The degree of nonminimality is at most 2

Summary: Given an algebraic differential equation of order greater than one, it is shown that if there is any nontrivial algebraic relation amongst any number of distinct nonalgebraic solutions, along with their derivatives, then there is already such a relation between three solutions. In the autonomous situation when the equation is over constant parameters the assumption that the order be greater than one can be dropped, and a nontrivial algebraic relation exists already between two solutions. These theorems are deduced as an application of a model-theoretic result, stating that a certain type is minimal if any three distinct realizations of it are independent.