ELSTER in English: How Expats Register, Log In and File German Taxes Online

What ELSTER is and why expats need it

ELSTER ("Elektronische Steuererklärung") is the joint online tax office of the German federal and state tax authorities¹. Through its portal, Mein ELSTER, you file your income tax return, receive tax assessments, send messages to your tax office, request deadline extensions and lodge objections. The account and all official forms are free.

As an employee you will usually meet ELSTER when you file your first German tax return. Many expats file voluntarily to get a refund; others must file, for example because of foreign income in the year they arrived. Use the official address elster.de – search ads with "ELSTER" in the title often lead to paid tax software.

Is ELSTER available in English?

Partly. The portal has an English version that you can select from the language menu. It is machine-translated with DeepL, and ELSTER itself warns that the translation may not be accurate. Most importantly, tax forms and filling aids are excluded from translation². So you can navigate, register and read messages in English, but the actual return is in German.

Practical tips:

• Keep the German term next to the English one – for example Anlage N (employment income) or Werbungskosten (work-related expenses).

• Use a browser translation add-on carefully for explanations, but never let it auto-fill fields.

• If the German forms are a real barrier, a commercial tax app with an English interface or a wage tax help association (Lohnsteuerhilfeverein) may be worth paying for.

What you need before you register

• **Tax ID (Steuer-ID):** an 11-digit number sent by post after you register your address. If you lost it, request it again from the Federal Central Tax Office⁸ or read German tax ID.

• **Date of birth** exactly as registered.

• **An email address** you will keep long-term.

• **A German postal address** where your name is on the mailbox, or a German ID card with online function for online verification.

You do not need a tax number (Steuernummer) to register as a private person; your tax ID is enough.

Step by step: creating your ELSTER account

ELSTER's own help describes four steps³:

1. **Personal details:** enter your tax ID and date of birth.

2. **Verify your email:** type in the six-digit code sent to you.

3. **Identification:** choose verification by letter or online verification with the German ID card's online function or the Nect Wallet app.

4. **Set up access and log in:** choose a login method, for example download your certificate file, and complete the first login.

With verification by letter, you receive two codes: an 18-digit activation ID by email and an activation code by post to your registered address. ELSTER only says the letter "may take a few days"³. In practice, allow up to two weeks, and do not start registering in the last week before a deadline. If your name is not on your mailbox – common in shared flats and newly rented apartments – fix that first, or the letter may not reach you.

Login options compared

The login methods are listed in the ELSTER help³. Back up the certificate file and its password somewhere safe; the file name alone is useless without the password.

Renewing the certificate and fixing login problems

A certificate file is valid for three years. ELSTER emails you around 90 days before it expires and again 40 and 2 days before⁴. Log in and renew it in your account – no new letter is needed – then delete the old file so you do not pick it by mistake.

Common problems and fixes:

• **Expired certificate or lost file:** on the login page choose "Zertifikatsdatei verloren oder Zertifikat abgelaufen?" (certificate file lost or expired). You get a new activation ID and code and can download a new file for your existing account.

• **Forgotten file password:** ELSTER cannot reset it; use the same lost-file route.

• **Wrong file:** after a renewal the old .pfx often remains in your downloads – check the date.

• **ID card login fails:** check the PIN, your phone's NFC setting and that the AusweisApp is up to date.

• **Waiting room or maintenance:** close to deadlines the site can be busy; try again later.

Do not open a second account just because you lost access – your stored returns, assessments and permissions stay in the original one. A technical problem does not extend a filing deadline, so contact your tax office early if a deadline is at risk. Use the tax return deadline calculator to know your date and the tax office finder to locate the right office.

Pre-filled data and filing your return

Employers, pension funds and health insurers report much of your data directly to the tax office. ELSTER's pre-filled return lets you import data from the last four years, including wage tax certificates, benefits such as parental allowance, and health insurance contributions⁵. It does not include your work costs, foreign income or receipts – you add those yourself. To fetch your spouse's data, they must grant permission with an unlock code sent by post, valid for 90 days.

To file: open "Forms and services", choose the income tax return (Einkommensteuererklärung) for the correct year, import your data, add the annexes you need, run the check, review the provisional calculation and submit. Save the transmission log. Your commuting costs, which often decide the refund, can be estimated with the commuter allowance calculator.

MeinELSTER+ app and the one-click return

The free MeinELSTER+ app lets you scan receipts into your account and read tax office messages⁶. Since 1 July 2026 it also offers a "one-click" tax return nationwide. At first it is available to single employees without children and to people with retirement income who have no other income – about 11.5 million people⁷. The app suggests a return based on data the tax office already holds plus flat rates; you check and confirm it. If you had foreign income, moved to Germany during the year, or have higher work costs, the one-click route is usually not the right fit.

Stay alert to phishing. Fake emails in ELSTER design regularly promise refunds or threaten to block your account. Always open the portal by typing elster.de yourself, never upload your certificate file to another website, and enter the password only on the official login page. If an activation letter arrives that you never requested, tell your tax office.

ELSTER is also used for other tax matters: property owners file property tax (Grundsteuer) declarations through it⁹, and employers and businesses register with their company tax number instead of a personal tax ID.

Information current as of 6 November 2026.