01
Stand-alone BU
A separate contract only for occupational disability, with premium waiver. The benchmark against which everything else is measured.
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Occupational disability insurance in Germany: protecting your income if you can no longer do your job
Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung, usually shortened to BU, pays a monthly pension if illness or injury leaves you unable to work in your own occupation. It is the closest German equivalent to own-occupation income protection. For people who have only recently moved to Germany, it matters even more, because the state disability pension requires years of contributions.
The question almost everyone asks first
Do I need occupational disability insurance if I have just moved to Germany?
Yes, if you live on your salary. The statutory reduced earning capacity pension (Erwerbsminderungsrente) normally requires five years of insurance and three years of contributions in the last five, so newcomers are often not covered at all. Even with a full record, it only pays if you cannot do any job for six hours a day, not just your own. A private BU policy pays based on your own occupation and is best taken out early, while you are healthy.
Do the maths
Your income gap if you can no longer work in your job
The German state disability pension only pays if you cannot do any job at all, and then usually little. Enter your net pay and what the state would pay (see your Renteninformation). Newcomers often have almost no entitlement yet.
No tax, inflation or pension increases.
Why the German state pension is not enough, especially for newcomers
The German pension insurance does not ask whether you can still do your job, but whether you can do any work on the general labour market. Less than three hours a day gives a full reduced earning capacity pension, three to under six hours gives half. Protection for your own occupation only survives for people born before 2 January 1961.
On top of that comes a waiting period: generally five years of insurance, three of them with compulsory contributions in the last five years. Periods in other EU countries can count towards this under EU coordination rules, but periods in the UK after Brexit, the US or India depend on separate social security agreements. If you have worked in Germany for two years, assume you have no state disability cover until proven otherwise.
How BU differs from income protection in the UK or disability cover in the US
A German BU policy pays a fixed monthly pension, not a percentage of your salary. You choose the amount at the start and can usually increase it later without new health questions after events such as marriage, a child or a pay rise. Payments continue until the end of the term, typically age 67, as long as the disability lasts.
Good policies waive the so-called abstract referral (abstrakte Verweisung): the insurer cannot argue that you could theoretically work in another comparable job. There is also usually no fixed waiting period of weeks as in UK policies. The insurer pays once a doctor expects the disability to last at least six months, often backdated to its start.
Health questions and medical records from abroad
The application asks about treatments, diagnoses and medication over the last three to ten years, including those abroad. German insurers take these answers very seriously. Under the Insurance Contract Act, an insurer can withdraw from the contract for incorrect answers within five years, or ten years if they were deliberate or fraudulent. That usually comes up when you claim.
Collect your medical records from your home country before applying. If anything is unclear or you have a condition, we can send an anonymous risk enquiry to several insurers first. That way a refusal does not end up in the insurers' shared information system under your name.
What is covered
- Monthly pension if you cannot do your own job, whether through illness, accident or decline in strength
- Premium waiver while you receive benefits
- Mental health conditions, the most frequent cause of claims
- Backdated payment from the start of the disability, depending on the policy
- Increases without new health questions after certain life events
- Guaranteed increase of the pension while you receive it, if agreed
- Worldwide cover, including if you later leave Germany
What is not covered
- Conditions you did not disclose when applying
- Exclusions agreed at the start, for example for a particular joint
- Disability below the agreed threshold, usually 50 percent
- Deliberately self-inflicted harm
- Payments beyond the agreed end age
Who needs it
- Employees who have not yet built up five years in the German pension system
- Freelancers and founders, who often have no statutory cover at all
- Young professionals and students, who get the lowest premiums while healthy
- Single earners and couples with a mortgage
- Civil servants, as service incapacity insurance (Dienstunfähigkeitsversicherung)
Who can do without
- People with enough assets to live without earned income until retirement
Wheel of misfortune
Spin the wheel of bad luck
Six things that really happen. The wheel picks yours and shows who pays.
