Health insurance is mandatory for the self-employed in Germany, and the choice you make can last decades. A good Krankenversicherung Selbstständige comparison tool saves hours, but it can’t make the real decision for you. This guide covers what a tool can and can’t do, the 2026 numbers that drive public-insurance (GKV) costs, and the main comparison tools. For related topics, see our guides to deductible expenses for the self-employed and Freiberufler vs Gewerbe . A note on “AI”: the tools below are mostly rate calculators and comparison portals, not AI advisors. I flag where they claim more. Subtopic: GKV or PKV, what no comparison tool can decide Self-employed people can choose public (GKV) or private (PKV) cover regardless of income, because they aren’t subject to compulsory GKV membership. The sources I checked agree on the trade-offs: GKV: contributions follow your income, with a floor and a ceiling. You pay the whole contribution yourself, with no employer share. PKV: bene...
A VAT deductible expense tracker for an EU freelancer has to do something income-tax apps don’t: capture the VAT on each receipt and keep the invoice that supports the claim. Whether that VAT is actually recoverable depends on your VAT status and your country’s rules. This guide covers when input VAT is deductible, the cross-border refund route, and which apps help. For income-tax deductions, see our German deductible expenses guide . A note on “AI”: in expense apps it mostly means receipt OCR and categorization. The tools extract data, but they don’t decide deductibility. Subtopic: when is input VAT deductible? Sources consistently describe three conditions: You’re VAT-registered and not using a small-business exemption. German sources are explicit that a Kleinunternehmer shows no VAT on invoices and, in return, can’t deduct input VAT. See our Kleinunternehmerregelung guide . You hold a valid invoice showing the supplier’s VAT number and the VAT charged. Austria’s officia...