Dental Care in Germany

27.01.2022

Dental care in many countries can be extremely pricey and therefore prohibit people from seeking out regular treatments.  Not so in Germany! In Germany, statutory health insurance covers all the basics of dental care and then some great preventative extras.

The health insurance companies have contracts with the dentists and pay the service directly. If you do need any extras, you may need to pay for the procedure yourself or there are options to apply for the insurance to pay part of the treatment – you should always discuss this with your dentist. An example of this is a ‚professional teeth clean‘ (prophylaxe) which you can have once a year, health insurance subsidizes this and you pay something between 50-100€ and it is a very effective measure for preventative dental care.

Statutory health insurances pay for a total of 2 dental check-ups per anum,  tartar removal, early diagnosis of periodontal disease. Children (6 – 18 years) 2 dental check-ups are paid for as well as a caries-prophylactic filling of tooth furrows (fissure sealing) of the two permanent molars in front of the wisdom teeth. Children (3 and 6 years) included are three dental early diagnosis examinations. The first exam takes place from the 34th month of life and the other two examinations until the end of the 6th year of life. There must be at least 1 year between examinations. Children who are at high risk of tooth decay are entitled to fluoridation.

Some dental treatments are not fully covered – for example root canal, implants, or ceramic bridges – by statutory health insurance, for this case you can acquire additional private insurance which will cover these extras.

Some helpful words for the visit to the dentist!

  • Dentist – der Zahnarzt
  • Teeth – die Zähne
  • Tooth – der Zahn
  • Gum – das Zahnfleisch
  • Root – die Wurzel
  • Plaque – der Zahnbelag
  • Filling – die Füllung 
  • Tooth extraction – die Zahnextraktion
  • Teeth cleaning/removal of tartar – Zahnsteinentfernung
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By

Juli Buchanan

Hi there! I'm Juli, I have german roots but I grew up in New Zealand and have been living in Germany since 2004. I love sharing my passion for Berlin and all it has to offer with new 'Berliners' and through my work as a freelance Relocation Consultant with IRC I have the opportunity to do so.

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