Cost:
Budget policy
Strong policy
See all six cases
- Burnout, six months on sick leave, at €2,000 a month: €12,000 for six months. Budget policy: pays in part, Strong policy: pays. Basic policies only pay once the disability is assessed and accepted, which takes time. Strong ones pay after six months of sick leave while the assessment runs.
- Designer with severe RSI, monthly pension until the end age, six figures over a long term. Budget policy: pays, Strong policy: pays. If the pain stops you working at a computer for at least half your working time, you meet the usual 50 percent threshold. Any solid policy pays.
- Therapy back home left off the form, insurer withdraws, no pension at all. Budget policy: does not pay, Strong policy: does not pay. Treatment abroad counts just like treatment in Germany. If it was asked for and left out, the insurer can withdraw when you claim, whatever the policy.
- Laid off, then a long illness, monthly pension based on your last job. Budget policy: pays in part, Strong policy: pays. Some policies may refer you to other work once you have left working life. Strong ones keep assessing you against the job you last did.
- Moved back home, then fell ill, monthly pension paid abroad, often for years. Budget policy: pays in part, Strong policy: pays. Most policies keep cover worldwide, but basic ones may require medical assessment in Germany at your cost. Strong ones accept assessment where you live.
- Heart surgery at 64, cover ended at 63, three years of pension missing before retirement. Budget policy: does not pay, Strong policy: pays. Cheap policies often end at 60 or 63. If the disability starts after that, nothing is paid. Strong policies run until 67.
What it costs
The premium depends mainly on your occupation. Insurers group jobs into risk classes, and a manual trade can pay several times what an office job pays for the same pension. Age, health, pension amount and term add to that.
What drives the premium
- Occupation, share of desk work and management responsibility
- Age and health when you apply
- Monthly pension amount
- Term and benefit period, usually until 67
- Smoker or non-smoker
- Indexation before and during a claim
- Gross versus net premium, depending on profit participation
We do not quote a premium range, because occupation and health drive the price more than anything else. Your premium is only fixed in the quote.
The policy levels on the market
02
BU with care and indexation
Adds a benefit if you need long-term care, a guaranteed annual increase during a claim and extensive options to raise the pension later.
03
BU as a rider
Attached to a term life policy, a private pension or a Rürup pension. Can have tax advantages, but links two contracts together.
How to recognise a good policy
| Criterion | Minimum standard | Strong policy | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract referral | waived | waived, also after a change of job or leaving work | Without the waiver, the insurer can point you to a job you will never actually do. |
| Prognosis period | six months | six months, backdated to the start | Longer periods delay your first payment by months. |
| Increase options | marriage and birth of a child | many events, including without a reason in the early years | Your pension needs to grow with your salary, and later health questions may be hard to pass. |
| Sick leave clause | none | payment after six months of sick leave while the claim is assessed | Bridges the months the insurer needs to decide on your claim. |
| Benefit period | until 60 or 63 | until 67 | A gap of several years before the state pension can no longer be closed. |
| Premium deferral | on request | interest-free, also during parental leave or unemployment | Cancelling in a tight phase often means you cannot get cover again. |
| Worldwide cover | cover continues abroad | no restrictions on residence or claims assessment abroad | Many expats leave Germany later, and the policy should move with them. |
Insurers on the German market
Occupational disability insurance is underwritten by German life insurers. The wording of the terms and how the insurer classes your occupation matter more than the brand. This is a market overview, not a statement about which insurers we work with.
