Generally speaking, you are legally required to have all forms of social security insurance including health, pension, unemployment and nursing care insurance. If you are employed at the University of Konstanz, in most cases you are required to have health, pension, unemployment and nursing care insurance. You can find additional information on the EURAXESS Germany pages.
Once you have signed your contract with the University of Konstanz, the university will register you for social security insurance. The University of Konstanz will register you with the health insurance provider you choose, who will then inform the other social security insurance providers. When registration has been completed, you will be mailed a social security number and proof of insurance coverage. In most cases, the employer is responsible for making sure that payments are deducted and transferred from your earnings each month.
If you receive a scholarship or a salary from your home country while in Germany, you are generally not required to have social security insurance - except for health insurance, that you will need to take care of yourself.
Pension insurance
Pension insurance is part of the social security insurance required by law. Your pension insurance payments will be automatically deducted from your gross wages. You can find additional information on the Deutsche Rentenversicherungpages.
Find out more about pension savings on the FindyourPension portal. The website provides information about pension programmes in different European countries and lets mobile researchers know about the pension savings they have earned in Europe.
In addition to providing statutory pension insurance, the university offers an occupational pension scheme for its employees. Visit the Versorgungsanstalt des Bundes und der Länder (VBL) pages to find out more about the programme.
Unemployment insurance (Arbeitslosenversicherung)
Unemployment insurance is another kind of social security insurance required by law. It provides financial support to the unemployed. Your unemployment insurance payments will be automatically deducted from your wages. You will need to find out, though, whether other countries recognise unemployment insurance payments made in Germany. For more information about unemployment insurance and benefit, please visit the EURAXESS Germany or Arbeitsagentur (federal job agency) websites.
To find out more about social security insurance, you are welcome to contact our tax and social security services specialists in our university's Human Resources Division.