Fill in the Anlage EÜR in ELSTER: step by step until you send it

You fill in the Anlage EÜR in ELSTER in five steps: open the form on elster.de, choose the calendar year, enter the tax number, fill in the annexes and send it with electronic authentication. The deadline for 2026 is Monday, 2 August 2027. What the individual lines ask is explained in Anlage EÜR lines explained: lines 11, 14 and 25; the whole EÜR at a glance is in EÜR template: preparing and sending the income surplus statement in ELSTER.

Last updated: 4 November 2026

In short

Where: on elster.de under Forms and Services (“Formulare und Leistungen”) and All Forms (“Alle Formulare”), the form “Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)”.
How: electronically with authentication; paper only in a hardship case.
Deadline for 2026: Monday, 2 August 2027, together with the income tax return.
Lines that do not concern you: stay empty, even without the value 0.00.

The Anlage EÜR in ELSTER in five steps

The form can be used for one business separately or in connection with the income tax return. Proceed like this:

Open the form: on elster.de under Forms and Services (“Formulare und Leistungen”) and All Forms (“Alle Formulare”), choose the form “Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)”.
Choose the calendar year: in principle the year in which the profit determined with the Anlage EÜR is to be recorded in the tax assessment. As of 21 October 2026 ELSTER offers the years 2019 to 2025; 2026 cannot be selected there yet.
Enter the tax number: choose the federal state and enter the (business) tax number; the tax office is determined automatically. If you have no tax number for the business or the tax office has not yet told you one, choose the second option and state the competent tax office. How to get a tax number: Tax number in Germany: applying with the tax registration questionnaire online.
Select and fill in the annexes: the Anlage EÜR and, if they apply to you, the further annexes – see the next section.
Send: with electronic authentication; on paper only in a hardship case.

Two notes from ELSTER on filling in: lines and fields that do not concern you are not filled in – not even with the value 0.00. And if ELSTER takes over data from the previous filing, it is only a little; that is not an error.

What this means for you: five steps in ELSTER, and the Anlage EÜR is enough for most sole proprietorships; further annexes only come in if they apply to you.

Which annexes belong to the EÜR in ELSTER?

The ELSTER guide distinguishes these annexes:

Anlage EÜR: general details on the business as well as business income, business expenses, the determination of profit taking corrections into account (for example tax-exempt business income, non-deductible business expenses, investment deduction amounts), reserves and hidden reserves, and withdrawals and contributions.
Anlage AVEÜR: details on your business assets (fixed and current assets) and on the development of the book values of the assets.
Anlage SZ: details for determining the non-deductible debt interest for your sole proprietorship.
Further annexes: The annexes SE, AVSE and ER concern partnerships of co-entrepreneurs (Mitunternehmerschaften), the annex LuF vineyards and forestry businesses.

You transmit a separate Anlage EÜR for each business.

General details and the “type of business” in the header

At the top of the Anlage EÜR are the general details (lines 1 to 11). The ELSTER guide to the Anlage EÜR 2025 names three things:

the tax number under which the business is managed
the type of business or activity (focus)
the legal form of the business, for example sole trader (Einzelgewerbetreibende(r)) or member of a liberal profession

For the business year (line 4) you only enter something if it differs from the calendar year. The “type of business” is free text: briefly describe what you mainly earn your income from. We did not find a selection list for it in the guide. Line 14 is not part of this: only farmers and foresters whose sales are not taxed under the general rules of the UStG fill it in.

What this means for you: in the header, enter the tax number, one sentence on the focus of your activity and the legal form.

Fill in the Anlage EÜR in ELSTER as a small business owner

As a VAT small business owner (Kleinunternehmer) you enter your full business income, as the total amount actually received, in line 12. Small business owners generally do not fill in lines 15 to 17. You enter business expenses at the gross amount. The details come from the official ELSTER guide to the Anlage EÜR 2025. The full guide with all lines is at Anlage EÜR as a small business owner.

What this means for you: you fill in fewer lines and calculate without VAT.

How and by when do you send the Anlage EÜR?

Electronic: You transmit the Anlage EÜR in the officially prescribed data set by remote data transmission (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV). Paper is permitted only in hardship cases.
With the income tax return: Anyone with business income (trade, self-employment, agriculture and forestry) also transmits the income tax return electronically (§ 25 para. 4 EStG).
Deadline: at the latest seven months after the end of the calendar year (§ 149 para. 2 AO). If the end of the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, the next working day applies (§ 108 para. 3 AO) – for 2026 that is Monday, 2 August 2027. If a tax adviser prepares your return, longer deadlines apply (§ 149 para. 3 AO).
Too late: If you file late, the tax office can set a late-filing penalty (§ 152 AO).

What this means for you: 2 August 2027 is the deadline for 2026; send the Anlage EÜR electronically.

How VAT GPT helps you with the Anlage EÜR

You do not have to add up the lines yourself. In three steps:

Upload files: your Amazon or eBay CSV reports and your invoices. The AI reads amounts, countries and tax rates.
Check the result: VAT GPT prepares your EÜR. The printout shows the amounts with the line numbers of the Anlage EÜR, for example lines 15, 16, 17 and 18, the total business income in line 23 and the total business expenses in line 75. You check and confirm.
Send: with VAT GPT Pro via ELSTER to the tax office.

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Frequently asked questions

Where do I find the Anlage EÜR in ELSTER? On elster.de under Forms and Services (“Formulare und Leistungen”) and All Forms (“Alle Formulare”); the form is called “Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)”.

Which year do I choose in ELSTER? In principle the year in which the profit determined with the Anlage EÜR is to be recorded in the tax assessment. As of 21 October 2026 ELSTER offers the years 2019 to 2025.

What do I do without a tax number for the business? If the tax office has not yet told you a tax number, you choose the second option and state the competent tax office.

Do I have to fill in every line? No. Lines that do not concern you are not filled in – not even with the value 0.00.

Where do I enter my income as a small business owner? In line 12, with the total amount actually received. Whether you are a small business owner is governed by § 19 UStG (in German).

Can I file the Anlage EÜR on paper? Only in hardship cases; otherwise you transmit it electronically (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV).

By when must the Anlage EÜR for 2026 be filed? By Monday, 2 August 2027, because 31 July 2027 is a Saturday (§ 149 para. 2 AO, § 108 para. 3 AO).