Tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietors: section by section

Starting as a sole proprietor? You submit the tax registration questionnaire electronically and without being asked within one month of starting the activity (section 138 (1b) and (4) AO). ELSTER's fill-in help says this on the tricky fields: start of activity, profit calculation, VAT (small business owner, expected tax payable, advance return period) and VAT ID.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

In short

Where: Mein ELSTER, tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietors; paper only on request in special cases of hardship.
Start of activity: Preparatory acts such as renting a shop or buying goods count; it can precede the trade registration.
Profit calculation: EÜR or balance sheet; in principle balance sheet above 80,000 euros profit or 800,000 euros turnover a year.

Before you start

Register with ELSTER. You must be registered there to submit. If you have neither a tax number nor a tax ID, registering with an e-mail address is enough at first; with it you can only send the questionnaire. Once you have the tax number, you convert the registration into a full user account.
Choose the right variant. There are separate questionnaires for sole proprietorships, partnerships and corporations or cooperatives. This article covers the one for sole proprietorships.
Choose the competent tax office. The competent office is the one where the management is located (for freelancers: where the activity is mainly carried out). The BZSt offers a search for the local tax office.

Section by section

Tax number

If you do not have a tax number yet, choose the second option "Apply for a new tax number", select the federal state and the tax office and click "Next". If you already have one, enter it; the tax office is then determined automatically.

Details about you and the business

Business identification number (Wirtschafts-Identifikationsnummer): enter it only if you already received one for another business activity.
Address: your main residence.
Type of trade: a short description of kind and scope, for example "trade in building materials (without a pronounced focus)" or "bakery (trade in bakery products - rolls, bread, baked goods)".
Name of the business: name or firm, for example "Florentina Spanisch - translations".
Start of activity: the date on which the activity begins. The fill-in help makes clear: renting a shop or buying goods before the opening already counts as business activity, so the start can lie before the trade registration.
Place of management and permanent establishments: management is the place where the entrepreneurial will is formed (section 10 AO). A warehouse can be a permanent establishment (section 12 AO).

Bank details

IBAN and account holder. You can give one account for all tax refunds or a separate one for business taxes such as VAT. If you want to take part in the SEPA direct debit procedure, you submit the mandate separately.

Advance payments and profit calculation

For the year the business opens and the following year you give your expected income - for married people possibly also that of the spouse. The section is called "Details for setting the advance payments": the details let the tax office set advance payments.

For the type of profit calculation you have two ways:

Profit and loss account or balance sheet: Mandatory if commercial law obliges you to keep books. In principle this also applies to traders whose turnover exceeds 800,000 euros or whose profit exceeds 80,000 euros a year. An electronic opening balance sheet must then be submitted to the tax office.
Cash-basis profit calculation (EÜR): Other traders can determine profit under section 4 (3) EStG as the surplus of business income over business expenses.

VAT

Total turnover: the expected sum of all turnover (taxable, exempt and non-taxable) in the year of opening and the following year.
Taxation of small business owners: Here you state whether you apply the small business rule. In the year of founding, your turnover is in principle exempt up to 25,000 euros; the sale with which you exceed the limit is already subject to the standard rules in full (Finanzamt Hessen; section 19.1 UStAE). From the following year, 25,000 euros (previous year) and 100,000 euros (current year) apply (section 19 (1) UStG). As a small business owner you generally do not charge VAT, generally cannot deduct input VAT and may not issue invoices with separately shown VAT. If you waive the rule, you are bound to standard taxation for at least five calendar years (section 19 (3) UStG). Tax payable: if you apply the rule, you enter 0 euros (or the estimated tax payable for turnover under section 18 (4a) UStG).
Advance return period: the calendar month if expected tax exceeds 9,000 euros, otherwise the calendar quarter. This rule applies to the years 2021 to 2026 (section 18 (2) sentence 6 UStG). From 2027, under section 18 (2) sentence 4 UStG, the calendar month is the advance return period in the founding year and the following year; if you start in 2026, by its wording that applies to 2027. If you state a surplus of more than 9,000 euros, you can choose the month instead of the quarter.
Taxation of consideration: Taxation on the basis of agreed consideration is the normal case (VAT for the period of the supply). The tax office permits taxation on the basis of consideration received for traders on application if total turnover in the previous year did not exceed 800,000 euros (section 20 sentence 1 no. 1 UStG) or they are exempt from bookkeeping under section 148 AO (no. 2); in the opening year the total turnover extrapolated to the calendar year counts.
VAT ID: You state whether you need one. After your VAT registration the tax office forwards the application to the BZSt. If you want to sell goods through electronic interfaces within the meaning of section 25e (5) UStG that are taxable in Germany, you need a VAT ID as proof of tax registration towards the operator. If you sell through online marketplaces, check whether this applies to you.
One-Stop-Shop: The questionnaire has its own section on the special taxation procedure for distance sales.

Employees and attachments

If you employ people, the questionnaire asks for the number of employees and the expected wage tax. Attachments are limited: at most 20 attachments, each 10 MB and 200 PDF pages.

Which mistakes come up often?

Equating the start of activity with the date of the trade registration. Preparatory acts already count as activity.
Ticking small business owner without knowing the limits. In the year of founding the 25,000-euro limit applies; what applies afterwards is in Small business rule 2026: the limits.
Estimating tax payable on all turnover as a small business owner. ELSTER names 0 euros or the estimated tax payable only for turnover under section 18 (4a) UStG.
Forgetting the VAT ID. For deliveries of goods through electronic interfaces (section 25e (5) UStG) that are taxable in Germany you need it as proof of registration towards the operator.
Submitting paper. That is permitted only on request in special cases of hardship.

How VAT GPT helps you with this

You fill in the tax registration questionnaire for sole proprietors directly in VAT GPT and send it to the tax office to receive your tax number. In three steps:

Fill in: Among other things you enter the start of business and your IBAN and choose whether you apply the small business rule or waive it. You can also tick "Request EU VAT ID Number (USt-IdNr)".
Check: You see your details once more in the "Review & Submit" overview.
Send: VAT GPT sends the questionnaire to the tax office.

Afterwards you carry on in the same account: upload Amazon and eBay CSV reports and invoices, check the result, send with VAT GPT Pro – advance VAT return, OSS return, annual VAT return, EÜR, trade tax and income tax returns.

There are 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

What do I enter under "type of trade"? A short description of kind and scope, for example "trade in building materials (without a pronounced focus)". The ELSTER fill-in help gives such examples.

Which date do I enter as the start of activity? The start of your business activity. Preparatory acts such as buying goods already count.

EÜR or balance sheet? Traders other than those obliged to keep books can determine profit by EÜR. In principle you keep a balance sheet if turnover exceeds 800,000 euros or profit exceeds 80,000 euros a year.

Do I have to fill in the questionnaire as a small business owner? Yes. The small business rule is a statement in the questionnaire, not an exemption from it.

What do I enter for "expected tax payable" as a small business owner? According to ELSTER 0 euros or the estimated tax payable for turnover under section 18 (4a) UStG.

Do I need a VAT ID? The questionnaire asks whether you need one. For deliveries of goods through electronic interfaces within the meaning of section 25e (5) UStG that are taxable in Germany, ELSTER names it as proof of tax registration towards the operator.