Which pension expenses can I deduct in the tax return?
Pension expenses are expenditures with which you provide for your future. Pension expenses are divided into health and nursing care insurance, retirement provision, and other insurance.
Retirement pension expenses mainly include contributions to the statutory pension insurance, a Riester pension, or a private Rürup pension (funded pension). Contributions to occupational pension schemes are also included if they provide benefits comparable to statutory pension insurance. This mainly applies to employees and self-employed members of professional chambers, e.g. doctors, dentists, veterinarians, pharmacists, tax consultants, lawyers, auditors, notaries, architects, engineers.
There is a separate maximum amount for payments into a Riester contract. Therefore, you can claim contributions to the specially subsidised Riester pension separately. For this, there is the "Anlage AV", in which the Riester contributions must be entered. This must then be submitted to the tax office together with the provider's certificate.
Contributions to statutory and private basic health insurance as well as statutory nursing care insurance (i.e. social nursing care insurance and private compulsory nursing care insurance) are deductible as special expenses in their actual amount and unlimited.
Other pension expenses mainly include contributions to unemployment insurance, occupational disability, accident, and liability insurance, term life insurance, private health insurance (beyond basic cover), and private nursing care insurance. Capital life insurance and pension insurance with a capital option (considered at 88%) as well as pension insurance without a capital option concluded before 2005 are also included here.
Insurance that does not serve to provide for the future is not deductible as pension expenses. This includes, for example, property insurance, such as household or legal protection insurance or comprehensive car insurance.
Also not deductible as pension expenses are contributions to direct insurance, a pension fund, or a pension scheme if they are tax-advantaged. Insurance amounts and other pension expenses do not fall under the "special expenses allowance" because they are not unlimited deductible special expenses.
The maximum pension amount is usually already exhausted by health and nursing care insurance and retirement pension expenses. Therefore, other pension expenses (see above) often have no tax effect.
For this reason, it is advisable to claim occupational insurance not covered by the employer as income-related expenses. In practice, a deduction in Anlage N (section "Employees > Income-related expenses") is mainly possible for professional liability insurance and professional legal protection insurance.
Since accident insurance usually covers both private and occupational risks, the contributions are partly deductible as income-related expenses and partly as special expenses. Claim 50% of the contributions as income-related expenses and 50% as special expenses ("other insurance"). However, if you have a hazardous occupation and the occupational risk share is greater than 50%, you should have this certified by the insurance company. Claim the certified share as income-related expenses and attach the certificate to your tax return.
Which pension expenses can I deduct in the tax return?
Which health and nursing care insurance contributions are deductible?
Contributions to health and nursing care insurance can be deducted as special expenses in the tax return – but only for the so-called basic cover.
For those with statutory insurance, the tax office reduces the contribution by 4% as this portion covers sickness benefit. The reduction is applied only if there is an entitlement to sickness benefit.
Privately insured individuals can also only deduct the basic contribution. Optional benefits (e.g. treatment by a head physician, two-bed room) are not included. They are only deductible as other pension expenses if the maximum amount has not been exhausted.
Maximum amounts for other pension expenses:
- 1.900 Euro per year for employees and pensioners
- 2.800 Euro per year for self-employed
As long as these amounts are not exceeded, other insurances can also be claimed – e.g. unemployment, liability, accident or disability insurance.
Example: A married couple pays a total of 4.600 Euro in contributions to health and nursing care insurance. As this is basic cover, the full contributions are deductible – even if they exceed the joint maximum amount of 3.800 Euro (2 × 1.900 Euro). Further insurances can then no longer be considered.
Which health and nursing care insurance contributions are deductible?
Increased deduction for insurance premiums from 2010
Since 2010, you can enter the full health and nursing insurance contributions for basic cover as special expenses in your tax return. The tax office deducts only four per cent from the contributions paid to statutory health insurance.
However, for privately insured individuals: You can only fully deduct the health and nursing insurance contribution if you pay the basic tariff of private health insurance. Policyholders with a different private health insurance tariff can deduct contributions up to the "basic cover" amount for tax purposes. In this case, the private health insurance company determines the exact share. However, these contributions are only recognised for tax reduction if the deductible maximum amount for "other insurance" has not yet been exhausted.
For employees, civil servants, pensioners and their partners, this is 1.900 Euro, for self-employed persons 2.800 Euro.
An employee earns 1.500 Euro gross per month. He pays around 132 Euro per month, 1.584 Euro per year, for his statutory health and nursing insurance. The tax office deducts four per cent from this amount. Thus, it recognises 1.521 Euro as special expenses. The taxpayer has therefore not yet reached his maximum amount of 1.900 Euro.
He can now also claim expenses for unemployment, liability and other insurance up to the maximum amount of 1.900 Euro. To do this, he deducts the 1.531 Euro. For the employee, this means: He can enter a further 379 Euro in insurance contributions in the income tax return.
Increased deduction for insurance premiums from 2010
How are health insurance contributions for children taken into account?
These contributions can be claimed for tax purposes under certain conditions. The key factors are whether you are entitled to child benefit and who is the policyholder.
1. Entitled to child benefit + You are the policyholder
If you, as a parent, pay the contributions for the child's basic insurance (health and nursing care insurance), you can enter these as special expenses in Form Child, line 31.
