Check your German tax assessment and object

You have one month to object to a tax assessment, counted from the day the notice is deemed announced. For a letter that is the fourth day after posting (if it falls on a weekend or public holiday, the next working day); for a notice made available in ELSTER, the fourth day after that. File the objection in writing or electronically; it does not stop the payment.

Last updated: October 27, 2026

In brief

Deadline: One month after the notice is announced (section 355 (1) AO).
Form: In writing, electronically or recorded at the office; it must show who objects (section 357 (1) AO).
Payment: The objection does not stop the payment; for that there is the request to suspend enforcement.

When does the deadline start and end?

The objection must be filed within one month after the notice is announced (section 355 (1) sentence 1 AO). The law says when a notice counts as announced:

Letter: A notice sent by post is deemed announced within Germany on the fourth day after it was posted. If it did not arrive, or arrived later, the fourth day does not apply; in case of doubt the tax office must prove the delivery and the date (section 122 (2) no. 1 AO). If the fourth day is a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, the notice counts as announced on the next working day (section 108 (3) AO).
Retrieval in ELSTER: A notice made available for retrieval is deemed announced on the fourth day after it was made available (section 122a (4) AO). You are notified electronically on the day it is made available (section 122a (1) AO).

A worked example, not advice for your case: the tax office posts a notice on Monday, November 2, 2026. It is deemed announced on Friday, November 6, 2026. The one-month period counts from the next day and ends at the end of December 6, 2026 (sections 187 and 188 BGB, applied by analogy under section 108 (1) AO). That is a Sunday, so the period ends at the end of the next working day, Monday, December 7, 2026 (section 108 (3) AO).

The period runs only if the notice carries instructions on legal remedies: that an objection exists, to which authority you send it and what period applies (section 356 (1) AO). If they are missing or wrong, you may object within one year of the announcement, longer only in case of force majeure or if you were told in writing or electronically that no objection is possible (section 356 (2) AO). If you missed the deadline through no fault of your own, you can apply for reinstatement: you file the request and the objection within one month after the obstacle is gone, and no later than one year after the missed deadline ended, except in case of force majeure (section 110 AO).

A self-assessed return (Steueranmeldung), such as an advance VAT return, follows another rule: one month after it reaches the tax office; if it leads to a refund that needs the tax office's consent, one month after you learn of the consent (section 355 (1) sentence 2 and section 168 sentence 2 AO). More in How to correct a German advance VAT return.

What do you compare in the notice?

Put the notice next to the return you filed and go through it figure by figure:

Income tax notice: Does the profit match the result of your EÜR and the Anlage G? Are the prepayments you made taken into account? Did any amounts you declared drop out?
Notice on the trade tax base amount: Does the profit the tax office starts from fit your trade tax return?
VAT notice: Do sales and input VAT match your annual return and your advance returns?

Write down each difference with the place in the notice and the matching document. That lets you name it in the objection later. Whether a difference is worth an objection is for you or your tax adviser to decide in your case.

How do you file the objection?

The objection is to be filed in writing or electronically, or recorded at the office. It is enough that it shows who filed it, and a wrong name for it does no harm (section 357 (1) AO). You file it with the authority whose notice you are challenging (section 357 (2) sentence 1 AO).

The objection should identify the notice, say how far you challenge it and what you ask for, and give the facts and evidence behind it (section 357 (3) AO). That is a "should" rule: if something is missing, the objection is not void automatically.

In Mein ELSTER the form is "Einspruch einreichen inkl. Aussetzung der Vollziehung" under "Einspruch". Next to it are "Einspruch ergänzen, erweitern oder einschränken" (add to, widen or narrow an objection) and "Einspruch zurücknehmen" (withdraw an objection).

Do you have to pay while you object?

Yes. An objection does not suspend enforcement of the notice and does not stop collection (section 361 (1) AO). The tax office may suspend enforcement in whole or in part. On request it should do so if there are serious doubts about the legality of the notice or if enforcement would be an unfair hardship for you not required by overriding public interest (section 361 (2) AO). For tax notices the suspension relates in principle to the assessed tax, less amounts to be credited and assessed prepayments (section 361 (2) sentence 4 AO).

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.

You upload your Amazon and eBay reports and your invoices.
VAT GPT creates your advance VAT return, annual return, EÜR, trade tax return and income tax return from them; these are the figures you later compare with the notice.
You check and confirm; with VAT GPT Pro you send the returns through ELSTER.

There is Free, Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro (€49 per month or €444 per year, including VAT). Try for free now

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

Frequently asked questions

Can I object by e-mail? The law says "in writing or electronically" (section 357 (1) AO). Electronically is possible to the extent that the tax office has opened access for it (section 87a (1) sentence 1 AO); in Mein ELSTER there is the form "Einspruch einreichen inkl. Aussetzung der Vollziehung" for it.

Do I have to give reasons? The law says "should" (section 357 (3) AO). Reasons help the tax office understand your view.

What if the deadline has passed? Check whether the notice had instructions on legal remedies (section 356 AO) and whether reinstatement fits (section 110 AO). You decide that in your case with the tax office or a tax adviser.