| Insurer | Background |
|---|---|
| Allianz | life insurer of the Allianz group, agents and brokers |
| Alte Leipziger | mutual insurer, mainly through brokers |
| Nürnberger | part of the Nürnberger group, agents and brokers |
| Volkswohl Bund | mutual from Dortmund, sells through brokers |
| WWK | mutual from Munich, agents and brokers |
| LV 1871 | mutual from Munich, sells through brokers |
| Continentale | part of the Continentale group, agents and brokers |
| Stuttgarter | mutual, mainly through brokers |
| HDI | part of the Talanx group, agents and brokers |
From the BaFin register
77
77 insurers supervised by BaFin, the German regulator, are licensed for this class of insurance. (Lebensversicherer)
Show all 77 names from the register
- ACM Lebensversicherung AG
- AGER Lebensversicherung AG
- Aioi Nissay Dowa Life Insurance of Europe Aktiengesellschaft
- Allianz Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- Alte Leipziger Lebensversicherung auf Gegenseitigkeit
- Athora Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- AXA Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Baloise Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft Deutschland
- Bayern-Versicherung Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- BL die Bayerische Lebensversicherung AG
- BY die Bayerische Vorsorge Lebensversicherung a.G.
- Concordia oeco Lebensversicherungs-AG
- Condor Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- Continentale Lebensversicherung AG
- Cosmos Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- Credit Life AG
- Debeka Lebensversicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit Sitz Koblenz am Rhein
- Delta Direkt Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft München
- Deutsche Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- Deutsche Ärzteversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- DEVK Allgemeine Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- DEVK Deutsche Eisenbahn Versicherung Lebensversicherungsverein a.G. Betriebliche Sozialeinrichtung der Deutschen Bahn
- Dialog Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- DIREKTE LEBEN Versicherung AG
- Dortmunder Lebensversicherung AG
- Entis Lebensversicherung AG
- ERGO Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- ERGO Vorsorge Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- EUROPA Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Frankfurt Münchener Lebensversicherung AG
- Frankfurter Lebensversicherung AG
- Generali Deutschland Lebensversicherung AG
- Gothaer Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Hannoversche Lebensversicherung AG
- HanseMerkur Lebensversicherung AG
- HDI Lebensversicherung AG
- HDI Vorsorge Lebensversicherung AG
- Heidelberger Lebensversicherung AG
- HELVETIA schweizerische Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- HUK-COBURG-Lebensversicherung AG
- IDEAL Lebensversicherung a.G.
- INTER Lebensversicherung AG
- InterRisk Lebensversicherungs-AG Vienna Insurance Group.
- Itzehoer Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- Lebensversicherung von 1871 auf Gegenseitigkeit München
- Lifestyle Protection Lebensversicherung AG
- LPV Lebensversicherung AG
- LVM Lebensversicherungs-AG
- Mecklenburgische Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- myLife Lebensversicherung AG
- MÜNCHENER VEREIN Lebensversicherung AG
- neue leben Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- NÜRNBERGER Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Protektor Lebensversicherungs-AG
- Provinzial Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Provinzial Lebensversicherung Hannover
- Proxalto Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft c/o Viridium Group GmbH & Co. KG
- R + V Lebensversicherung a.G.
- R + V LEBENSVERSICHERUNG AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
- SIGNAL IDUNA Lebensversicherung a. G.
- SIGNAL IDUNA Lebensversicherung AG
- Skandia Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Sparkassen-Versicherung Sachsen Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Stuttgarter Lebensversicherung a.G.
- SV SparkassenVersicherung Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Swiss Life Lebensversicherung SE
- uniVersa Lebensversicherung a.G.
- VEREINIGTE POSTVERSICHERUNG VVaG
- Versicherer im Raum der Kirchen Lebensversicherung AG
- Volkswohl-Bund Lebensversicherung a.G.
- VPV Lebensversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
- WGV-Lebensversicherung AG
- WWK Lebensversicherung auf Gegenseitigkeit
- Württembergische Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Zurich Deutscher Herold Lebensversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
- Zurich Life Legacy Versicherung AG (Deutschland)
- Öffentliche Lebensversicherung Sachsen-Anhalt
Source: BaFin company database, retrieved 18 September 2026. Insurers from other EU countries selling through a branch or without a German office are not included.