Contributions for additional services (e.g. optional services or overseas health insurance) are classified as “other insurance” and should be entered in Form Child, line 37.
2. Entitled to child benefit + Child is the policyholder
If you cover the insurance contributions for a dependent child, the contributions for basic insurance can also be deducted as special expenses by you (Form Child, line 31), regardless of whether cash or in-kind support is provided.
Important: Contributions to supplementary insurance can only be deducted by the child in Form Pensions and insurance, line 36 – not by the parents.
Legal basis: § 10 para. 1 no. 3 sentences 2 and 3 EStG (amended by the law of 12.12.2019).
Note: A ruling by the BFH (13.03.2018, X R 25/15) has been superseded by legislative changes.
3. No entitlement to child benefit + You are the policyholder
If you are the policyholder for the child, you can claim the contributions paid as your own special expenses in Form Pensions and insurance, line 40 ff. (§ 10 para. 1 no. 3 EStG).
4. No entitlement to child benefit + Child is the policyholder
In this case, no deduction for special expenses is possible.
However: The contributions for basic insurance can be entered as extraordinary burdens under § 33a para. 1 EStG in Form Maintenance.
Maximum amount 2025: 12.096 Euro. This increases by the health and nursing care insurance contributions you have covered. A reasonable burden is not deducted.
How are health insurance contributions for children taken into account?
Can contributions to mutual support societies be deducted?
Many citizens have either statutory or private health insurance. An alternative form of coverage is membership in mutual benefit societies or solidarity communities, which have existed for almost 100 years. However, there are frequent disputes with the tax authorities over whether contributions to such societies can be deducted as special expenses. This is often rejected on the grounds that no legal entitlement to benefits is acquired, as confirmed by many tax courts.
However, in 2023, the Federal Fiscal Court (BFH) made an important decision. It overturned a ruling by the Hessian Finance Court and referred the case back for reconsideration. The BFH found that there might indeed be a legal entitlement that would allow the contributions to be deducted as special expenses (BFH ruling of 23.08.2023, X R 15/22). A similar case from the Münster Finance Court was also referred back for a new hearing (BFH court order of 23.08.2023, X R 21/22).
The decision of the Münster Finance Court has now been made (ruling of 01.03.2024, 11 K 820/19 E). It decided that contributions to health care at mutual benefit societies can be deducted as special expenses, as they provide a level of coverage equivalent to that of statutory and private health insurance. In addition, members have a legally binding entitlement to benefits in the event of illness. However, contributions to long-term care insurance remain non-deductible, as only statutory long-term care insurance is eligible.
Conclusion: Contributions to mutual benefit societies for health care can be deductible as special expenses under certain conditions, provided there is a legal entitlement to benefits. This does not apply to long-term care insurance.
Can contributions to mutual support societies be deducted?
How is my contribution to statutory health insurance calculated in 2025?
Calculation of Contributions to Statutory Health Insurance
The contribution to statutory health insurance (GKV) is based on the gross monthly salary. The contribution is shared between employer and employee, while non-working family members (spouse, children) are co-insured free of charge.
Contribution Rates:
- General Contribution Rate: Applies to those insured with entitlement to sick pay, e.g. employees. Pensioners also pay this rate, even though they are not entitled to sick pay.
- Reduced Contribution Rate: Applies if there is no entitlement to sick pay, e.g. for students and self-employed persons.
Voluntarily insured persons can acquire entitlement to sick pay from the seventh week of illness onwards through the general contribution rate. Until the seventh week, loss of earnings must be covered privately or through an optional tariff.
Contribution Rate and Additional Contribution:
Since 2015, the general contribution rate has been 14,6%, shared between employer and employee. In addition, the employee pays a fund-dependent additional contribution, which averages 12,5% in 2025.
Contribution Assessment Ceiling:
The insurance contribution is calculated only up to the contribution assessment ceiling, which is 66.150 Euro annually or 5.512,40 Euro monthly in 2025. Income above this limit is not subject to contributions.
Reduction of Contribution:
As the general contribution rate secures sick pay, contributions are reduced by a flat rate of 4% if there is an entitlement to sick pay. The additional contribution is also included in the calculation of the reduction.
How is my contribution to statutory health insurance calculated in 2025?
Which health insurance subsidies do I need to declare?
If medical expenses or health insurance contributions are not paid from your own funds but are partially or fully covered by third parties, this must be indicated in the tax return. This includes, for example, tax-free employer contributions to health insurance for employees subject to social insurance (employer's share of health insurance). Also relevant are employer contributions for voluntarily insured persons, health insurance contributions for pensioners through the statutory pension insurance, benefit claims for civil servants and pensioners, and contributions from the artists' social insurance fund.
Up to what amount are health insurance contributions deductible?
Contributions to statutory and private basic health insurance as well as statutory nursing care insurance (i.e. social nursing care insurance and private compulsory nursing care insurance) are deductible as special expenses in the actual amount and without limit. Contributions and contribution shares to private health and nursing care insurance that go beyond basic cover can generally be deducted under "other insurance", but they usually have no effect there because the possible deduction limit has already been exhausted.
Which health insurance subsidies do I need to declare?
