Saxony-Anhalt: In Saxony-Anhalt, many property tax returns are pending

Property tax is an important source of income for cities and municipalities.

Saxony-Anhalt: In Saxony-Anhalt, many property tax returns are pending

Property tax is an important source of income for cities and municipalities. They renovate schools, build roads and finance fire brigades and hospitals. The tax is now recalculated in a complex manner. Every owner is in demand.

Magdeburg (dpa/sa) - There are still many property tax returns pending in Saxony-Anhalt. With a target of over one million declarations, 71,134 electronic receipts were counted by August 8, the Ministry of Finance in Magdeburg said when asked. There are no discernible regional differences. It is also possible to submit the declarations on a paper form. So far, 950 of them have been scanned. The declaration to determine the property tax value must be submitted by October 31, 2022. On this basis, cities and municipalities set the recalculated property tax, which then has to be paid from 2025.

There seems to be a great need for advice on the declarations. According to the ministry, the number of phone calls to the 14 tax offices has increased significantly. Depending on requirements, up to 500 employees are switched on nationwide to deal with the volume of calls. In smaller tax offices up to 20 employees and in larger tax offices up to 80 employees could be connected at times.

After problems with the Elster tax program, the Ministry of Finance said that the program is now running relatively stably, except for the update periods. Due to the enormous increase in the number of new registrations with "Mein Elster", an increased support effort had to be managed before the declarations were submitted. Around 105,000 new users registered in Saxony-Anhalt in the first seven months of this year, and around 10,000 in the same period of 2021.

All property owners are required to submit a declaration. Each individual has also been contacted. According to the Ministry of Finance, if someone does not submit a declaration - as with other types of taxes - the measures regulated in the tax code, such as the threat of an estimate, an estimate and the threat of a fine, apply.