What the German tax ID is
The tax identification number, called Steuer-ID, Steueridentifikationsnummer or simply IdNr. on German paperwork, is a personal eleven-digit number that identifies you in the German tax system. It contains no information about you, such as your birth date2. You keep the same number for life: moving, changing your name or getting married does not change it2.
It is not a work permit, not a residence title and not proof that you are entitled to any benefit. It simply links tax data to the right person. Your employer, the tax office, the Familienkasse (for Kindergeld), health insurers and the pension insurance can all ask for it, and you are required to provide it when asked4.
How you get it: from Anmeldung to a letter in your mailbox
There is no application form for a first tax ID. It comes automatically as a result of registering your address:
**Register your address (Anmeldung).** Within the registration deadline, go to the local registration office (Bürgeramt) with your passport and the landlord's confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung).
**The registration office notifies the BZSt.** Your data is passed on electronically and a tax ID is assigned as soon as you are registered5.
**The BZSt sends you a letter.** It goes to your registered address within four weeks of registration5.
**Make sure the letter can be delivered.** Your surname must be on the mailbox, or the letter may not reach you4. In shared flats and sublets this is the most common reason the letter disappears.
**Keep the letter safe.** Take a photo and store the original with your other important documents.
Nationality does not matter. Anyone registering a residence in Germany for the first time receives a number this way.
What your employer needs, and what if you start before the letter arrives
Payroll uses your tax ID to retrieve your electronic payroll tax data (tax class, church tax status and allowances) from the tax authorities. Together with your date of birth, it is one of the first things HR will ask for. They will usually also need your social security number, which is a different number issued by the pension insurance when you first start a job subject to social insurance or register with a statutory health insurer7.
If your first payday comes before the letter, tell your employer that the number is pending. Without the tax ID the employer cannot retrieve your tax data in the normal way, and payroll tax may be withheld at a less favourable rate until the number is provided. Ask HR how they handle the gap, and pass on the number as soon as it arrives. Never make up a number or use someone else's. For an overview of payroll deductions, see our gross to net salary guide.
If you work in Germany but live in another country, for example as a cross-border commuter, you are not registered with a German registration office. In that case your employer arranges the tax ID through its local tax office (Betriebsstättenfinanzamt)4. Our tax office finder shows which office is responsible for an address.
Where to find your tax ID
Document | Where to look |
|---|---|
BZSt notification letter | the main body of the letter you received after registration |
Lohnsteuerbescheinigung (annual payroll tax certificate) | header area with your name and address |
Einkommensteuerbescheid (income tax assessment) | header, separate from the Steuernummer |
Payslip | often in the personal data section, depending on the payroll software |
The BZSt confirms that the number usually appears on your income tax assessment or payroll tax certificate2. Look for the labels "Identifikationsnummer", "IdNr." or "steuerliche Identifikationsnummer". It is always exactly eleven digits, with no letters and no slashes.
Lost your tax ID? Request it again for free
If you cannot find the number anywhere, use the BZSt's official online form to have it sent again1. You will not get a new number; you get a new letter with your existing one.
Open the BZSt request page and follow the link to the form "Erneute Mitteilung der steuerlichen Identifikationsnummer".
Enter your name, date and place of birth and your current registered address exactly as recorded at the registration office.
Submit the form and wait for the letter.
For data protection reasons, the number is only sent by post. It is not given out by telephone or email1. The letter goes to the address stored at the BZSt, normally your main residence; delivery to a different address requires a written power of attorney2. If you are still waiting for your first letter three months after registering, you can send the BZSt a copy of your ID document and your registration certificate, and they will check with the registration office4.
The official service is free. Any website charging a fee to "get your German tax ID" is unnecessary.
Newborn children
Babies born in Germany are assigned a tax ID automatically once the birth is registered, and the letter follows within about four weeks5. Make sure the child's surname is on the mailbox too4. You will need the child's number for the Kindergeld application, so watch out for the letter. If it does not come, check with the registration office first, or with the civil registry office if the birth certificate has not been issued yet4. Children who live abroad generally do not receive a German tax ID4.
Steuer-ID, Steuernummer and other numbers
Number | Issued by | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
Steuer-ID / IdNr. | BZSt | your lifelong personal tax identifier |
Steuernummer | your local tax office | a reference for your tax file; may change when you move |
USt-IdNr. | BZSt | VAT number for businesses trading within the EU |
Sozialversicherungsnummer | pension insurance | social security, not tax |
Freelancers typically end up with a Steuernummer for their business in addition to their personal tax ID. When filing a tax return or registering on ELSTER, use whichever number the field asks for. You can still file an income tax return even if you do not know your tax ID, because the tax office can identify you2.
Duplicate numbers and changes
Each person may only have one tax ID. If you were accidentally registered twice and received two numbers, the BZSt keeps the first one, deactivates the other and links them so no data is lost, and you are informed by letter4. If you notice two different numbers yourself, tell the BZSt5. Changes to your name or address are handled by the registration office; the number itself stays valid.
Watch out for scams
Fraudsters regularly send fake emails and notices in the name of the BZSt. The BZSt says payment requests are normally sent by post, payments go only to a domestic account of the Bundeskasse, and genuine letters name a contact person. Be suspicious of links asking you to confirm data or claim a refund, poor German and look-alike sender addresses. Do not click, do not reply, and if you have already shared data or paid, contact your bank and the police immediately6.
Information current as of 6 November 2026.