Legal basis and sources
Products and add-ons
Stand-alone occupational disability insurance
A separate policy covering only the risk of occupational disability. The most flexible option.
Service incapacity insurance
For civil servants (Beamte). Pays when the employer declares service incapacity, particularly important in the first five years of service.
Earning incapacity insurance
Pays only if you cannot do any work at all. Cheaper, much weaker, an option for jobs that cannot get affordable BU cover.
Basic abilities insurance
Pays if you lose defined abilities such as walking, seeing or using your hands. Mental illness is usually not covered.
BU through your employer
As part of a company pension scheme, sometimes with simplified health questions. Check what happens when you change employer.
Myth or truth
True or false?
Five things people say about this insurance. Guess first, then see the answer.
Krankengeld from my health insurer protects me for as long as I'm ill.
This is false.
False. Statutory sick pay for the same illness lasts at most 78 weeks within three years and is below your net salary. After that, only the reduced earning capacity pension remains, if you qualify.
The cheapest time to buy BU is while you're still studying.
This is true.
True in most cases. Premiums are set by your age and health at the start, and many insurers accept students. A clean medical file at 22 is worth more than any discount later.
A good BU insurer can send you to work as a cashier instead.
This is false.
False. Good policies waive the abstract referral. The insurer can only point to another job if you have actually taken it up and it matches your old one in pay and social standing.
Declaring a past therapy means you will be turned down.
This is false.
False. A therapy that ended years ago often leads to acceptance, sometimes with an exclusion or surcharge. What really ruins a policy is leaving it out.
Office workers pay much less for BU than electricians.
This is true.
True. Insurers group jobs by risk, and desk jobs sit in the cheapest groups. Describe your actual tasks precisely, including the share of desk work, because that decides your group.
Common mistakes
- Assuming the German state will pay after only a few years of contributions
- Answering health questions from memory without your records from abroad
- Applying to several insurers at once instead of an anonymous enquiry
- Choosing a pension that ends at 60 while state pension age is 67
- Letting the policy lapse during a job change or parental leave
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Can I get BU insurance if I am not a German citizen?
Yes. What matters is that you live in Germany when you apply and can pay by SEPA direct debit. Some insurers ask how long you have lived here or plan to stay. Nationality as such is rarely a hurdle.
Do my contributions from my home country count for the state disability pension?
Contributions from EU and EEA countries and Switzerland can count towards the German waiting period. For other countries it depends on whether Germany has a social security agreement with them. Your pension insurance office can confirm this in writing.
How much monthly pension should I insure?
A common rule of thumb is 70 to 80 percent of your net income, enough to pay rent, running costs and health insurance, which continues during a claim. You can usually increase it later without new health questions.
Does BU pay for burnout or depression?
Yes, mental health conditions are covered and are among the most common reasons for claims. If you were treated before applying, you must disclose it, which usually leads to an exclusion or a surcharge rather than a refusal.
What happens to my policy if I leave Germany?
With most good policies, cover continues worldwide and you keep paying the same premium. In a claim, the insurer will ask for medical reports it can assess, which may need translating.
Is BU income taxed in Germany?
A private BU pension is taxed only on its income share (Ertragsanteil), which depends on the remaining term. A BU pension within a Rürup pension is taxed in full, but the premiums are tax-deductible.
What is the difference between BU and the Erwerbsminderungsrente?
The state pension asks whether you can do any work at all, BU asks whether you can still do your own job. The state pension requires a waiting period and is usually much lower. Both can be paid at the same time.
Can I get BU with a pre-existing condition?
Often yes, with an exclusion for the affected area or a higher premium. Serious conditions can lead to refusal. An anonymous enquiry to several insurers shows the options without leaving a record under your name.
I am self-employed. Is BU different for me?
Insurers also check whether you could reorganise your business instead of stopping work. Good policies waive this for small businesses or set clear limits. As a freelancer you usually have no statutory disability cover, so BU is even more important.
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