- Expat Guide
- Health Wiki
Healthy teeth and good oral hygiene are important for all of us. In Germany, the cost of dental care is often around 60% lower than in the USA. What is more, the German system is usually favorably reviewed by expats. In fact, it is widely considered the best in Europe.
How the German dental care system works
As with the wider German healthcare system, whether you have public or private health insurance determines the scope and standard of dental care you receive. In an effort to cut costs, the German government has chosen to exclude a range of dental treatments from public insurance coverage.
Many people with public health insurance consequently choose to take out supplemental dental insurance (Zahnzusatzversicherung).
ottonova offers a dental insurance plan with three different tariffs for you to choose from. All tariffs include super-fast invoice reimbursem*nt, full coverage for dental treatment and immediate protection without waiting period.
➜ Check out our dental insurance plan!
If you take out private health insurance, dental will be included, but be careful – some insurers only offer limited coverage!
Quirks of the German dental care system
- Most dentists will issue a quotation called a Heil- und Kostenplan before performing treatment. If you have private insurance, you should present this to your insurer before undergoing treatment to make sure they will cover the costs.
- Statutory health insurance covers a dental checkup (Zahnuntersuchung) every six months and one polish and scale (Zahnreinigung) every year. Under private health insurance, regular visits may be required as a condition of covering more extensive dental work.
Dental coverage with ottonova
ottonova offers tariffs specially designed for expats, with transparent dental coverage as standard. Here’s a brief overview:
- Dental treatment – from checkups to fillings and root canals – is 100% covered, plus 1 or 2 professional dental cleaning sessions per year.
- We cover 80-100% of the costs for implants such as crowns, dentures and bridges, depending on your chosen tariff.
- For orthodontics – i.e. braces to correct a misaligned jaw and/or teeth – we cover up to 100% of the costs for patients under 21 and 60-100% of the costs for adults.
Check out now the expat tariff of the ottonova private health insurance!
Or are you more interested in a top-up dental insurance? Top-up dental insurance is useful for people with public health insurance. Costs of dental treatmentscan be very expensive, especially when it comes to dental prostheses. Public health insurance does not fully cover all of the costs.
ottonova's top-up dental insurance offersimmediate coverage, a reimbursem*nt within a few days and real-time support in English.Check out the ottonova top-up dental insurance now!
FAQ
In Germany, doctor fees are regulated by GOÄ (Gebührenordnung für Ärtze) and GOZ (Gebührenordnung für Zahnärtze). This is a price range regulation that indicates the cost of a treatment.
A normal treatment will be charged with factor 2,3. Anything higher than that up to 3,5 needs an explanation from the doctor on the invoice, explaining the increased effort.
Everything higher than 3,5 the doctor needs you to sign the so called “Honorarvereinbarung” before the treatment. We advise you to always let us know if this happens.
There are annual limitations, to a maximum of four insurance years for ‘Zahnersatz’/dental replacements (implants, onlays, inlays etc.). Here we are limiting the maximum reimbursem*nt amount, to a certain total, but it is increasing every insurance year. Of course, should you have an accident and require immediate dental treatment/replacement, this limit does not apply. Limitations do also not apply for professional cleanings and regular dental treatments.
Of course! Through our ottonova Concierge Service we can book appointments for you. You just easily write us a message with your requirements, and we will find the best option for you.
The process to get your finalized contract typically takes from an hour to 14 days. It depends on the individual case. You first have to submit an application for a tariff (including answers regarding your health status). After we checked your application you will receive your final contract.
If you have questions, feel free to book a non-binding consultation. Our sales team is happy to assist you during that process.
ottonova for Expats
Saving on health insurance and still getting the best coverage isn’t possible? With signing in for ottonova you can make it happen!
