Mitversicherung ÖGK: who can be co-insured, what it costs, and where the gaps are (2026)

Which relative do you want to co-insure?

ÖGK co-insurance rules differ by relationship: spouses, registered partners and children qualify directly, while parents qualify only after 10 months in the household plus further conditions (oegk.at; § 123 ASVG). Pick the lane that fits; the sections below explain each one with its source.

ÖGK co-insurance in 9 official facts

What is ÖGK co-insurance, and who can use it?

ÖGK co-insurance is the way a person insured with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (Österreichische Gesundheitskasse, ÖGK) gives relatives health cover without a policy of their own. In the ÖGK’s own words, “Insured persons of the ÖGK can co-insure further persons (relatives)”, provided the relatives have their centre of life in Austria and are not statutorily insured themselves (oegk.at). In German this is ÖGK Mitversicherung; the legal basis is § 123 of the General Social Insurance Act (ASVG).

The insured person can be someone who works in Austria (for example on a Red-White-Red Card after the Austria job seeker visa), receives an Austrian pension, or pays ÖGK self-insurance. Employees in a job subject to compulsory health insurance are insured themselves; a marginal job paying no more than €551.10 a month (2026) gives accident insurance only. Self-insured people can co-insure a spouse, registered partner and children; the self-insurance side is explained on ÖGK self-insurance vs private cover. If the sponsor is insured with another fund (for example as self-employed with the SVS or as a civil servant with the BVAEB) or abroad, co-insurance follows that fund’s rules. We have not checked them, so ask that fund.

Co-insurance is not a separate product you buy. The insured person applies for each relative, the ÖGK checks the conditions and, where due, charges a monthly extra contribution to the insured person. It only exists while both conditions hold, meaning the sponsor is insured and the relative lives in Austria without own statutory cover. The exception is a child in school or vocational training abroad within the education age limit (§ 123 (5) ASVG).

Mitversicherung Angehörige: which relatives qualify, and on what terms?

Spouses, registered partners and children qualify directly; parents, siblings and unmarried partners only under the stricter household rules. The table sums up the ÖGK pages for each group of relatives (Angehörige).

One rule matters for families who plan to bring several relatives. On the housekeeping or child-raising ground, “only one single person” can be the co-insured relative (§ 123 (7) ASVG). An insured person cannot co-insure both parents that way.

Mitversicherung Ehepartner: what does it cost to co-insure a spouse?

Co-insuring a spouse costs 3.4 % of the insured person’s contribution base (Beitragsgrundlage, § 51d ASVG) in 2026, unless an exemption applies. For employees that is roughly the gross pay up to the ceiling (Höchstbeitragsgrundlage, § 45 ASVG). The ÖGK describes it as the current gross income or monthly pension, increased by pro-rata special payments such as the 13th and 14th salary. It charges the contribution monthly to the insured person and can collect it up to five years back (oegk.at; § 51d ASVG). Because it grows with the sponsor’s income, it is not a flat fee. The ÖGK sends a questionnaire to work out the amount.

Simplified illustration from the 3.4 % rate, not a quote. It can also be zero: at the lowest income in the table the earner’s net income may be at or below the net-income limit in the exemptions below, and then no contribution is due, so ask the ÖGK. Pro-rata special payments are added on top, and the contribution base cannot exceed the ceiling (§ 45 ASVG); the ÖGK pages we read state no cap amount, so ask the ÖGK for the binding amount.

When is nothing due? The ÖGK lists six exemptions (oegk.at FAQ).

• The co-insured spouse currently raises one or more children in the shared household.
• In the past, the spouse raised a child in the shared household for at least four years.
• The spouse receives care allowance (Pflegegeld) of at least level 3.
• The insured person receives at least level 3 and is cared for by the spouse.
• Social need applies when the insured person’s net income is no higher than the couples’ equalisation rate (€2,064.12, 2026).
• The insured person receives sickness, maternity, childcare or unemployment benefit, or emergency assistance.

