Adjust your German income tax prepayments

Your income tax prepayments are due on March 10, June 10, September 10 and December 10. As a rule, their amount follows your last assessment, not the profit you are making now. If your profit differs this year, you ask the tax office in Mein ELSTER for a change with the form "Antrag auf Anpassung von Vorauszahlungen" (request to adjust prepayments).

Last updated: October 27, 2026

In brief

  • Dates: March 10, June 10, September 10 and December 10 (section 37 (1) EStG).
  • Basis: The last assessment is the starting point; the tax office may adjust to the tax expected for the year.
  • Request: In Mein ELSTER under "Anträge und Nachrichten" with the "Antrag auf Anpassung von Vorauszahlungen"; have your profit estimate ready beforehand.

When are the prepayments due and how high are they?

The four dates are set by law: March 10, June 10, September 10 and December 10 (section 37 (1) EStG). All other dates of your year are in the tax calendar for online sellers.

The tax office sets the prepayments by a prepayment notice. As a rule they follow the income tax of your last assessment (section 37 (3) sentences 1 and 2 EStG). It sets them only if they come to at least 400 euros a year and at least 100 euros per due date (section 37 (5) sentence 1 EStG).

For a seller this means: a strong Christmas season last year carries into next year's prepayments, even if sales drop afterwards. The other way round, if your profit jumps, you prepay too little at first and make up for it at the assessment.

When can the tax office change the prepayment?

The law lets the tax office adjust the prepayments to the income tax "expected for the assessment year" (section 37 (3) sentence 3 EStG). That works upwards and downwards. So it is about the tax to be expected for the running year, not last year's.

The adjustment is possible until the end of the 15th calendar month after the assessment year (23 months only if agricultural and forestry income predominates). For 2026 you count from January 2027 and arrive at March 2028 (section 37 (3) sentence 3 EStG). Whether a change makes sense in your case is for the tax office or your tax adviser to judge; this text only says what the law provides.

If the prepayment is raised later, the last prepayment of the year is adjusted. You pay the increase within one month after the prepayment notice is announced (section 37 (4) EStG).

How do you file the request in ELSTER?

In Mein ELSTER you open the list of all forms. Under "Anträge und Nachrichten" you find the "Antrag auf Anpassung von Vorauszahlungen". You need an ELSTER account for it; how the registration works is in ELSTER registration for businesses: step by step.

Which fields the form asks for, Mein ELSTER shows when you open it, and they may change from year to year. Have the figures ready that you rely on (see the next section). The tax office decides on the request and sends a new prepayment notice if it changes anything.

What do you need for the profit estimate?

The tax office looks at the tax expected for the year, so you need an estimate of your annual profit. One basis is the figures of your EÜR so far: income from Amazon and eBay minus business expenses (section 4 (3) EStG). Add what you expect until year end, such as a large stock purchase or a weak quarter.

How the EÜR is built is in Income surplus statement in ELSTER: filing the Anlage EÜR. Think of trade tax as well: it has its own prepayments on February 15, May 15, August 15 and November 15 (section 19 (1) GewStG), and the municipality may adjust them; the tax office may set the base amount for this in advance, and the municipality is bound by it (section 19 (3) GewStG).

How VAT GPT helps

VAT GPT is the tax software for Amazon and eBay sellers in Germany: your OSS return first, then every other tax you owe, calculated and filed in one place.

  1. You upload your Amazon and eBay reports and your invoices.
  2. VAT GPT works out the profit of your EÜR for the year from the data it has by then; that is your starting figure for the estimate.
  3. How high the profit will be at year end is your own estimate; you file the request in Mein ELSTER.

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

Frequently asked questions

Can the prepayment also be raised? Yes, the law speaks of an adjustment, and it works in both directions (section 37 (3) sentence 3 EStG). An increase is made only if it comes to at least 100 euros per due date, or at least 5,000 euros for a later increase (section 37 (5) sentence 2 EStG).

How long can the tax office adjust? Until the end of the 15th calendar month after the assessment year, 23 months if agricultural and forestry income predominates (section 37 (3) sentence 3 EStG).

Does this also apply to trade tax? No, trade tax has its own prepayments under section 19 GewStG with different dates.

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