Skip to content

German income tax return (ESt 1 A)

German income tax is assessed after the end of the calendar year on the income received in that assessment period (§ 25(1) EStG). Anyone earning income from agriculture and forestry, from a trade or from self-employment must transmit the return ELECTRONICALLY — for them the paper form is the exception, not the rule (§ 25(4) EStG).

Up to date for 2025 — verified on October 3, 2026Official procedure, no printed formGuide: about 75 min

This content is part of the path: Determining profit as a self-employed person· Step 10 of 11· Next step: Applying to adjust German advance tax instalments

This content is part of the path: Filing your income tax return· Step 12 of 12· Last step of the path

This content is part of the path: Letting a property and paying tax on it· Step 8 of 8· Last step of the path

This content is part of the path: Taxing and declaring investment income· Step 7 of 7· Last step of the path

Deadlines

Seven months after the end of the calendar year
General deadline for tax returns relating to a calendar year (§ 149(2) sentence 1 AO)
Last day of February of the second following year where a tax adviser is instructed
§ 149(3) AO — the tax office may request the return in advance in individual cases (§ 149(4) AO)
One month after service of the assessment notice: the objection period
§ 355(1) sentence 1 AO — it runs from service, not from the date on the notice

Documents to prepare

  • ELSTER access with a certificate or an ELSTER business account
  • Tax identification number of every person covered by the return
  • Profit computation of the self-employment or trade: Anlage EÜR or annual accounts
  • Wage tax certificates for the calendar year
  • Evidence for special expenses, extraordinary burdens and pension contributions
  • Bank details for a refund or direct debit
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

  • Persons with a residence or habitual abode in Germany in the calendar year for which the return is made — that is how ELSTER states the condition of the ESt 1 A
  • The self-employed, traders and farmers: they earn income under § 2(1) sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3 EStG and are therefore bound to file electronically (§ 25(4) sentence 1 EStG)
  • Spouses choosing joint assessment under § 26b EStG: they file ONE joint return, to be signed by hand by both (§ 25(3) sentence 2 EStG)
  • Not concerned are the cases in which no assessment takes place under § 43(5) and § 46 EStG
  • For persons with limited tax liability ELSTER provides its own form, the ESt 1 C — this guide describes the ESt 1 A

Worked example

Andrea Siebert, a photographer in Erfurt, and her employed husband

Andrea earns income from self-employment, that is income under § 2(1) sentence 1 number 3 EStG. § 25(4) sentence 1 EStG therefore applies: her income tax return must be transmitted in the officially prescribed dataset by remote data transmission. That her husband only draws wages changes nothing — if both choose joint assessment under § 26b EStG, they file ONE joint return (§ 25(3) sentence 2 EStG), and Andrea's income pulls the whole return into the electronic obligation. With the return they attach Andrea's profit computation, here the Anlage EÜR. Only on request and to avoid undue hardship may the tax authority waive electronic transmission (§ 25(4) sentence 2 EStG).

How to fill it in, step by step

  1. Check whether an assessment is due at all: under § 43(5) and § 46 EStG it does not take place in certain cases (§ 25(1) EStG).
  2. Settle the form of assessment: separate, or joint under § 26b EStG — in the second case ONE joint return is filed.
  3. Sign in to Mein ELSTER and select „Einkommensteuererklärung unbeschränkte Steuerpflicht (ESt 1 A)“ and the calendar year.
  4. Record the income from every relevant category and add the corresponding schedules.
  5. As a self-employed person or trader, attach your profit computation — the Anlage EÜR or the annual accounts.
  6. Transmit the return with authentication; electronic transmission is the mandatory form for income under § 2(1) sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3 EStG.
  7. Check the assessment notice as soon as it arrives: the one-month objection period runs from its service (§ 355(1) sentence 1 AO).

Good to know

  • The statute requires an income tax return signed BY HAND (§ 25(3) sentence 1 EStG); with electronic filing the authenticated transmission takes the place of the signature.
  • The duty to file electronically attaches to the CATEGORY of income, not to its amount: it applies as soon as income under § 2(1) sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3 EStG is earned and no assessment case under § 46(2) numbers 2 to 8 EStG applies.
  • The assessment period is the calendar year, and the assessment is made on the income received IN that period (§ 25(1) EStG) — not by the year of invoicing.
  • On request the tax authority may waive remote transmission to avoid undue hardship (§ 25(4) sentence 2 EStG). That is an application, not an option.
  • ELSTER provides a separate form for persons with limited tax liability (ESt 1 C). The condition for the ESt 1 A is a residence or habitual abode in Germany in the relevant calendar year.

Common mistakes

  • As a self-employed person, choosing the paper return because it seems easier. § 25(4) sentence 1 EStG makes electronic transmission mandatory as soon as income under § 2(1) sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3 EStG is present.
  • Filing two separate returns under joint assessment. § 25(3) sentence 2 EStG requires ONE joint return, signed by hand by both.
  • Forgetting the profit computation. Without the Anlage EÜR or annual accounts the basis of the self-employment or trade income is missing.
  • Counting the objection period from the DATE on the notice. It runs from its SERVICE (§ 355(1) sentence 1 AO) — two different moments.
  • Assuming the filing deadline is individually negotiable. It follows from § 149 AO; instructing a tax adviser extends it, a wish does not.

Frequently asked questions

Must I file the income tax return electronically?

If you earn income from agriculture and forestry, from a trade or from self-employment — income under § 2(1) sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3 EStG — and no assessment case under § 46(2) numbers 2 to 8 EStG applies: yes (§ 25(4) sentence 1 EStG). On request the tax authority may waive this in hardship cases.

Which period is assessed?

The calendar year. Income tax is assessed after its end on the income the taxpayer received in that assessment period (§ 25(1) EStG).

We are married — one return or two?

Under joint assessment pursuant to § 26b EStG, one joint return, signed by hand by both (§ 25(3) sentence 2 EStG). Under separate assessment each person files their own.

By when must I file?

At the latest seven months after the end of the calendar year (§ 149(2) sentence 1 AO); where a tax adviser is instructed, by the last day of February of the second calendar year following the assessment period (§ 149(3) AO).

I do not live in Germany — does this form apply?

No. ELSTER states the condition for the ESt 1 A as a residence or habitual abode in Germany in the relevant calendar year, and provides a separate form, the ESt 1 C, for persons with limited tax liability.

Go further

Compute the related amounts

Understand this form: the related course

Related forms

Official sources

Read in German

This topic in other countries

Each country applies its own law: these pages are written in its language and read from its official sources.

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.