My Elster 2023 – Tax Declaration with Elster – Step by Step

FAQ: My Elster – Tax Declaration with Elster

What is required for registration with Elster?

For an initial registration with Elster, a valid email address is required. You should set a password and select a security question. After registration, you will receive an activation ID by email and an activation code by post.

What does the certificate file mean in Elster?

After receiving your activation data by email and post, you can generate your certificate file and save it on your computer. This file is required for each subsequent login.

What are the advantages of Elster?
Elster is characterized primarily by being free of charge. It not only enables the creation of your tax return but also the submission of objections, applications, and much more.

What are the disadvantages of Elster?
For many users, Elster is quite demanding to use. It does not provide direct guidance on how to save taxes. Therefore, dedicated tax software or a tax app might often be a more suitable option.

What is possible with Elster?
Elster enables the creation and electronic submission of all types of tax returns to the tax office. In addition, you can file tax registrations, objections, deadline extensions, and various applications.

How do I create a tax return with Elster?
After a one-time registration, you must select “Income Tax Return Unlimited Tax Liability (ESt 1 A)”. Filling out the declaration requires a solid understanding of taxes.

Are there alternatives to Elster?
You can also create your tax return with specialized tax software or a tax app that offers support and tips for saving taxes.

What is the Elster Form?
The Elster Form is free software that can be downloaded. However, it is only usable for tax returns up to the year 2019.

Elster stands for “electronic tax return” and does not refer to ornithological behavior. It is a project of the German tax administrations of all federal states and the federal government for handling tax returns and other tax matters over the internet. This project is coordinated by the Bavarian State Office for Taxes.

We offer a brief overview of how to create and submit an (income) tax return online for free with “My Elster” to the tax office. We also discuss why tax software is often a more practical choice and what the Elster portal can do.

It may be confusing, but the terms “Elster” and “My Elster” are often used synonymously, even when the official website sometimes distinguishes them: On the main page of Elster, it is referred to as “Your Online Tax Office,” while on the subpage “Use and Benefits,” it is called “My ELSTER.”

“My Elster” is the official online application of the tax authorities

The most obvious advantage of “My Elster” is the ability to create your tax return online for free. However, it doesn’t offer as much support as commercial tax programs, which are inexpensive. The aim of the fiscal authority is not to point out all possible tax-saving options. Also, filling out the return with “My Elster” can be a challenge for people with little tax knowledge.

If you still wish to use it, there are two options until the tax return for 2023: the Elster Form and “My Elster.”

The Elster Form is a free software that you can install on your PC, but it is no longer developed and is only usable for tax returns up to 2019. “My Elster” is the only option for tax returns from 2020. It is web-based, requires no software download, and the declaration can be directly created in the browser. The best performance is technically provided on a Windows PC with Edge, Chrome, or Firefox, while Mac users should use Safari or Chrome. However, tax or content challenges do not depend on the browser used.

Since 2022, retirees or pensioners without additional income have the option to use EinfachElster as a free program.

The 2022 property tax return could also be processed for free with Elster. In eleven federal states, there was additionally the option to use a simpler, free program version alongside Elster.

Guideline: Setting up an Elster account

To fully utilize the advantages of electronic tax returns, it is advisable to create a one-time user account and register for “My Elster.” This not only gives you access to various forms in Elster but also to numerous electronic services of the tax administration, such as document retrieval (retrieving certificates or documents already available to the tax office) or information on the data recorded on your electronic income tax card (Elstam). Therefore, a registration makes sense in the long term.

There are several ways to get informed about Elster on this page. For private individuals, there are three free registration methods:

• -with the ElsterSecure app,
• -with the new identity card in credit card format and the AusweisApp2,
• -with Elster certificate (certificate file).

The last method is preferred by the tax administration. Therefore, we provide a guide for the Elster certificate below, leading you step by step through the process.

• -Create a user account – First, set up a user account on www.elster.de Click on the appropriate button at the top of the Elster homepage.
• -Submit personal data – First, enter your name, date of birth, and tax identification number. Then set your username, choose a security question, and provide the corresponding answer. These data will then be sent.
• Wait for the activation letter and email – You will receive the activation ID by email and additionally the activation code by mail. It will be sent to the address currently registered with the registration authority. This can take up to two weeks.
• -Download certificate file – After entering the data on the Elster site, you will receive your certificate file with the extension “pfx”. You must download this file and save it on your computer. This file is colloquially known as the “Elster certificate”. You can now log in to “My Elster” with it. Afterwards, you have the option to choose a personal password. Authentication is carried out together with the certificate file, which is valid for three years.
• -Extend Elster certificate – About three months before the Elster certificate’s validity expires, you will be notified in your email inbox. With a click, you can typically extend your Elster certificate.
• -Keep password and Elster certificate safe – It is extremely important to remember your password. Save your Elster certificate on your hard drive and ideally also on a USB stick or external hard drive. Keep the storage location in mind, as you will need this certificate each time you log in to the Elster portal. Warning: If you change computers or operating systems, you should retrieve your certificate file from the USB stick or online storage.

