“Anyone who forgets their appointments risks late payment surcharges,” warns the Bavarian Income Tax Aid (Lohi) in a press release. Many of those affected may have been caught off guard for the first time by the payment deadline of March 10th.

Taxpayers who do not think about the transfer in time will incur additional costs. The money must also be received in the tax office’s account by the due date at the latest. There is only a short grace period of exactly three days. Late payment surcharges will then be levied. These amount to one percent of the outstanding tax amount for each month of late payment, rounded down to the full 50 euros.

There is no reminder about advance tax payments

Bavaria was the last federal state to actively remind its citizens of their income tax advance payment before each due date. Before each quarterly deadline, taxpayers received a letter from their tax office indicating the payment was due. That’s over now.

According to Lohi, the Bavarian tax administration stopped sending these reminder letters in February – without informing those affected separately. The paper transfer slips that were previously attached are no longer available.

How do I know if I have to prepay taxes?

The tax office determines the advance payments in the last tax assessment. There they are on the first page directly under the ordered additional payment for the previous year. As a rule, they are listed per quarter and consist of income tax and, if applicable, solidarity surcharge.

The tax office uses advance payments if the tax assessment indicates an additional payment of more than 400 euros and at least 100 euros per quarter. In this case, the authority assumes that the income will be at a similar level in the following year. The advance payment is considered a deduction from the expected annual tax and is intended to prevent you from being faced with a high additional charge at the end of the year.

The obligation to pay in advance particularly often applies to:

• Self-employed people, freelancers and traders
• Employees with high additional incomefor example from rentals or capital gains
• Recipient of tax-free replacement benefits
• Married couples with tax class combination III/V
• Pensionerwho regularly have to expect additional payments

The dates for the tax advance payment

The Advance payments are due once per quarter. The legal payment dates are March 10th, June 10th, September 10th and December 10th. If an appointment falls on a weekend or public holiday, the deadline will be postponed to the next working day.

What taxpayers can do

In order not to miss payment deadlines, taxpayers can rely on two automated solutions:

1. Use the SEPA direct debit system, in which the tax office automatically collects the amounts due from the account.

2. Set up a standing order with your bank.

This way you can ensure timely payment and don’t have to think about it yourself. If you would rather make the transfer yourself, enter the date a few days earlier as a reminder in your calendar or cell phone.

Where does the advance payment have to be transferred?

As a rule, the account details to which the advance payment should be made are listed on the tax assessment notice. When making the transfer, you should also provide your tax ID, which can also be found on the tax assessment.