Employers, insurance companies and other institutions regularly have until February 28 of each year to provide the tax authorities with the necessary data, such as wage tax certificates or contribution data for old-age provision, pension withdrawal notices or data on health and long-term care insurance, for processing the tax return.
Due to the current high workload in the tax offices and the chronological processing of the returns according to the date of receipt, longer processing times are to be expected.
This year, the deadline for submitting income tax returns ends on October 2 for citizens who have not received tax advice, which is about a month earlier than last year. After being extended during the Corona pandemic, the deadline is now being gradually moved forward again - by one month each year. For tax-advised citizens, the filing deadline is July 31, 2024.
By submitting their tax returns electronically, citizens themselves can contribute to the speedy processing of their returns, because the data is thus directly and digitally available to the tax office. For paperless submission of the tax return, a user account can be created at www.elster.de using the tax identification number. Detailed instructions are available on the ELSTER website.
Citizens who use the "My ELSTER" service can also transfer their data from the previous year, use the option of pre-filled tax returns, perform a non-binding tax calculation and receive digital notices. Electronic filing also makes it possible to include notes and explanations on individual matters directly in the tax return. This saves the tax office from having to ask questions. Supporting documents are only requested if necessary and should not be sent along. It is sufficient to keep them on hand for possible queries.
Furthermore, the new app MeinELSTER+ has recently become available. The app MeinELSTER+ helps to collect receipts and vouchers for the tax return during the year and already assign them to the corresponding fields in the income tax return. This simplifies the actual preparation of the tax return in parts.
For general tax return questions, such as on the topic of tax returns and energy price flat rates, citizens can use the chatbot of the Baden-Württemberg tax administration for support. The chatbot is a virtual assistant for explaining tax-related topics.
In addition, the tax administration offers Baden-Württemberg explanatory videos on various tax law topics. Here you will find, for example, videos on energy-efficient renovation measures, craftsmen's costs or wage replacement benefits. The offer is constantly being expanded