Forgot your Elster login details – what now?

Despite utmost care, it may happen that the certificate file is lost or you forget the password. In this case, you must renew your login details. This also applies if the certificate file has expired and you missed the renewal. In such cases, you should visit this specific Elster page. Afterwards, you can log back into your user account and retrieve saved data.

In addition to basic information such as your name, address, religious affiliation, and tax ID, you must specifically provide the following details:

• -Income tax, church tax, and solidarity surcharge withheld by your employer;
• -Contributions you have paid to health, nursing, pension, and unemployment insurance;
• -Contributions to Riester and Rürup contracts as well as
• pension benefits received.

Before you start filling out the forms in Elster, you should compile all necessary documents. A complete overview of which documents you need for the tax return, helps you to make the process smooth and not forget any documents. With the right documents, you can fill out your tax return faster and more completely.

It is anticipated that more and more data will be transmitted electronically and then be available to you.

In order to retrieve these documents for your tax return, you need a retrieval code, which you should request in advance. To do this, click “Formulars and Services” on the Elster homepage and then “Manage Certificates”. Your retrieval code will then be mailed to you. With this code, you can retrieve the data stored at the tax office. This document retrieval function is not time-limited, so you only need to do this once.

After retrieving your data, you should review the information for accuracy. If you find errors in the numbers, inform the tax office and provide the correct data in your tax return.

Guide to filling out the forms

Now the real work begins. Fill out the forms relevant to you step by step. This can be quite tedious at many points, and without tax knowledge, you may not get far. However, with the corresponding prior knowledge, it’s not an unsolvable task.

We cannot offer a detailed guide for each individual form here because there are simply too many. Instead, we provide an overview and show where you can find more information.

Homepage: If applicable, set check marks for things like employee savings bonus, loss carryforward, church tax on capital gains, and mobility premium. You must also enter your tax number or apply for a new one.
Main form: First, it’s about your personal data and, for couples, your joint data and religious affiliation. Then come, among other things, wage replacement benefits subject to progressive rates. In line 45, you can send a short message to the tax office.

• -Schedule AUS: This is about foreign income and the crediting or deduction of foreign taxes.
• -Schedule for extraordinary burdens / lump sums: First, you state if you want to claim a disability, bereavement, or care lump sum.
• -Schedule AV (Riester): If you have a Riester contract, you must provide information here.
• -Schedule Energy-related Measures: This only applies if you actually had costs for energy-related measures.
• -Schedule FW: This is about the promotion of home ownership.
• -Schedule Household Services: This concerns domestic employment relationships, services, and craftsman services. Don’t forget to also include data from your utility bill breakdown.
• -Attachments KAP, KAP-BET, KAP-INV: You do not always need to fill out these attachments for income from capital assets and tax credits. If you are unsure, check this guide.
• -Attachment Child: If you have one or more children, you need to take action here. Don’t forget to specify childcare costs and school fees, if applicable.
• -Attachment Mobility Premium: This has only existed since 2021. It only concerns you if you earn so little that you do not have to pay taxes but have a simple work commute of at least 21 kilometers.
• -Attachment N: This concerns income from non-self-employed work, meaning if you are an employee. On one side, you need details about your salary, and on the other, your work-related expenses, the advertising expenses. Now it’s about deductions: your commute, contributions to professional associations, home office or home office flat rate, training costs, travel expenses, relocation costs, double household management, and more.
• -Attachment N-AUS: This does not often need to be filled out as it concerns foreign income from non-self-employed work.
• -Attachment N-Gre: This concerns so-called cross-border commuters, meaning individuals who work in Switzerland, Austria, or France but live in Germany.
• -Attachments R, R-AV/bAV, R-AUS: If you are already retired, you need to act here. Pensioners enter their data at the relevant points, and there are also advertising expenses here. Benefits from a Rürup or Riester pension and a company pension scheme also play a role here.
• -Attachment SO: Here you must declare other income. This includes income from private sales transactions, maintenance payments, and parliamentary allowances.
• -Attachment Special Expenses: This includes church tax, donations, and professional training costs. Detailed information can be found in the Special Expenses guide.
• -Attachment Miscellaneous: This should not be confused with Attachment SO. Here there are points like a tax reduction for burden with inheritance tax, donation carryforward, and loss carryforward.