Skip to content

German VAT: permanent extension of the filing deadline

The Dauerfristverlängerung (permanent extension of time) pushes back BOTH German VAT deadlines by one month: the filing of the preliminary VAT returns and the payment of the advance instalments. The tax office does not weigh this up — § 46 sentence 1 UStDV says it HAS to grant the extension on application, and sentence 2 gives it only one door to refuse or revoke: where the tax claim appears to be at risk. The price depends solely on your filing frequency: a MONTHLY filer only gets it subject to a special advance payment of one eleventh of the previous year's instalments (§ 47(1) UStDV); a QUARTERLY filer owes nothing.

Up to date for 2026 — verified on September 22, 2026Official procedure, no printed formGuide: about 15 min

This content is part of the path: Filing and paying German VAT· Step 8 of 10· Next step: German preliminary VAT return (Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung)

Deadlines

Application: by the day on which the first preliminary return covered by the extension would fall due
§ 48(1) sentence 1 UStDV — the application follows the deadline it extends, it does not precede it
Every further year of the extension: recalculate, declare and pay the special advance payment
By the STATUTORY date for filing the first preliminary return (§ 48(2) sentence 1 UStDV) — that is, the unextended date
Without the extension: the 10th day after the end of the filing period
Filing under § 18(1) sentence 1 UStG, payment due under § 18(1) sentence 4 UStG — both on the same day

Documents to prepare

  • ELSTER access with a certificate or an ELSTER business account
  • Your German tax number and the competent tax office
  • Your filing period: calendar month or calendar quarter
  • For monthly filers: the total VAT instalments for the previous calendar year
  • If you started trading this year: the instalments expected for the current year
  • Bank details for paying the special advance payment
See the procedure on the official site

No form is attached to this procedure: the link leads to the official page that describes it.

What this page gives you

The guide above and the link to the official site. ActioFin does not produce any document for this page: whatever you fill in or file is done on the official medium.

Who this applies to

  • Businesses whose filing period is the calendar month because last year's VAT exceeded 9 000 euros (§ 18(2) sentence 2 UStG) — they pay the special advance payment
  • Businesses left on the statutory default, the calendar quarter (§ 18(2) sentence 1 UStG) — they get the same one-month extension WITHOUT any special advance payment, because § 47(1) UStDV imposes it only on the monthly filer
  • Businesses that opted for monthly filing because last year produced a refund in their favour of more than 9 000 euros (§ 18(2a) sentence 1 UStG): the option binds for the calendar year, and so does the condition
  • New businesses: under § 18(2) sentence 4 UStG the calendar month is the filing period in the year of start-up and the following year — but for the tax periods 2021 to 2026 the deviating rule in § 18(2) sentence 6 UStG applies, which looks to actual or expected annual tax instead
  • Not concerned: anyone released from filing preliminary returns under § 18(2) sentence 3 UStG because last year's tax did not exceed 2 000 euros — there is then no deadline to extend

Worked example

Sabine Vogt runs an advertising agency in Leipzig and files monthly

Her VAT instalments for 2025 add up to 26 400 euros. Because last year's tax exceeds 9 000 euros, her filing period is the calendar month (§ 18(2) sentence 2 UStG), and the extension may only be granted subject to a special advance payment (§ 47(1) sentence 1 UStDV). That payment is one eleventh of the sum of the previous calendar year's instalments (§ 47(1) sentence 2 UStDV): 26 400 euros / 11 = 2 400 euros. She must apply by the day the January return would have been due, that is 10 February 2026 (§ 48(1) sentence 1 UStDV together with § 18(1) sentence 1 UStG); in the application she calculates and declares the 2 400 euros herself and pays it at the same time (§ 48(1) sentences 4 and 5 UStDV). From then on every return gets an extra month: the January return is not due until 10 March. The money is not lost — the assessed special advance payment is set off against the instalment for the LAST filing period of the tax year covered by the extension (§ 48(4) sentence 1 UStDV), that is, against the December return. Had Sabine been a quarterly filer, she would have won the same month without advancing a single euro: § 47(1) UStDV ties the condition expressly to the monthly filer.

