Guide

How to find an English-speaking therapist in Hamburg

By the TheraPlatz team · Updated 13 October 2026

On paper Hamburg has more psychotherapists than it needs: the city reported 160 percent of the planning target in 2019. People still wait months for a place, because that target counts seats per inhabitant, not who has capacity this month. Start with the official practitioner search at arztsuche.116117.de, which can filter by language, get your Sprechstunde through 116117, and contact several practices at once. One thing to know before you need it: Hamburg has no single crisis line that's open around the clock, so the last section lists who to call at what time.

Search by language

The practitioner search at arztsuche.116117.de lists every Kassensitz practice in Hamburg. Enter your postcode, filter by Psychotherapie and then by Fremdsprachen, and choose English. The language entry comes from the practice and isn't checked, and the search doesn't show free places. The search of the Deutsche Psychotherapeutenvereinigung at dptv.de has a language filter too, and can also show private practices that work through Kostenerstattung.

What 116117 does in Hamburg

KV Hamburg runs the city's Terminservicestelle. On 116117 or online at 116117-termine.de it arranges a first Sprechstunde, Akutbehandlung or trial sessions for publicly insured patients. It arranges these first appointments, not a long-term therapy place, so use it to get your Sprechstunde and PTV 11 quickly and keep looking for an English-speaking therapist for the treatment itself.

Why there's a wait despite the surplus

A 2019 report by the city put Hamburg's supply of psychotherapists at 160 percent of the planning target, which formally counts as oversupply and closes the city to new Kassensitz seats. The same report, as covered by the Deutsches Ärzteblatt, still described waits of several months for an outpatient therapy place. The planning target was set decades ago and doesn't reflect how demand has grown, so a high percentage tells you little about whether a practice near you has room. Plan for months, and if your search for a Kassensitz therapist fails, Kostenerstattung is the route the law provides.

University outpatient clinic

The Psychotherapeutische Hochschulambulanz of Universität Hamburg is licensed by KV Hamburg and bills all health insurers. It offers assessment and therapy for a range of mental health conditions, with research clinics for psychosis, anxiety disorders and OCD. You register by phone during its office hours and then send in an intake questionnaire. Ask directly whether a therapist can work with you in English.

If you need help now

Who to call in Hamburg depends on the time. On weekdays from 8:00 to 16:00, the Sozialpsychiatrischer Dienst at your district office (Bezirksamt) helps adults in acute crises, and relatives can call too. In the evenings, overnight at weekends and on public holidays, the Hamburgisches Krisentelefon answers on 040 428 11 3000: Monday to Thursday from 17:00 to 23:30, from Friday 17:00 to Saturday 7:30, from Saturday 10:00 to Sunday 7:30, and on Sundays and holidays from 10:00 to 23:30. The Telefonseelsorge on 0800 111 0 111 is free and open around the clock, though usually in German. The psychiatric emergency departments of Hamburg's hospitals can be visited at any time, and in an emergency, call 112.

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