How long can I submit bills to my German private health insurance?
In short
How long can I submit bills to my German private health insurance? There is no fixed deadline. Your claims are subject to a three year limitation period counted to the end of the year, and waiting a very long time without reason can forfeit them. If you submit a year's bills by the end of the following year at the latest, you are on the safe side.
Deadlines and amounts for submitting bills to German private health insurance.
Example
Typical range
Regular limitation period
3 years from the end of the year
Binding answer before treatment
from EUR 2,000, with state aid from EUR 1,000
Insurer's reply deadline
4 weeks, urgent 2 weeks
Advance after submitting
after 1 month without a finished review
As of October 2026, legal position under the Civil Code (BGB),
the Insurance Contract Act (VVG) and the PKV association.
Deductible and premium refund details are in your tariff terms.
Worked example
Premium refund tariff, bills collected
Monthly premium EUR 500, an assumed refund of two monthly premiums in prospect. In 2026 doctor's bills come to EUR 380.
Possible premium refund
EUR 1,000
Bills 2026
EUR 380, paid yourself
Late bill from 2026 arriving in autumn 2027
EUR 2,500
Result
submit everything, refund is offset
Without the late bill he keeps EUR 1,000. With it he submits all 2026 bills; the rules allow that.
No deadline for bills, but a limit
When you submit bills is up to you. Two rules set limits: limitation and forfeiture. The regular limitation period is three years and starts at the end of the year in which the claim arose.
Forfeiture (Verwirkung) is possible if your insurer could no longer normally expect the documents. Leaving bills for years without good reason puts the refund at risk, even before limitation.
Bill from 2026 submitted
Assessment
in 2026
no problem
in 2027, for example because of a premium refund
common and no problem
2028 or 2029 without reason
queries and disputes possible
from 2030
limitation or forfeiture likely
When collecting bills pays off
With a deductible or premium refund tariff it makes sense to collect bills first. At the end of the year you see whether the refund for the bills is higher than the possible premium refund.
If you have already received the premium refund for a year and then submit bills from that year after all, the insurer must offset both. That is allowed but creates work, so decide consciously and in time.
When the doctor's bill arrives late
Doctors have no deadline for invoicing either. Many practices bill quarterly, but a bill can come one or two years after treatment.
For you it is due at once, at the latest 30 days after receipt, unless the bill states otherwise. If it comes so late that you could no longer expect it, the doctor may have forfeited the claim.
What applies after you submit bills
Once the insurer has all documents, the refund is due. If the review is not finished after one month, you can demand an advance of the amount it will at least have to pay.
Submitting pauses limitation until the insurer's decision reaches you in writing. Keep receipts and confirmations.
Clarify expensive treatment first
From expected costs of EUR 2,000, privately insured people have a legal right to a binding answer on what will be refunded, with state aid (Beihilfe) from EUR 1,000. The insurer must reply within four weeks, in urgent cases two.
If it misses the deadline, the treatment is presumed medically necessary, but the refund still follows your tariff. Some tariffs cut refunds without a cost estimate, for example for medical aids from EUR 1,000 or 1,500.
Step by step
Collect bills separately by year.
At year end compare refund and possible premium refund.
Decide by the end of the following year at the latest.
Submit bills complete with prescriptions.
Keep confirmations and decisions.
Checklist
Bills sorted by treatment year
Premium refund terms read
Expensive treatment checked in advance
Nothing older than last year left lying
Receipts and decisions kept
Common mistakes
Leaving bills for years
Submitting bills after the premium refund without doing the maths
No cost estimate for expensive treatment
Assuming no deadline means unlimited time
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Can I still submit last year's bills?
Yes.
That is common, for example because of the premium refund.
Does my tariff have a submission deadline?
According to the PKV association there is none.
Still read your terms, especially on premium refunds.
Do I have to pay the doctor first?
No.
You can forward the bill and pay after the refund.
It is due at the latest 30 days after receipt.
How fast must the insurer pay?
Once all documents are there.
If the review takes more than a month, you can demand an advance.
What happens to the premium refund if I submit later?
The insurer offsets the refund already paid against the reimbursement.
