If you paid too little income tax last year, the tax office assumes that this will happen again. The advance payment is a kind of deduction for the expected tax revenue.
Self-employed people and traders are most often affected by this regulation because, unlike salaried employees, they do not automatically pay income tax. You can request a change to the advance payments if your income circumstances change over the course of the year, explains the North Rhine-Westphalia tax authorities. You must explain why your income is decreasing. For employees, payroll tax is usually deducted directly from their salary. If the contributions made are lower than the pension allowance, too little Income tax was withheld and the taxpayer must pay additional payments. The limit is 400 euros. If you have to pay more than this amount, you can expect an advance payment. The exact amount of payments depends on your income. The amounts are due every three months, on March 10th, June 10th,. September 10th and December 10th. You will not receive a separate payment request.