Co-insurance of a spouse or registered partner starts at the earliest on the wedding day or the start of the registered partnership. You apply with the form “Prüfung der Anspruchsberechtigung für Angehörige” (check of entitlement for relatives) plus the marriage or partnership certificate. If your spouse takes a job that is subject to compulsory health insurance, they become compulsorily insured themselves and co-insurance ends. For an employee, that is the case when monthly earnings exceed the marginal-earnings threshold (Geringfügigkeitsgrenze) of €551.10 in 2026. A marginal job at or below that threshold gives accident insurance only.

Is a spouse who has just arrived co-insured from day one?

A spouse who has just arrived is not automatically co-insured: co-insurance needs habitual residence in Austria, which the ÖGK describes as “as a rule at least six months” of stay, and no official page we read says how this applies to a spouse who has just arrived with a residence permit. The law gives the right only to relatives who live in Austria (§ 123 (1) ASVG), so co-insurance cannot cover the permit application filed abroad or the journey. That is our reading of the texts; the ÖGK decides each case.

For residence permits the official line is cautious. migration.gv.at says family members of Red-White-Red Card, Blue Card holders and Austrian citizens “are usually covered by their sponsors’ health insurance (co-insurance)”, and asks for proof of all-risk cover “unless compulsory insurance coverage exists or will exist” (migration.gv.at). Vienna’s MA 35 page accepts co-insurance on someone’s statutory insurance as enough, with no private policy needed (wien.gv.at; see MA 35 Vienna in English). What the exact proof should be for an application filed abroad, before co-insurance exists, is not stated, so ask the authority handling your case.

Mitversicherung Eltern: can parents be co-insured with the ÖGK?

Parents can be co-insured with the ÖGK in 2026 only if all of these conditions are met at the same time (oegk.at; § 123 (7) ASVG). A newly arrived parent does not yet meet the 10-month household condition.

• The parent has habitual residence in Austria and no statutory insurance of their own.
• For at least 10 months, the parent and the insured person have lived in the same household.
• The parent has run the household unpaid for at least 10 months, or raises a child under 18 in the household.
• No able-bodied spouse of the insured person lives in the household.
• Nobody else is already co-insured on this ground, because only one person can be.

The contribution is the same as for a spouse, 3.4 % of the insured person’s contribution base (§ 51d ASVG; for employees, roughly the gross pay up to the ceiling), unless an exemption applies. Ask the ÖGK for the binding amount. Co-insurance starts one day after the conditions are met. The fourth condition rules out co-insurance for a parent whenever the insured person’s able-bodied spouse lives in the same home. Our conclusion is that a parent moving to Austria needs cover of their own for at least the first 10 months, and in that household set-up for good: private all-risk cover at first, with ÖGK self-insurance as the public alternative once the parent lives in Austria with a valid permit (see the comparison below).

Whether an authority accepts a parent’s co-insurance at permit renewal is not stated on any page we read. The permit routes for parents are explained on can I bring my parents to Austria? and, for parents of Austrians, parents of Austrian citizens. Budget rent and living costs with the official figures on cost of living in Austria.

When are children co-insured, and when does it end?

Children are co-insured with their insured ÖGK parent without a contribution in 2026. This covers biological, step-, foster, grand- and adopted children, and step- and grandchildren must live in the same household (oegk.at). A child born in Austria is, as a rule, co-insured automatically from birth with both parents. For a child born abroad, the ÖGK needs the birth certificate and the completed form.

Child co-insurance also ends when the parent’s own cover ends. Children of students are a special case we have not verified; for student families see study in Austria.

Co-insurance, ÖGK self-insurance or private cover: how do they compare?

Co-insurance costs nothing for children and, for adults, 3.4 % of the sponsor’s contribution base (§ 51d ASVG; for employees, roughly the gross pay up to the ceiling) unless exempt. For a higher earner it can therefore cost more than a private policy. It is also the only one of the three routes that depends on someone else’s insurance. The table compares the three on the same criteria; the ÖGK columns are information only.