How to fill it in, step by step

  1. Establish first whether your filing period is the calendar month or the calendar quarter (§ 18(2) UStG) — that, and nothing else, decides whether you owe a special advance payment.
  2. Fix the cut-off date: the application must be made by the time the first preliminary return covered by the extension is due to be filed (§ 48(1) sentence 1 UStDV).
  3. Log in to Mein ELSTER and choose the monthly form (Dauerfristverlängerung/Sondervorauszahlung) if you file monthly, or the quarterly form (Dauerfristverlängerung) if you file quarterly.
  4. If you file monthly, add up your instalments for the previous calendar year and take one eleventh of that sum (§ 47(1) sentence 2 UStDV).
  5. If you only traded for part of last year, first convert that period's total into an annual figure, counting part months as whole months (§ 47(2) UStDV).
  6. If you started trading in the current calendar year, base the figure on the instalments EXPECTED for that year (§ 47(3) UStDV).
  7. Submit the application in the officially prescribed data format through the officially designated interface and pay the declared special advance payment at the same time (§ 48(1) sentences 2, 4 and 5 UStDV).
  8. Diary the date for NEXT year: during the life of the extension the special advance payment must be recalculated, declared and paid every year (§ 48(2) sentence 1 UStDV).

Good to know

  • It is a PERMANENT extension: it runs until revoked. What recurs every year is not a fresh application but the recalculation and payment of the special advance payment (§ 48(2) sentence 1 UStDV).
  • The special advance payment is not an extra tax but a deposit: it is taken into account when the instalment for the last filing period is assessed, and any refund left over is set off against tax claims or otherwise repaid (§ 48(4) UStDV).
  • The application is a self-assessment: a monthly filer must calculate and declare the special advance payment HIMSELF (§ 48(1) sentence 4 UStDV). The tax office may assess it where it was not calculated, was calculated wrongly, or the declaration leads to an obviously incorrect result (§ 48(3) UStDV).
  • The extension covers BOTH deadlines — filing and payment (§ 46 sentence 1 UStDV, referring to § 18(1), (2) and (2a) UStG). It therefore moves the due date as well, not just the return.
  • On application the tax office may waive electronic filing to avoid undue hardship; the application is then made on the officially prescribed paper form (§ 48(1) sentence 3 UStDV).
  • The EC Sales List (Zusammenfassende Meldung) is NOT covered: § 46 UStDV names only the preliminary returns and the instalments under § 18 UStG.

Common mistakes

  • Basing the special advance payment on annual TURNOVER or on the annual tax. The base is the sum of the previous calendar year's INSTALMENTS, and the divisor is eleven, not twelve (§ 47(1) sentence 2 UStDV).
  • Calculating and paying a special advance payment as a quarterly filer. § 47(1) sentence 1 UStDV addresses the condition expressly to the business that has to file monthly.
  • Doing nothing in year two. During the life of the extension the special advance payment must be recalculated, declared and paid EVERY year (§ 48(2) sentence 1 UStDV) — and by the STATUTORY, unextended date of the first return.
  • Applying after the cut-off and assuming it works retrospectively. The application must be made by the time the first covered return is due to be filed (§ 48(1) sentence 1 UStDV).
  • Carrying last year's total across untouched after a partial year. § 47(2) UStDV requires conversion into an annual figure with part months counted as whole; § 47(3) UStDV looks to expected instalments where trading began in the current year.
  • Mistaking the extension for a deferral. It moves the due date by one month; whoever fails to pay after that is as late as before.
  • Assuming the tax office decides at its discretion. § 46 sentence 1 UStDV says it HAS to extend; the only door to refusal or revocation is a tax claim that appears to be at risk (§ 46 sentence 2 UStDV).

Frequently asked questions

How much time do I gain?

One month, for both deadlines: filing the preliminary returns and paying the instalments (§ 46 sentence 1 UStDV). The 10 February date for January therefore becomes 10 March.

Do I have to make a special advance payment?

Only if you have to file MONTHLY. The extension is then granted subject to the condition that you pay a special advance payment of one eleventh of the sum of the previous calendar year's instalments (§ 47(1) UStDV). Quarterly filers owe nothing.

Is the money gone?

No. The assessed special advance payment is taken into account when the instalment for the last filing period of the tax year covered by the extension is assessed; any refund left over is set off against tax claims and otherwise repaid (§ 48(4) UStDV).

I only started trading this year — what do I apply the eleventh to?

To the instalments EXPECTED for the current calendar year (§ 47(3) UStDV). If instead you traded for only part of last year, that period's total is converted into an annual figure, with part months counted as whole months (§ 47(2) UStDV).

Can the tax office refuse?

On one ground only. § 46 sentence 1 UStDV says the tax office HAS to extend the deadlines on application; under sentence 2 it must refuse the application, or revoke an extension already granted, where the tax claim appears to be at risk.

Do I have to reapply every year?

Not the application — the extension is permanent. The special advance payment is another matter: while the extension runs it must be calculated, declared and paid for each calendar year by the statutory date for filing the first preliminary return (§ 48(2) sentence 1 UStDV).

Go further

Compute the related amounts

Understand this form: the related course

Related forms

Official sources

Read in German

Guide and document provided for information purposes only; they do not constitute personalised legal or tax advice. Check the recipient organisation's requirements and consult a professional if needed.