German advance VAT return (UStVA): filing online, deadlines and permanent extension

In short

• Period: in principle the quarter; monthly if last year's VAT exceeded €9,000; up to €2,000 exemption possible.
• Permanent extension: monthly filers pay a special advance payment (one eleventh of last year's prepayments) by 10 February.
• Even without sales an advance return is due; paper only on application in cases of undue hardship.

What is the UStVA, and who files it?

The advance VAT return (Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung, UStVA) is the return with which you report the VAT for a month or a quarter to the tax office. You calculate the tax for the advance return period yourself; it is called the prepayment and is due on the 10th day after the end of the period (§ 18 para. 1 sentences 1 and 4 UStG). The business owner has to file it; small business owners (Kleinunternehmer) are in principle exempt (§ 18 para. 1 and § 19 para. 1 sentence 2 UStG). After the year, the annual VAT return is added (§ 18 para. 3 UStG).

The ELSTER guide to the UStVA 2026 covers these areas, among others:

• Supplies and other services (including free-of-charge withdrawals)
• Tax-exempt supplies and other services
• Intra-Community acquisitions
• Tax liability of the business owner (§ 13b UStG)
• Deductible input VAT
• Other tax amounts

Do I file monthly or quarterly?

How often you submit the advance VAT return depends on your VAT in the previous year (§ 18 para. 2 and 2a UStG):

Newly founded? For the years 2021 to 2026, in the year of founding the expected tax of the current year counts; if you were active for only part of the previous year, you extrapolate that year's tax to a full year. If the expected tax is above €9,000, you file monthly, otherwise quarterly. Important for businesses founded in 2026: the exception is in the law only for 2021 to 2026. For the following year 2027, according to the wording of § 18 para. 2 sentences 4 and 6 UStG (as of 21 October 2026), the basic rule applies again: in the year of founding and the following year the month is the advance return period. Check the current position before the first deadline in 2027.

Small business owners (Kleinunternehmer; total turnover in the previous year not above €25,000 and in the current year not above €100,000) in principle do not submit an advance return – except for periods in which they owe VAT anyway, for example as the recipient of a service under § 13b UStG or for intra-Community acquisitions. The limits, the exceptions and the waiver trap are explained in VAT return for a small business in Germany: do I have to file?.

No sales? The obligation applies to every advance return period. If you had nothing to report, you still submit an advance return.

By when do I have to file in 2026? All dates

The German VAT return deadline for the advance return ends on the 10th day after the end of the advance return period: by then the return must be transmitted and the prepayment paid (§ 18 para. 1 UStG). If the end of the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or statutory public holiday, the deadline ends at the end of the next working day (§ 108 para. 3 AO). With a permanent deadline extension, one month more applies in each case (§ 46 UStDV). As a quarterly filer, you take the row of the quarter that ends with the month in question.

If you pay late, a late-payment penalty (Säumniszuschlag, § 240 para. 1 AO) of 1% of the arrears, rounded down, arises for every month begun. If you file late, the tax office can set a late-filing penalty (Verspätungszuschlag, § 152 para. 1 AO).

How do I file the advance VAT return online?

This is how you file the advance VAT return:

1. Clarify the period and deadline: month or quarter, see above. Filing and payment are due by the 10th day after the end of the period.
2. Gather the amounts: you enter the taxable amounts net and in whole euros; you convert amounts in a foreign currency into euros. Which sales belong in which box (Kennzahl) – 81, 86, 41, 45 and more – is shown in Advance VAT return from the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR).
3. Transmit electronically: The advance return goes to the tax office in the officially prescribed data set via the officially designated interface – that is, via ELSTER. You can do this directly in Mein ELSTER or with software that uses this interface; ELSTER keeps an overview of software products for this. Paper is allowed only as an exception: on application, the tax office can waive this to avoid undue hardship.
4. Pay: The prepayment is due on the same day as the filing.
5. Correct mistakes later: If you later notice that an advance return was wrong or incomplete and that too little tax may therefore be assessed, you must report and correct this without delay (§ 153 para. 1 AO).

If you registered with ELSTER for the questionnaire using only your e-mail address, you can use that registration only to transmit the questionnaire. For advance returns, you convert the registration into a full user account as soon as you have your tax number from the tax office.

How does the permanent deadline extension work?

The permanent deadline extension gives you one month more for the advance VAT return. On application, the tax office extends the deadlines for filing and paying the advance returns by one month (§ 46 UStDV).

• Application: electronically, at the latest by the day on which the first advance return for which the extension is to apply would be due (§ 48 para. 1 UStDV). For the whole of 2027 that means: as a monthly filer by 10 February 2027 (deadline of the January advance return), as a quarterly filer by 12 April 2027 (deadline of the advance return for the first quarter; 10 April 2027 is a Saturday).
• Approval: You receive a notice only in case of a refusal. If the tax office does not refuse, you can use the extension. It is refused or revoked if the tax claim appears to be at risk.
• Duration and withdrawal: The extension applies until you withdraw it or the tax office revokes it. You can withdraw it with the ELSTER form “Sonstige Nachricht an das Finanzamt” (other message to the tax office).
• Special advance payment (monthly filers only): one eleventh of the sum of the previous year's prepayments. You calculate, declare and pay it with the application and then every year by 10 February. If you were active for only part of the previous year, you extrapolate to a full year; if you found your business in the current year, you use the expected prepayments and, according to ELSTER, explain the calculation in a “Sonstige Nachricht an das Finanzamt”. If your calculation results in an excess in your favour, you enter €0.
• Quarterly filers: The condition of a special advance payment applies only to businesses that file monthly.
• Offsetting: You normally deduct the special advance payment in the advance return for December (box 39).

