When will I get my tax refund from the tax office? (Steuerrückzahlung)

It is such a lovely feeling knowing that you are due to get some money. The keyword in this context is your income tax return. Once created and submitted, it only takes a few weeks for the refund to land on the account. But how exactly does that work and is there anything else that you need to know?

First the tax assessment, then the refund

After the tax return has been received by the tax office, it takes a varying amount of time for it to be processed. Unfortunately, there is no blanket response. However, if three months have already gone by since you submitted your tax return, it is a good idea to ask if everything is correct. However, if six months have passed without having received a tax assessment, the processing should definitely have been completed.

The earliest tax assessments are usually sent in early April. As a rule, the waiting time is three to eight weeks on average. As long as the tax bill was not created, there is also no tax refund.

Look out for the refund arriving in the post

Sometimes you might find that the tax refund lands directly in your bank account, although the tax assessment is still at the post office. As a rule, the decision will be sent at the same time as the transfer. This means that the money is of course not paid in cash, but always directly to the specified account of the recipient. The transfer is therefore always automatic, the taxpayer itself does not have to act.

Note: This is different when a back payment is required. Then the tax assessment provides information about when and to which account the claim must be transferred.

For whom is a tax return worthwhile?

Actually for everyone. Many workers already have high travel costs, which usually guarantee reimbursements. For example, if you still have two households, you can deduct expenses for the second home in addition to the travel expenses. This includes, for example, expenses for rent and equipment. Costs for a job-related move can also be indicated in the tax declaration.

In general, the cost of income includes all items that are job-related and what the employer does not pay, from specialist literature to training to application costs.

Married partners who have opted for a co-ordinated tax class combination can also usually benefit from a reimbursement.

Single parents in the tax class II can claim the refund amount. A tax class change is advisable in these cases.

If investors have failed to set up an exemption application for withholding tax, it may still be possible to recover it. This is possible if the income was below the basic allowance or in general the personal tax rate below 25 percent.