Filing a German tax return as an employee

Before you start

• Your tax identification number (Steuer-ID)
• Your annual wage tax certificate (Lohnsteuerbescheinigung) from each employer
• For online filing, a registered ELSTER account

Documents you need

• Tax identification number (Steuer-ID)

  required

• Wage tax certificate (Lohnsteuerbescheinigung) for the year

  Your employer transmits it to the tax office electronically and gives you a copy; the data appear pre-filled in ELSTER.

  required

• Your IBAN for the refund

  required

• Receipts and proof of work-related expenses

  For example invoices for work equipment, training, job application costs, moving costs or commuting days. Keep them; the tax office may ask for them.

  optional

• Rental contract and utilities statement

  Useful for moving costs and for household-related services shown in the annual service charge statement.

  optional

• Employment contract

  Helpful to show that a move to Germany was for a job.

  optional

Step by step

1. 1

   Step 1: Check whether you must file or may file voluntarily

   As an employee you are obliged to file (Pflichtveranlagung) in particular if:

   • You had income of more than 410 euros that was not subject to wage tax (for example freelance work, rental income or foreign income), or more than 410 euros of tax-free wage replacement benefits such as unemployment benefit, parental allowance or short-time work allowance.
   • You worked for more than one employer at the same time (one job taxed in class VI).
   • You are married and one of you was in tax class V or VI, or you used class IV with factor.
   • The tax office entered an allowance (Freibetrag) in your wage tax data.
   • The tax office asks you to file.

   If none of this applies, filing is voluntary (Antragsveranlagung). You can then file up to four years after the end of the year: for 2022, until 31 December 2026. A voluntary return usually makes sense if you had work-related expenses above the flat 1,230 euros, worked only part of the year in Germany, changed jobs, or paid church tax and made donations.

2. 2

   Step 2: Note the deadlines

   If you are obliged to file and do it yourself, the deadlines are (status October 2026):

   • Return for 2025: 31 July 2026 (already passed). With a tax adviser or wage tax help association: 1 March 2027.
   • Return for 2026: 31 July 2027. With an adviser: 29 February 2028.

   If you cannot meet a deadline, ask your tax office for an extension before it expires; it is granted at the tax office's discretion. Late filing of a compulsory return can lead to a late-filing surcharge (Verspätungszuschlag) of 0.25 % of the assessed tax (after deducting prepayments) per month of delay, at least 25 euros per month. If the return is filed more than 14 months after the end of the tax year, the surcharge is generally mandatory.

   Voluntary returns have no July deadline; only the four-year limit applies.

3. 3

   Step 3: Register with ELSTER early

   ELSTER is the free online portal of the German tax administration. To register for a certificate file you need your tax ID, your date of birth and an email address. You receive an activation ID by email and, separately, an activation code by letter to the address held by the registration office. Postal delivery can take several days, so register well before you plan to file. ELSTER is in German; many terms are explained in its help pages.

   Alternatives are commercial tax software and apps, which transmit through the same official interface, or paper forms, which employees without business income can generally still use.

4. 4

   Step 4: Collect your documents and pre-filled data

   Your employer's wage tax certificate, health insurance contributions reported by your insurer and some other data are transmitted to the tax office electronically. In ELSTER you can import them into the return (pre-filled return, Belegabruf). Check them against your own copies.

   Then gather proof of expenses you want to claim. For the year of arrival, also note the date you moved to Germany and any income you earned abroad earlier that year.

5. 5

   Step 5: Claim typical deductions

   Common items for employees (figures for the tax year stated):

   • Commuting (Entfernungspauschale): for 2026, 0.38 euros per kilometre of the one-way distance from the first kilometre, for each day you travel to your regular workplace (generally capped at 4,500 euros per year unless you drive your own car). For 2025 the rate was 0.30 euros for the first 20 km and 0.38 euros from the 21st km.
   • Working from home (Homeoffice-Pauschale): 6 euros per day on which you mainly worked at home, up to 1,260 euros per year (210 days). It cannot be combined with a deduction for a separate home office room.
   • Work equipment (Arbeitsmittel) such as a laptop, desk chair or professional books: items up to 800 euros (net of VAT) can be deducted in full in the year of purchase, with a deduction for private use where relevant.
   • Job-related moving costs (Umzugskosten): moves for a first job, a change of employer or a transfer, or moves that shorten the round-trip commute by at least one hour. You can claim actual costs (removal company, travel, double rent during the notice period, estate agent fees for renting) plus a flat rate for other costs. For moves from 1 March 2024 the flat rate is 964 euros for the person moving and 643 euros for each additional household member (193 euros if you had no own flat before or after the move).
   • Training and job applications: courses related to your current or future job, application costs, professional association and trade union fees.
   • Other items outside work-related expenses: donations, church tax paid, childcare costs, and craftsmen's or household services (labour costs only), each under its own rules.

   Work-related expenses only reduce your tax to the extent that their total exceeds the automatic 1,230 euros employee allowance.

6. 6

   Step 6: Submit, wait for the notice and check it

   Submit the return through ELSTER or your software. The tax office sends a tax assessment notice (Steuerbescheid), electronically in ELSTER and/or by post, and pays any refund to your account. Compare the notice with your return. If something is wrong, you can file an objection (Einspruch) within one month of receiving the notice, online through ELSTER or in writing.

Getting help - wage tax help associations and tax advisers

Special points in the year you arrive or leave

Watch out

Common mistakes

• Waiting for the ELSTER activation letter in the last week before the deadline.
• Forgetting income that was not taxed through payroll, such as a short freelance project or wage replacement benefits.
• Claiming the home office flat rate and commuting costs for the same day.
• Not claiming the costs of a job-related move to Germany in the year of arrival.

Tips

• If you were not obliged to file for 2022, you can still file a voluntary return until 31 December 2026.
• Note the days you worked from home and the days you commuted in a simple calendar during the year.
• Use the pre-filled data in ELSTER (*Belegabruf*) to avoid typing errors.
• If you expect high work-related costs in the coming year, you can apply for an allowance in your wage tax data so that less tax is withheld monthly; filing then becomes compulsory.

Frequently asked questions

Editorial answers written by our team, based on the sources below.

Official links

In your plan

• File your annual tax returnAdd to plan
• Register for ELSTER, the online tax portalAdd to plan
• Register your self-employment with the tax officeAdd to plan

Sources

Written and checked by HomiStart editorial against the official sources below. Next scheduled check: 2 Feb 2027.