The private product and its limits are on Care Austria plans, prices and limits, and every price by age sits side by side on Austria health insurance cost. Self-insurance and its waiting period are explained on ÖGK self-insurance, and how the public system works overall on health care in Austria.

How do you apply for ÖGK co-insurance?

The insured person applies, not the relative, with the ÖGK form “Prüfung der Anspruchsberechtigung für Angehörige”. The application goes online through Meine ÖGK (needs ID Austria), by post, or on the blank form (oegk.at). Have these ready.

• The completed form, signed by the insured person.
• Marriage certificate (Heiratsurkunde) or partnership certificate (Partnerschaftsurkunde) for a spouse or partner; birth certificate for a child born abroad.
• Proof of habitual residence, for example a registration extract (Meldezettel) or rental agreement.
• Any further document the ÖGK asks for; after a move from abroad, the form also asks for a record of insurance periods from your foreign insurer (EU/EEA, UK, Switzerland or a treaty state).
• Keep any private policy running until the ÖGK confirms co-insurance.

Worked example: a spouse joins in Vienna, and a mother follows

Illustrative example: Ravi, 36, works in Vienna on a Red-White-Red Card (work routes are on Austria work visa) and earns €4,200 gross a month. His wife Meera, 34, applies for her permit from abroad and will look after their two-year-old son at home. Once she lives with him and the ÖGK accepts co-insurance, Ravi pays 3.4 % of his contribution base unless an exemption applies, and one does: while Meera raises their son in the shared household, nothing is due. Without that exemption, a simplified illustration would be about €142.80 a month in 2026 before special payments; the ÖGK sets the binding amount. Until then, if the authority asks for her own policy, Care Austria Standard unlimited costs €155 a month under 50 (2026); the 1-year minimum term (AVB § 3) means at least €1,860 (12 months; more if cover does not start on 1 January), even if co-insurance starts sooner. Ask Care Concept AG about an early end before you buy.

Ravi’s mother Lata, 67, wants to join them. She cannot be co-insured for at least 10 months, and because Meera, Ravi’s able-bodied spouse, lives in the same household, the housekeeping ground does not apply at all. In our reading, Lata needs cover of her own for as long as Meera lives in the same household: private all-risk cover at first, and ÖGK self-insurance is the public alternative once she lives in Austria with a valid permit (see the comparison above). Care Austria Standard unlimited for 65–74 costs €510 a month in 2026 (minimum term 1 year, AVB § 3), €6,120 a year, rising to €617 a month from 1 January 2028 (AVB § 5). Confirm in writing with Care Concept AG that a new contract can start at her age, and ask about pre-existing conditions before applying. If co-insurance does not fit, see Austria health insurance options.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• ÖGK: co-insurance (Mitversicherung) overview (who can be co-insured, checked 30 October 2026)
• ÖGK: co-insurance of spouses and partners (3.4 % contribution, exemptions, habitual residence, exclusions; page undated)
• ÖGK: co-insurance of children (ages, both parents, children born abroad; page undated)
• ÖGK: relatives running the household or raising children (10-month rules for parents and others; page undated)
• § 123 ASVG (RIS) and § 51d ASVG (RIS), the law in the version valid from 1 January 2026
• migration.gv.at: family reunification, which says co-insurance “usually” covers sponsors’ families
• City of Vienna (MA 35): health insurance for residence permits (co-insurance accepted, checked 30 October 2026)
• Care Austria policy terms (AVB) and tariff page (the insurer documents behind the bridge prices, read 30 October 2026)

Our editorial standards and about this site pages explain how we work, and contact reaches the team. This page is general information, not legal or insurance advice; the ÖGK decides on co-insurance and the authority on your permit. Referral links may earn us a commission from Care Concept AG at no extra cost to you (affiliate disclosure).