Millions of people in Germany are obligated to submit a tax return (Steuererklärung) each year, including plenty of foreign residents. Tax returns must be filed with the relevant tax office (Finanzamt) by a certain date.
If you owed tax in 2025, or need to file a tax return for that year, these are the deadlines you'll want to be aware of as well as an overview of the rules that apply.
Who needs to file a tax return?
Not everyone is required to file their incomes taxes in Germany because for many standard jobs basic taxes and social security contributions are already withheld from workers' pay -- but there are many cases in which filing is required.
The normal tax filing deadline applies to everyone who is obliged to submit an income tax return (Einkommensteuererklärung). This includes:
- Freelancers (Freiberufler) and self-employed (selbstständig) workers
- People who received wage replacement benefits during the relevant tax year, including; unemployment (Arbeitslosengeld), sickness- (Krankengeld), parental- (Elterngeld) or shortened working time benefits (Kurzarbeitsgeld)
- People with rental income or income that does not have taxes automatically above €410 per year (or €520 per year for income from temporary rentals such as with Airbnb)
- People with more than one employer
- People who received severance pay
- Married people in tax classes 3 or 5
- People with income from abroad that needs to be declared
There are additional situations that could require you to file your taxes. If in doubt, you'd be advised to check with an expert as to whether or not you are obliged to file.
Also, many people in Germany who aren't necessarily required to file a tax return do so anyway in order to claim certain deductions and potentially get some of their previously withheld taxes back.
EXPLAINED: The top tax deductions often overlooked by employees in Germany
When do I have to submit my 2026 tax return?
If you plan to prepare your tax return for 2025 yourself, you have until the standard deadline on Friday, July 31st, 2026.
However, if you will file your tax return for 2025 with a tax advisor (Steuerberater) or with the help of an income tax association (Lohnsteuerhilfeverein), then you'll have a bit more time.
There is generally a seven-month deferral period for people who file with help in this way. For the tax year of 2025, this extended deadline would then fall on Monday, March 1st, 2027.
Under certain circumstances, the tax office may request your tax return before the usual deadline. In this case, you'd be advised to act quickly -- any individual deadline set by the tax office is binding.
What happens if I submit my tax return too late?
If you’re concerned about missing the deadline, make sure you let the tax office know. If you’re a self-filer, you'll need to request an extension in writing from the relevant tax office ahead of the standard deadline to avoid incurring potential late fees.
Explain why you need an extension and propose a new deadline. There is no obligation on the part of the tax office to grant an extension, but in certain cases -- such as serious illness, a longer stay abroad or a move -- the Finanzamt has been known to allow for exceptions.
Your other option would be to engage the services of a tax advisor, in which case they can let the tax office know they'll be handling your case. Under these circumstances, the due date for your tax return would be extended to the following deadline on March 1st.
If you simply miss the due date to file -- without letting the tax office know in advance -- and owe income tax for the previous tax year, then you can expect to be hit with a late fee which would be added on top of the taxes owed.
The surcharge generally amounts to a minimum of €25 per late month or 0.25 percent of your assessed tax obligation, and will be applied automatically, starting from August 1st, 2026.
If you still don’t file your taxes after missing the deadline, the tax office may send you a formal request with a new deadline. Missing this can result in an additional penalty payment (Zwangsgeld). The penalty is typically between €100 and €500, but it can be much higher in severe cases.
READ ALSO: The big money and tax changes in Germany you need to know in 2026
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