If you were unable to meet the new submission deadline of the 1st or 2nd of November 2021, you could face late payment penalties of up to 10 percent. But don’t worry! As a rule, the tax office does not mind if the tax return is submitted a few days or a week later. If you need more time, send an informal letter requesting an extension of the deadline. This is usually enough to postpone the submission deadline. Our sample letter will help you!

If you only need a deadline extension of a few days or a week, you can also request a deadline extension by calling the relevant tax office after the deadline date has passed. You can easily find the contact details of your relevant tax office via the tax office search.

However, an application by letter or fax is of course always better in terms of evidence. Recently, the tax office has started to accept a simple e-mail, if the tax office actually offers this method. The deadline for submission is usually extended by a few weeks without complications. The reason for a delay can be illness or a move, for example. If there is no reaction from the tax office to the deadline extension, the request is deemed to have been tacitly accepted.

Attention: There is no legal claim to a deadline extension. Whether and for how long the submission deadline will be extended is at the tax official’s discretion. If the tax office refuses to extend the deadline, you should try to submit the tax return on time.