insurance company for advice on this.

If you exceed these limits, you lose student health insurance and have to pay significantly higher contributions.

The student health insurance can be extended under certain conditions up to a maximum of the 37th birthday. This is possible for example for:

• the time to obtain the higher education entrance qualification on the second educational path
• care of family members
• Own illness of at least 3 months (in a row)
• Own disability (max. extension: 7 semesters)
• Birth of a child and subsequent childcare (max. extension: 6 semesters)
• Voluntary social or ecological year, military or civil service or federal voluntary service (in Germany!)
• Participation in university committees (such as student council, AStA, StuPa, Senate, etc.)