Care homes in Saarland: what residents help to fund
In Saarland care home residents pay the highest levy for nurse training, and building costs rose noticeably in six months. The bill in its parts.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Monthly co-payment, Saarland
€3,695
in month 1, supplement 15 %
| Care (EEE) after supplement | €1,850 |
|---|---|
| Board and lodging | €1,271 |
| Investment costs | €574 |
| Fund pays the home | €1,645 |
| Monthly gap after pension | €2,095 |
| Savings last until the protected amount | 15 months |
| Co-payments over the next 36 months | €119,950 |
| Year 1 (15 %) | €3,695 |
|---|---|
| Year 2 (30 %) | €3,368 |
| Year 3 (50 %) | €2,933 |
| Year 4 (75 %) | €2,389 |
Step-by-step calculation
- vdek average for Saarland on 1 July 2026: EEE €2,176 (incl. training levy €254), board and lodging €1,271, investment costs €574.
- Month 1 in the home: supplement 15 % of the EEE = €326.40 (section 43c).
- Co-payment = €1,849.60 + €1,271 + €574 = €3,694.60.
Estimate using the 2026 amounts in Book XI of the Social Code. Only the decision letter from your Pflegekasse is binding. How we calculate
On 1 July 2026 Saarland was the second most expensive German state for the first-year care home co-payment after Bremen: €3,695 a month (vdek, rank 2). One feature lies in the care part of €2,176: it includes a nursing training levy of €254, the highest in Germany and well above the national €150. Over a year a resident thus funds about €3,048 of nurse training before the supplement. Board and lodging cost €1,271 and investment costs €574. The latter rose by €41 since January, the largest increase for this item of any state. With the care fund’s growing supplement the co-payment falls to €3,368 in year two, €2,933 in year three and €2,389 from year four. In neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate it starts at €3,289.
The bill in its parts
| Item | Saarland Jan 2026 | Saarland Jul 2026 | Germany Jul 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Care co-payment (EEE) | €2,128 | €2,176 | €2,088 |
| of which training levy | €254 | €254 | €150 |
| Board and lodging | €1,259 | €1,271 | €1,068 |
| Investment costs | €533 | €574 | €521 |
| Co-payment, year 1 | €3,601 | €3,695 | €3,364 |
In Saarland not only the care part moved but the building part too. That is unfavourable for families, because investment costs do not shrink with the length of stay. From year four they account for almost a quarter of the €2,389 co-payment.
Levy and supplement together
The high training levy is cushioned more over the years: the fund covers 15 percent of it in year one and 75 percent from year four, because it is part of the care part (section 84(2) SGB XI sets one uniform co-payment per home). Someone moving in now bears almost the full levy in the first twelve months. The care home co-payment shows how a real bill is built; if money runs short, social assistance for care is the next step.