If a compulsory assessment is to be carried out, the employee is legally obliged to submit an income tax return.
A compulsory assessment is carried out, for example, if
- the employee has received tax-free remuneration/wage replacement benefits that are subject to the progression proviso (e.g. unemployment benefit I, short-time working allowance, sick pay, parental allowance), top-up amounts for partial retirement or positive foreign income of more than EUR 410,
- the employee or their spouse has other income in addition to their salary (e.g. pensions from statutory pension insurance, income from letting and leasing) with a positive total of more than EUR 410; pensions are only to be included in the calculation of income for tax purposes with the taxable portion and after deduction of a lump sum for income-related expenses totaling EUR 102,
- the employee has received wages from several employers at the same time,
- in the case of jointly assessed employee-spouses, the salary of one spouse is taxed according to tax class V or VI or, in the case of tax class IV, the factor has been entered,
- an allowance has been calculated and saved for the employee (except: lump sum for disabled persons or surviving dependants) and the total salary earned in the calendar year does not exceed the so-called salary limit. From the 2023 assessment year, the salary limit is calculated as the sum of the basic allowance, the employee lump sum and the special expenses lump sum. For spouses/life partners, the basic allowance and the lump sum for special expenses will be doubled. The Federal Ministry of Finance will make the new salary limits for the individual years from 2023 available on the website www.bmf-steuerrechner.de.
The deadline for submitting income tax returns is generally July 31 of the following year; however, this deadline can be extended upon request.