| Self-employed teachers are subject to compulsory pension insurance. This also applies to yoga instructors. In particular, there is no mere consulting activity that is not subject to the pension insurance obligation. This was decided by the LSG Hessen in the case of a yoga course instructor who saw herself as a yoga coach who was not subject to pension insurance. |
Teachers within the meaning of pension insurance law are persons who impart general education or special knowledge and skills to other persons by imparting theoretical or practical knowledge. Special knowledge and skills of the teacher are not required. According to the LSG, a legally regulated professional profile of the (self-employed) teacher is not relevant.
In the case of the verdict, the yoga course instructor imparted special knowledge and skills to the class participants. So she works as a teacher. A mere advisory activity does not exist. Instead of imparting general knowledge, the focus is on situation-related, application-oriented problem analysis and solution. Examples of this are corporate, career and life counseling and consulting. The activity of the yoga course instructor, on the other hand, focuses on concrete instructions for carrying out exercises and thus imparting knowledge. The participants completed the courses as a group. The focus is on imparting knowledge or skills. The fact that the participants also pursued therapeutic goals is irrelevant. Therapeutic goals are only relevant for the legal classification “if the satisfaction of a therapeutic need characterizes the contractual relationship and instructions and instructions for healing are only used as a means of achieving the primarily desired therapeutic success,” according to the judges. Adult education courses, on the other hand, primarily served the purpose of further education and not the individual treatment of the participants (LSG Hessen, judgment of June 28th, 2023, Az. L 2 R 214/22, retrieval no. 236025, revision not allowed).