From 2026
New contribution assessment limits: This changes for insured persons
Updated on 08.09.2025 – 3:49 p.m.Reading time: 3 min.
Employees only pay contributions to the statutory pension, unemployment and health insurance up to a certain salary. Where the boundaries are.
You know it from your payroll: Every month, part of your salary does not flow to your account, but into the various social security, such as pension or health insurance.
However, these contributions are only charged up to a certain income limit. This so -called contribution ceiling changes every year. We show you what the height of the arithmetic variables depends on, where it currently lies for the various insurance companies and what it is all about with the compulsory insurance limit.
The contribution ceiling determines the amount of your income you have to pay contributions for statutory social security. It also decides on the maximum contribution to social security.
The part of the income that exceeds this limit is irrelevant for the calculation of the contributions. From this amount, you do not have to pay any further social security contributions.
But be careful: If your income exceeds the contribution ceiling, this does not mean that you no longer have to deposit in social security insurance such as pension or unemployment insurance. The only exception is the health and long-term care insurance.
If your income is high enough, you can choose whether you want to be privately insured instead of legally. From when this works, the so -called annual wage limit also regulates, also mentioned compulsory insurance (more on this below).
The Federal Government adapts the arithmetic sizes in the social security computing size every year and is based on the development of gross wages and salaries. If the average income increases, the contribution ceiling and vice versa also increase.
There are two different values for the contribution ceiling: one for statutory pension and unemployment insurance as well as one for statutory health and long-term care insurance.
For statutory pension insurance the following contribution assessment limits apply:
- 2026 (planned): 8,450 euros/month (101,400 euros/year)
- 2025: 8,050 euros/month (96,600 euros/year)
For unemployment insurance, the same contribution ceiling applies as for pension insurance:
- 2026 (planned): 8,450 euros/month (101,400 euros/year)
- 2025: 8,050 euros/month (96,600 euros/year)
The following contribution assessment limits apply in health and long-term care insurance:
- 2026 (planned): 5,812.50 euros/month (69,750 euros/year)
- 2025: 5,512.50 euros/month (66,150 euros/year)
The reference variety shows the average fee in Germany from the previous calendar year. It is used in social security for various calculations.
In 2025, the monthly reference variable is EUR 3,745 gross nationwide. In 2024, there were still different values for East and West in pension and unemployment insurance: In the west, the reference size was EUR 3,535 per month, in the east at 3,465 euros. In health and long-term care insurance, the west value had long been nationwide.
How high your social security contributions are depends on the amount of your gross wages or content. They measure themselves based on a percentage that employers and employees usually share in half. Only with long -term care insurance workers without a child are asked to pay more.
The following contribution rates currently apply:
- Statutory pension insurance: 18.6 percent
- Minister of pension insurance: 24.7 percent
- Unemployment insurance: 2.6 percent
- Statutory health insurance: 14.6 percent
- Nursing insurance: 3.6 percent (for childless plus 0.6 percent)
The statutory health insurance also collects an additional contribution that you can determine yourself. In 2025, dozens of health insurance companies increased the additional contribution. Also in 2026 there should be increases due to the poor financial situation of the health insurance companies.
