Rechtsstand Herbst 202643 life situations645 topic pages41 roadmapsFree, no account

I have to or want to file a tax return

For employees, pensioners, students, single parents and people with a mini-job or side job: whether you have to file, which deadlines apply, how to file with ELSTER or with help, and what helps if you are late or the tax office estimates your tax. The roadmap ends when you submit; there is a separate roadmap for the tax assessment notice.

How the roadmap works. Answer the questions. Your roadmap is built from them: whether you probably have to file, by when, which documents you need and who can help you. Many employees do not have to file at all but get money back if they do so voluntarily. If you have to file, take the deadline seriously: otherwise surcharges and an estimated assessment can follow. The roadmap gives general information, not help with tax matters in an individual case; income tax assistance associations (Lohnsteuerhilfevereine) and tax advisers are there for that.

Your answers are not stored or transmitted; they only appear in your browser's address bar. Anyone who shares the link also shares the answers. Legal status as of November 2026: EStG (Income Tax Act; basic tax-free allowance 2026: €12,348; commuting allowance of €0.38 from the first kilometre since 1 January 2026 under the Steueränderungsgesetz 2025, BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 363), EStDV, AO (Fiscal Code; filing deadlines § 149, extension of deadline § 109, late-filing surcharge § 152, notification after 4 days § 122 Abs. 2 and § 122a Abs. 4), Art. 97 § 36 EGAO (extended deadlines up to tax year 2024), StBerG (income tax assistance associations, § 4 as amended since 1 September 2026), BerHG.

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Stand As of November 2026. The roadmap arranges general information according to your answers. It does not review an individual case, does not replace legal advice and does not assess your dismissal or any deadline as valid, met or missed. Whether an entitlement exists is decided by the responsible office; deadlines and amounts change often – check important details with an advice centre.

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On a decision, deadline, application or responsibility. You get an answer with the matching page, the responsible office and the next step, usually within two working days. No legal advice in individual cases, no sharing of your data.