Guide · Deadline calculator
How long is a German therapy prescription valid?
Work out the date by which treatment has to start. For physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy prescribed in Germany, under the 2026 rules.
Result
As of 29 September 2026. The calculator is not advice. What counts is your prescription and the rules in force.
The rules at a glance
The basic rule: 28 days
A statutory health insurance prescription is only valid if treatment starts within 28 days of issue. The issue date is day 0. Issued on 1 October means: start by 29 October at the latest. This applies to physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy.
Urgent treatment: 14 days
If “Dringlicher Behandlungsbedarf” is ticked on the prescription, treatment must start within 14 days.
After hospital: 7 days
If the prescription comes from a hospital’s discharge management, treatment must start within 7 days of discharge. All sessions must take place within 12 days of discharge.
Employers’ liability insurance (BG): 14 days
Here the date in the “treatment start” field (field 8) counts. If it’s empty, the issue date counts. Treatment starts within 14 days of it, or within 7 days if marked urgent.
Blank prescription: 16 weeks at most
With a blank prescription (Blankoverordnung), the therapist decides on the type and amount of treatment. The start deadlines above apply. The prescription is valid for 16 weeks from issue at most.
Private, Beihilfe and self-pay
There is no statutory start deadline. Your insurer or the practice may have their own rules.
What the calculator doesn’t check
The calculator counts calendar days strictly and doesn’t extend a deadline for weekends or public holidays. Breaks and the end of a running prescription depend on the therapy and its course. Follow-up prescriptions in occupational therapy have their own rules. Your practice checks those.
Common questions
- How long is a physiotherapy prescription valid in Germany?
- Treatment must start within 28 days of issue, or within 14 days if urgent treatment is ticked. How long the sessions may continue after that depends on the therapy and on breaks. Your practice checks that.
- What happens if the deadline has passed?
- If treatment hasn’t started by then, the prescription is no longer valid and the practice can’t bill it. You usually need a new one. The deadline doesn’t apply to treatment that has already started. Your practice will tell you what happens next.
- Does the issue date count?
- The issue date is day 0. Issued on 1 October, the last possible day to start is 29 October.
- Does this also apply to occupational and speech therapy?
- Yes, the 28- and 14-day deadlines apply to all three. The exception: follow-up prescriptions in occupational therapy have their own rules. In speech therapy, the initial assessment counts as the start of treatment.
Praxis-Empfang, my project for therapy practices, works out this deadline for every request.
Sources
- G-BA: Heilmittel-Richtlinie, §§ 13a, 15 and 16a
- Framework contracts under § 125 SGB V for physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, § 6 each
- § 125a SGB V (blank prescription)
- DGUV: guidance on prescribing, providing and billing therapies (Heilmittel), as of 01/2026