Status: 13.10.2022 1:57 p.m
Many homeowners should breathe a sigh of relief. Instead of the end of October, they now only have to submit the property tax return by the end of January 2023. That was decided by the finance ministers of the federal states.
The submission deadline for the property tax return is to be extended once nationwide from the end of October to the end of January 2023. Federal Minister of Finance Christian Lindner (FDP) and the Ministry of Finance in Rhineland-Palatinate confirmed the decision of the state finance ministers.
Bavaria’s Minister of Finance, Albert Füracker (CSU), explained that extending the deadline for filing property tax returns by three months would significantly relieve the burden on citizens, businesses and tax consultants. A week ago it was said that not even every third house and apartment owner had submitted their documents online.
Federal Finance Minister Lindner welcomed the decision. Speaking on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund meeting in Washington, he said: “At the moment there are other concerns and tasks that we must deal with as a matter of priority.” Linder had campaigned for an extension of the deadline.
Revaluation for almost 36 million lots
From 2025, the new property tax calculation should apply. The Federal Constitutional Court had demanded this, because the tax offices recently calculated the value of a property on the basis of completely outdated data, from 1935 in East Germany and from 1964 in West Germany. Almost 36 million properties now have to be revalued for the recalculation.
The tax authorities need data from all owners. Usually it is about the plot and living space, the type of building, years of construction and the so-called land value, which the owners have to upload in a kind of additional tax return via the “Elster” tax software or a portal of the Ministry of Finance – official tax language included. Even before the start, experts warned that it could go wrong because it was far too complicated.
Technical problems after just a few days
The tax authorities have been receiving the data since July 1st. A few days later, technical difficulties became apparent: “Elster” was temporarily paralyzed because many citizens wanted to call up the property tax page at the same time.
Even allotment owners have to make a declaration, in addition to millions of homeowners and apartment owners.
Property tax is one of the most important sources of income for municipalities. It is an annual tax on the ownership of land and buildings – but a landlord can also pass it on to the tenants via the utility bill. For most apartment owners, it is a few hundred euros a year, but for owners of apartment buildings it is often four-digit amounts.
The amount of the property tax depends on the assessment rates of the municipalities
How much property tax the individual owners will actually have to pay from 2025 will remain open for a while. Because that depends crucially on the so-called assessment rates of the municipalities.
Deadline for filing property tax returns extended
Simone Steffan, ARD Berlin, October 13, 2022 2:49 p.m