You currently have the right to a free skin cancer check every two years. This may change by end of 2027. Here is what we know, and what you should do now.

The Hautkrebs-Screening is a free full-body skin inspection available to all GKV members aged 35 and over, every two years. It can be carried out by your GP (Hausarzt) or a dermatologist (Hautarzt), provided they have completed the required additional training.

The check involves a visual inspection of the entire skin surface, including visible mucous membranes. Since April 2020, dermoscopy (a close-up examination using a handheld magnifier with a light source) has also been included in the GKV benefit catalogue, making the check more thorough than it was at launch.

Germany introduced the programme in 2008 following a pilot study in Schleswig-Holstein that suggested a link between screening and reduced melanoma mortality. It remains the only country in the world to offer this as a universal, non-risk-based entitlement for the general population.

Germany's statutory health insurance system (GKV) is under serious financial pressure. The average supplementary contribution rate (Zusatzbeitrag) more than doubled between 2022 and 2025, and without action, projections suggest a funding gap of around 15 billion euros by 2027.

To address this, Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) appointed an expert panel called the Finanzkommission Gesundheit, which published 66 cost-saving proposals in late March 2026. One of those proposals was to suspend the universal skin cancer screening.

The commission's vice-chair, Professor Ferdinand Gerlach, made the case plainly: there is no reliable evidence from existing studies that the current programme reduces skin cancer mortality in the general population. Every other country, including Australia where UV exposure is far higher, has reviewed the same evidence and chosen not to offer a universal programme.

On 29 April 2026, the federal cabinet approved the GKV-Beitragssatzstabilisierungsgesetz (GKV Contribution Stabilisation Act). This law does not abolish the screening. Instead, it instructs the G-BA, the joint federal committee that sets GKV benefit rules, to formally review the skin cancer screening guidelines with a view to shifting from a universal model to a risk-based one. The G-BA must reach a decision by the end of 2027.

The law still needs to pass the Bundestag. A vote is expected before the summer recess in July 2026.

A risk-based model means that free screening would be limited to people with specific characteristics that put them at higher risk of developing skin cancer. Based on the clinical literature and the commission's proposals, risk factors under discussion include:

• Very fair skin, or a history of severe sunburn during childhood
• More than 50 moles, or a history of atypical or irregular moles
• A family history of melanoma
• Being on immunosuppressant medication (for example, after an organ transplant)
• High occupational sun exposure, such as outdoor or construction workers

Under this model, if you do not have any of these risk factors, you would no longer have an automatic entitlement to a free skin check every two years. You could still pay for one privately, but GKV would not cover it.

It is worth noting that PKV members are largely unaffected by this change. Private health insurance policies typically cover preventive dermatology consultations as standard, and the reform is specifically directed at the GKV benefit catalogue.

The response from dermatology and oncology bodies has been sharp.

The Deutsche Dermatologische Gesellschaft (DDG), together with the Nationale Versorgungskonferenz Hautkrebs, the AG Dermatologische Prävention, and the AG Dermatologische Onkologie, issued a joint statement opposing any suspension of the programme.

Their argument rests on two main points.

The first is the scale of the problem. According to the Barmer Arztreport, diagnosed cases of malignant melanoma (black skin cancer) increased by 121 per cent between 2005 and 2023. Cases of non-melanoma skin cancer rose by 186 per cent over the same period, from around 630,000 to 1.8 million cases. With an ageing population and continued sun exposure, these numbers are not expected to fall.

The second is cost. Early-stage skin cancer, detected during a routine check, can typically be treated with a straightforward outpatient procedure. Late-stage melanoma or cancer that has spread requires treatment with checkpoint inhibitors, which costs the GKV between 100,000 and 200,000 euros per patient. Cutting screening does not save money. It defers and multiplies costs.

The DDG is not calling for the current system to be preserved unchanged. They are calling for it to be improved: structured invitations so people actually use it (current uptake sits at around 30 per cent of eligible members), better documentation, mandatory quality standards, and a stronger focus on high-risk groups. Reform, not abolition.

This is where the debate becomes genuinely complex, and it is worth being honest about it.

The commission is correct that no large-scale study has conclusively demonstrated that the German universal screening programme reduces skin cancer mortality across the general population. A 2025 article in the Deutsche Medizinische Wochenschrift confirmed this position: widespread screening leads to more early-stage detections, but a statistically significant reduction in deaths has not yet been proven.

On the other hand, the argument that earlier detection does not save lives is also not proven. The challenge is that running a randomised controlled trial on a population-wide screening programme is enormously difficult, and the absence of conclusive evidence is not the same as evidence of no benefit. What the evidence does support is targeted screening for high-risk groups. There is stronger consensus here, and it is why even critics of the universal programme tend to agree that people with specific risk profiles should continue to be offered regular checks.

The entitlement still exists today. If you are aged 35 or over and covered by GKV, you are currently entitled to a free Hautkrebs-Screening every two years. Nothing has been removed yet.

Given that this right is under review and may be restricted by the end of 2027, it is worth making use of it while it is clearly available. If you have not had a check in the past two years, or have never had one, now is a practical time to book it.

You have two options. You can ask your Hausarzt to carry out the check directly, if they have the required screening qualification. Or you can ask your Hausarzt for a referral (Überweisung) to a Hautarzt (dermatologist), who will carry out the check at no cost to you.

If you are unsure whether you fall into a risk group, that is also a useful conversation to have with your GP at the same appointment.

The Bundestag is expected to vote on the GKV-Beitragssatzstabilisierungsgesetz before the summer recess in July 2026. If passed, the G-BA will begin its formal review process. A decision on whether and how to change the screening guidelines must be made by end of 2027.

We will update this page as the parliamentary process moves forward.