Simply make your tax return online – this is how you do the tax with the Elster program
Created: 05/02/2022, 17:25
By: Juliane Gutmann
Make the tax with Elster: That's how it works.
© Marijan Murat/dpa
Make your own tax return easily and free of charge: Elster makes it possible.
How to proceed?
An instruction.
Are you one of those citizens who have to file a tax return?
Then you will already be familiar with the procedure.
It is due once a year, otherwise you are liable to prosecution.
However, filing a tax return is also worthwhile for those who are not self-employed or in business, or who are not subject to tax for other reasons.
Because depending on the commute to work and income-related expenses, there are hundreds of euros in tax refunds.
Many Germans use the Elster portal for their tax matters.
The abbreviation stands for "electronic tax return" and enables you to submit your tax return without paper.
The data is transmitted online to the responsible tax office.
So just go to the
Elster.de
website and get started?
Yes, if you have already received your login details.
Filing a tax return with Elster: the steps in detail
Apply for login data
: In a first step you have to register.
To do this, call
Elster.de
and click on "Create user account".
According to the Stiftung Warentest, logging in with a certificate file has proven itself.
Have your eleven-digit identification number ready for this registration method.
You will also be asked to assign a user name in the registration area.
Confirm e-mail address
: You will be sent an e-mail from Elster, which you must confirm.
In another email you will receive your activation ID for your Elster account, as informed by Stiftung Warentest.
This must be kept.
For security reasons, you will receive a second activation code in the post.
Complete registration
: Once you have received the letter with the code (this can take up to two weeks), you can complete your registration.
Simply click on the link in the email with the activation ID and enter the ID and code on the Elster page.
Save certificate
: After you have logged in, Elster will create your personal certificate, which you should keep in a safe place.
After the first login you will be asked to enter a password.
With this and the certificate you log in to your account for the first time.
Check your profile and enter tax-relevant data
: In the next step, you must enter your personal data and enter items such as income-related expenses, home office expenses or other tax-relevant expenses.
Dispatch
: Before the online tax return is sent to the tax office, Elster checks your entries.
You may have to enter or edit something.
In this case, a message appears from Elster.
(jg)