What you need to file the OSS return in Germany: checklist with ELSTER certificate

For your first OSS return you need a VAT ID, a registration with the BZSt and a login to the BZStOnline portal. The BZSt requires a certificate for the login, most easily your ELSTER certificate; without one you cannot get into the portal. You also need your sales per EU country and a bank account for the payment.

Last updated: 27 October 2026

In short

No certificate, no login: The BZSt requires a certificate for the portal; an existing ELSTER certificate works.
No registration, no return: You apply to take part, with your VAT ID, in the portal.
Software is optional: The portal has a form and a CSV import.

What do you need for your first OSS return?

Six things, in this order:

A business with a VAT ID (USt-IdNr). You apply to take part "stating" your VAT identification number. Only businesses registered for VAT with a German tax office can get one (§ 27a UStG), so you need a tax number first.
A certificate for the portal login, most easily an ELSTER certificate. It is your key to the BZStOnline portal (next section).
Registration with the BZSt. You submit the registration notice in the portal. Registration starts, as a rule, on the first day of the quarter after you apply. The steps are in OSS registration in Germany: step by step.
Your sales per country and rate. The sales in the OSS return are taxed at the rate of the country where they are taxable; for goods shipped to private customers in another EU country, that is as a rule the country where the goods arrive. Which sales belong in the return is covered in OSS return: which sales to report.
Records. You keep records of these sales and retain them for ten years.
A bank account for the payment. You transfer the tax to the Federal Treasury (Bundeskasse). The BZSt tells you your payment reference (Kassenzeichen) in the portal after your first return. Details: Paying the OSS VAT to the BZSt.

Whether you need the OSS return at all depends on the 10,000-euro threshold: The EU VAT OSS threshold of 10,000 euros: examples.

Do you need an ELSTER certificate, and can you file without one?

Yes, you need a certificate. The BZSt writes (in German): "A certificate is required to log in to the portal." A certificate you already hold for the BZStOnline portal or for ELSTER can be used. On these pages the BZSt names no other way into the portal.

If you have none, the BZSt calls registering in the ELSTER portal "the simplest way". ELSTER offers two ways to confirm your identity:

By letter: The activation ID arrives by email, the activation code separately by post. You need both to finish registering, so allow time.
Online with your ID card: According to ELSTER your account is then ready the same day.

The steps are in ELSTER certificate: how to register. For sole traders without employees ELSTER recommends the account type "Für eine Privatperson" (for a private person); employers and companies choose "Für eine Organisation" (for an organisation): ELSTER registration for a business.

After registering, you file the return in the BZStOnline portal, not in ELSTER. The difference is explained in OSS return: BZSt portal, not ELSTER.

Which software do you need, and what can it do?

You do not need software: the BZSt portal has a form, and you can file the return "optionally using an import function". The import reads a UTF-8 CSV file with at most 6,000 data rows. Software helps with the calculation beforehand. You can tell the kinds apart by their result:

It calculates, you retype: You get totals per country and enter them in the portal form.
It creates a file: You import the CSV file in the portal and send the return there yourself.
It sends the return itself: You check the result, and the software transmits the return to the BZSt.

Which kind suits you depends on how many countries and sales you have and how much you want to do in the portal yourself. A selection guide is OSS return software: what matters.

Do you have to file a nil return?

Yes. The BZSt writes (in German) that a return, the "Nullmeldung", is due on the stated dates even if no sales were made in the quarter. The dates are 30 April, 31 July, 31 October and 31 January. More: OSS return: how often and by when.

What happens if you do not file the OSS return?

The BZSt says a trader who repeatedly fails to meet obligations, or is late with them, is excluded from the procedure. One missed quarter is not that, but you should still file at once. What then applies is in OSS return not filed or late: the consequences.

How VAT GPT helps

VAT GPT does the calculation work: you upload your Amazon or eBay CSV reports, VAT GPT calculates the OSS return for all EU countries, and you check and confirm it. With VAT GPT Pro the app sends the return directly to the BZSt. For that you enter your VAT ID in the app and upload your ELSTER certificate (a .pfx or .p12 file) with its password; according to the app, the certificate and password are used for that one session only. The app shows you the payment details; you make the transfer at your bank.

How this looks in four steps: OSS return for Amazon and eBay with VAT GPT. Try for Free Now

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an ELSTER certificate for the OSS return? You need a certificate: the BZSt requires one for the portal login. An ELSTER certificate or a BZStOnline portal certificate works; the simplest way to get one is registering with ELSTER.

Can I file the OSS return without software? Yes, in the portal form or with the portal's CSV import.

Which software can send the OSS return? The kinds differ by function: calculating, creating an import file, or sending itself. VAT GPT Pro sends the return from the app to the BZSt.

Do I need a VAT ID before registering? Yes, you apply to take part with it. You get a VAT ID once you are registered for VAT with the tax office.

Do I file if I sold nothing? Yes, as a nil return.