{
  "id": 8224094,
  "title": "Steuern: Vertrauen die Bürger einer vorausgefüllten Steuererklärung?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/steuern-vertrauen-die-burger-einer-vorausgefullten-steuererklarung",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-18T10:05:09.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/steuern-recht/steuern/steuern-vertrauen-die-buerger-einer-vorausgefuellten-steuererklaerung/100252838.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "The annual tax return is seen by many citizens as a burden. Wouldn't it be better if the tax office filled out the forms themselves and sent them out? In the \"Your Tax: Do It Now - Tax Office for You!\" pilot project, 212,000 Hesse residents received a pre-filled tax return this spring, based on data the tax office already possessed, including salary income, wages, pension, social security contributions and flat-rate amounts for disabilities. However, how did citizens react to this new offer? An internal presentation from the Hessisches Finanzministerium, provided to the Handelsblatt, revealed the results. Nearly half of the Hesse residents who received a pre-filled tax return in the year declined it and opted to do it themselves. In 2026, the project expanded to all of Hesse, with similar projects also underway in Thuringia, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg. Taxpayers had to actively agree or disagree, receiving 134,000 proposals asking for their approval via mail or QR code, or they could submit their own return to reject the proposal. Of the 41.4% who agreed, 9.1% did not respond by the deadline on the last day in July, while 49.5% rejected the proposal and submitted their own return. In the previous Kassel pilot, approval was at three-quarters; however, this does not directly compare to this year's figures from Hesse, as in Kassel proposals were only sent to delinquent taxpayers and non-action could have also been approved. Only one percent actively confirmed the procedure in 2023. Lawyers criticized the practice afterward, which is why taxpayers had to actively agree in the second pilot attempt. The Hessisches Finanzministerium did not comment on the results but stated that they were still evaluating and would compare with other partner states for the entire project. Daniela Karbe-Geßler, a tax expert from the German Taxpayers' Association, said: \"I think it can be concluded that when a tax office's proposal requires active approval or rejection, taxpayers are skeptical. Introducing a state-wide procedure with initial approval rates achievable in the Kassel pilot may not be realistic.\" A non-named observer argued that the taxpayer's response to a pre-filled form is unexpected and may generate mistrust, potentially due to past fake tax letters from the tax office. Florian Köbler, head of the German Taxworkers' Union (DSTG), said: \"The drop in approval rates across the board is expected for the first year without familiarity.\" Köbler highlighted the importance of becoming accustomed to the process. In the presentation, differences in approval and rejection values across financial office districts were shown. Köbler considers the values from Kassel as the \"most important data point,\" as it demonstrates a habituation effect. \"Once someone experiences the procedure, they want to keep it,\" he said. In contrast, residents for whom the financial offices of Hochtaunus and Bad Homburg are responsible submitted significantly more individual returns, with approval numbers only marginally exceeding rejections. Paying taxes without seeking refunds sometimes yields little: 11% of taxpayers who rejected the proposal received no refund, while 32% received less than 100 euros, and 50% received less than 200 euros. Köbler commented on this, calling for higher flat-rate amounts, as processing individual cases consumes considerable resources in tax administration, primarily due to the effort required to track down tax evaders. Peter Schmitz, head of tax software Wiso Steuer, acknowledged this but noted that since the selected individuals were mandatory taxpayers, a significant portion might have a tax overpayment as the starting point. \"A slight or no refund does not necessarily mean that the effort was not worth it; it could also mean that a tax overpayment has been prevented,\" he said. Taxpayers are not familiar with flat-rate amounts and personal deductions. Even when additional expenses were claimed, they often fell below the flat-rate amount of 1,230 euros, and thus had no tax-reducing effect. When extraordinary expenses were submitted, they only exceeded the personal deduction in half the cases, impacting the tax calculation. \"In principle, we still believe in the importance and correctness of the pre-filled tax return,\" says Karbe-Geßler.",
  "summary": "Hessen hat sein Pilotprojekt „Ihre Steuer: Macht jetzt das Finanzamt für Sie“ deutlich ausgeweitet. Es erleichtert die Arbeit auch für die Ämter – aber viele Bürger sind skeptisch.",
  "key_points": [
    "Nearly half of Hesse residents declined pre-filled tax return in pilot",
    "9.1% of those who agreed did not respond by deadline",
    "Tax experts say active approval required generates skepticism"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}