Example from the ELSTER guide 2026: prepayments for 2025 of €39,000, plus the special advance payment of €5,000 deducted in December 2025 – the basis for 2026 is €44,000, so the special advance payment for 2026 is €4,000.

What comes after the year?

In addition to the advance returns, you transmit an annual VAT return (Umsatzsteuer-Jahreserklärung) for every calendar year, also electronically; in it you calculate the tax for the whole year once more yourself (§ 18 para. 3 UStG). If you calculate a different amount from the sum of the prepayments, the difference in favour of the tax office is due one month after the return is received (§ 18 para. 4 sentence 1 UStG). The annual return is due at the latest seven months after the end of the year (§ 149 para. 2 AO). For 2026 that would be 31 July 2027 – a Saturday, so the deadline ends on Monday, 2 August 2027.

Which mistakes happen often?

1. Looking only at filing. Payment is due on the same day as the advance return.
2. Applying for the permanent deadline extension too late. The application must be with the tax office at the latest on the due date of the first advance return concerned.
3. Not deducting the special advance payment in December. The deduction belongs in box 39 of the December advance return.
4. Choosing the wrong period. More than €9,000 of tax in the previous year means: monthly.
5. Skipping empty periods. An advance return is due even without sales.
6. Filing on paper. Without an approved hardship exception the advance return must be submitted electronically.

How VAT GPT helps with the advance return

1. Upload: You upload your Amazon or eBay CSV reports and your invoices. The AI reads amounts, countries and tax rates.
2. Check: VAT GPT breaks down the VAT for Germany and the EU (OSS) and prepares the advance return, monthly or quarterly. You check and confirm.
3. Send: With VAT GPT Pro it goes via ELSTER directly to the tax office. After the year, the annual VAT return the same way.

You submit the application for the permanent deadline extension yourself, for example via Mein ELSTER. VAT GPT is listed in the software directory on elster.de; the information there comes from the manufacturer. There is Free (basic features, free of charge), Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro (€49 per month or €444 per year, each including VAT). Try for Free Now

Frequently asked questions about the UStVA

What does UStVA mean? UStVA is the abbreviation for Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung (advance VAT return): the return with which you report the VAT for a month or a quarter to the tax office, calculated by yourself (§ 18 para. 1 UStG).

How do I send the advance VAT return online? Via ELSTER: directly in Mein ELSTER or with software that uses the ELSTER interface. Paper is allowed only with an approved hardship exception.

Do I have to file the advance VAT return monthly or quarterly? It depends on the tax of the previous year: more than €9,000 monthly, otherwise quarterly (§ 18 para. 2 UStG). With an excess in your favour of more than €9,000 you can choose the month. Special rules apply to newly founded businesses, see above.

By when must the advance return be with the tax office? By the 10th day after the end of the month or quarter, one month later with the permanent deadline extension. If the day falls on a weekend or a public holiday, the next working day applies. The dates for every month of 2026 are in the table above.

Is the permanent deadline extension worth it? The permanent deadline extension gives you one month more for filing and payment. As a monthly filer you make the special advance payment for it, which is credited to you in December. As a quarterly filer no special advance payment applies.

Do I have to apply for the permanent deadline extension again every year? No. The extension applies until you withdraw it or the tax office revokes it. As a monthly filer, however, you declare and pay the special advance payment every year by 10 February.

How high is the special advance payment? One eleventh of the sum of the previous year's prepayments; you add back the special advance payment credited in the previous year, as in the ELSTER example above.

What happens if I pay late? A late-payment penalty of 1% of the arrears, rounded down, is due for every month begun. If you file late, a late-filing penalty can come on top.

I have just founded my business. Monthly or quarterly? In the year of founding, the expected tax of the current year decides: above €9,000 monthly, otherwise quarterly. For the following year 2027, the wording of § 18 para. 2 sentences 4 and 6 UStG (as of 21 October 2026) provides for monthly filing. How to register: Applying for a tax number.

Further reading

• Advance VAT return from the Amazon VAT Transactions Report (AVTR)
• VAT return for a small business in Germany: do I have to file?
• How to submit an OSS VAT return in Germany: threshold, deadlines and steps for online sellers
• eBay taxes in Germany: VAT for eBay sellers, advance return and OSS
• Tax number in Germany: applying with the tax registration questionnaire online
• EÜR template: preparing and sending the income surplus statement in ELSTER
• Amazon seller tax in Germany: an overview for online sellers

Not tax advice: the content does not replace individual advice.

Sources

• § 18 UStG (in German)
• ELSTER: guide to the tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietorships (in German)
• § 19 UStG (in German)
• § 108 AO (in German)
• § 240 AO (in German)
• § 152 AO (in German)
• ELSTER: guide to the advance VAT return 2026 (in German)
• § 153 AO (in German)
• § 46 UStDV (in German)
• § 47 UStDV (in German)
• § 48 UStDV (in German)
• ELSTER: guide to the application for the permanent deadline extension 2026 (in German)
• ELSTER: business start-up (in German)
• § 149 AO (in German)