Social security contributions are made up of:

  • Health insurance – Public or private (the pilot is responsible for selecting and for paying to the public or private health scheme) (Variable rates according to provider, usually 7.3% ER and from 7.6% to 9% EE). We deduct this from salary only if pilot is insured with a public provider.
  • Nursing care insurance (the pilot is responsible for selecting and for paying to the public or private health scheme, the nursing care insurance is mandatory in Germany) (1.28% ER and 1.28% EE/1.53% EE if childless). We deduct this from salary only if pilot is insured with a public provider.
  • Pension insurance (9.3% ER and 9.3% EE).
  • Unemployment insurance (1.5% ER and 1.5% EE).
  • Sickness Insurance (Variable rates according to provider, usually between 0.4% to 3.9% ER).
  • Paternity Benefit (0.44% ER).
  • Company Insolvency (0.09% ER).
  • Accident insurance (19.5 Euro per month ER).


DISCLAIMER: as O’Connor AND ASSOCIATES does not deduct anything from payroll for health and nursing care insurance, PILOTS must take a decision BETWEEN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHEME and provide US with the documents as soon as possible when being sent to Germany. If you do not take out any health insurance plan or you don't get back to us in a timely manner, penalty fees will be incurred as we cannot run the payroll for the company.


*In some cases, if a pilot average monthly gross salary since the start of the current year is lower than 4.950 per month, they are expected to earn below 59.400 Euro per year (line trainers etc.), they must then be registered as mandatory member of a public health insurance of their choosing. Our consultants will then contact the health insurance to inform them of the pilots’ status. In these cases, we will also deduct health insurance from their salary (Approx 15% extra). However, it is still the pilot`s responsibility to take out a public plan and our consultants can advise them on this. If they do not take out any health insurance plan, penalty fees will be incurred as we cannot run the payroll for the company.


Please see the below helpful document which outlines the employer's and employee's contributions of social insurance in Germany.