Deadline for property tax declaration expires: tips for a quick submission
Created: 01/11/2023, 19:10
By: Lisa Mayerhofer
All owners must have submitted their property tax return by January 31st – otherwise there may be a surcharge for late payment.
With a few tips, a quick delivery can succeed.
Munich – More than 16 million Germans have already made the property tax return – but that is not even half of those who are obliged to do so.
The deadline expires at the end of January.
So if you are still in arrears, you should submit the property tax return as quickly as possible.
There are a few tricks to make it even faster to submit the property tax return.
What is behind the property tax reform
First of all: All owners who own apartments, houses and land in Germany (also in agriculture and forestry) must submit a property tax return by January 31st.
The reason for this is that the Federal Constitutional Court declared the current rating system unconstitutional in 2018 because similar properties are treated differently.
The previous calculation is based on property values that are decades old - in the west they come from 1964, in the east from 1935.
Therefore, the owners have to submit a kind of second tax return for property tax by January 31, 2023.
As a rule, the property tax declaration must be submitted to the tax office in electronic form - via the Elster portal.
In most federal states, the paper form is only intended for cases of hardship – on application to the tax office.
The exception to this is Bavaria, for example.
Submit property tax returns: Alternatives to Elster
If it is too complicated for you to submit the declaration via the Elster portal, you also have alternatives: for simple items - undeveloped land, one- and two-family houses, condominiums - there is, for example, in eleven federal states the possibility of a simpler submission via the "Land tax return" website for private property".
With the help of a questionnaire on the home page, you can quickly determine whether you can use this route.
If you want or have to use the Elster method, programs can help, but they cost something.
Stiftung Warentest recommended Wiso property tax in September, while the testers rated Smartsteuer property tax as rather confusing and error-prone during the test period.
There are also alternatives to Elster when submitting the property tax return.
(Iconic image) © IMAGO/Fleig / Eibner press photo
Submit forms: Fast for identification
In order for the submission in electronic form to work at all, you first have to be certified for it.
For data transmissions to tax authorities, the clear identification of a person must be ensured.
Depending on how the users identify themselves, this takes a different amount of time.
Two options help with a particularly quick identification.
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If you already have an Elster certificate, you can get started right away - the certificate also works for the website "Property tax return for private property".
An alternative to this is identification with the electronic identity card.
If the online ID function is already activated or the PIN letter is presented, this process only takes a few minutes via the beta version of the BundesIdent app – available in the App Store (iOS) or in the Google Play Store (Android).
Anyone who cannot fall back on either of the two variants must calculate significantly more time.
If you identify yourself using an activation code, the necessary letter will be sent by post by the tax authorities of the responsible federal state.
Delivery can take up to three weeks.
If you have to use this method, you should apply for the certificate immediately.
Property tax declaration: fill out the form in advance
If, for example, the activation code is not yet available, the waiting time is suitable for checking the necessary documents that are required for filling out the property tax return.
These differ depending on the federal state in which the property is located.
Information is available on the property tax reform overview pages set up by the federal states.
In the simple form, the property tax return must state:
size of the property
district
corridor or parcel
Co-ownership share of the property (for condominiums)
Tax number or the file number of the property
ground value
Year of construction of the building (from 1949)
living space
Number of garage parking spaces
Contact details of the owners
If all the documents are complete, you can start filling out the form on the “Property tax return for private property” website even without identification.
In addition, as with Elster, owners can interrupt and resume processing as often and at any time without losing their input.
Account use and family support available
Filing the property tax return in electronic form is particularly challenging for older people.
But you can get help: You can also submit the declaration via the already identified account of close relatives - regardless of how they identified themselves.
In addition to one's own children, close relatives include, for example, siblings and children of siblings (nieces and nephews), relatives and relatives in a straight line or also life partners of siblings.
In general, the obligation to submit does not cease to apply after the deadline on January 31, 2023.
If you miss the deadline, you may be subject to late payment penalties.
Associations therefore recommend submitting the property tax return in good time.
With material from the AFP
