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Retrieve your digital tax notice

Mein ELSTER · § 122a AO since 1 January 2026

OnlinePaper on request

Something fundamental changed about the tax notice on 1 January 2026 that many people only notice once the letter fails to arrive. § 122a AO was redrafted: the previously required consent no longer applies. If you filed your return electronically, your notice has since been made available for electronic retrieval as the standard case – no longer sent automatically on paper.

This shifts the point at which the clock starts ticking. The notice is deemed notified on the fourth day after provision – not four days after you read or downloaded it. If you miss the notification email, you lose days of your period for objection without noticing.

If you prefer paper, you can keep it: § 122a expressly does not apply if you have applied for notification by post under § 122 Abs. 2 AO – either once or on a permanent basis. That is a deliberate decision you must make; it no longer happens automatically.

Last updated27 August 2026
Legal basis§ 122a AO · § 122 Abs. 2 · § 355 · § 357
VerificationChecked against gesetze-im-internet.de (consolidated version)
Written and reviewed byAndrés Sánchez Botta
Independent information website: we are not ELSTER or the tax administration, not an authority and not a paid advice service – we do not submit applications on your behalf. All information comes from official sources and is explained here in plain language; binding information always comes from the competent body. Not tax advice. The notice from the Finanzamt is authoritative. All information is provided without guarantee. We are neither lawyers nor tax consultants: we document official procedures and check the information against the official source – this is information, not legal or tax advice.
Notification4th dayAfter provision
ObjectionOne monthFrom notification
Since 1 January 2026Digital is now standardNo consent needed
PaperOn applicationOnce or permanently
Required documents

What you need

An email address you actually read

Since 2026, this is the single most important point. § 122a requires that you be notified electronically on the day of provision. This message is your only signal – and the four-day deadline runs regardless of whether you read it.

The tax return you filed, as a PDF

To compare against the notice. Without it, you can barely tell whether the Finanzamt has deviated from what you declared – and that is exactly what decides whether an Einspruch is worthwhile or unnecessary.

The explanatory notes to the notice

The block of text at the end, which is skipped most often. It states where and why the Finanzamt has deviated, and whether the notice is issued wholly or partly provisionally or is subject to review (Vorbehalt der Nachprüfung).

Evidence for the disputed points

If you want to lodge an objection (Einspruch). Under § 357 AO, the Einspruch does not need to be substantiated in order to meet the deadline – you can provide the reasoning later. Lodge it first to meet the deadline, then substantiate it calmly afterwards.

Check the bank details on the notice

If you are due a refund, the money goes to the account named there. If it shows an old IBAN, correct it immediately – a failed refund costs weeks.

Step by step

How to proceed

  1. 1

    Take the notification seriously

    On the day of provision, you receive an electronic notification pointing out the option to retrieve the notice and its legal consequences. Treat it like an official letter: the deadline runs from provision, not from when you become aware of it.

  2. 2

    Retrieve the notice and note the date of provision

    Retrieve the notice in Mein ELSTER and write down the date of provision. Everything else follows from it: four days until notification, then one month for the Einspruch.

  3. 3

    Compare it against your own return

    Compare the amounts applied line by line with what you declared. Discrepancies are the real reason to check a notice – and they are not always obvious, because they hide inside totals.

  4. 4

    Read the explanatory notes

    There, the Finanzamt gives the reasons for its deviations and states whether the notice is issued provisionally (§ 165 AO) or subject to review (§ 164 AO). This matters: while subject to review, the case remains fully open to change, in both directions.

  5. 5

    Lodge an Einspruch in time if something is wrong

    Under § 355 Abs. 1 AO, the Einspruch must be lodged within one month of notification; it is free of charge and can be submitted in Mein ELSTER as “Einspruch” or “Other message”. At first, it need not be substantiated – lodge it in time and provide the reasoning afterwards.

  6. 6

    If you want paper: apply for it explicitly

    Apply for notification by post under § 122 Abs. 2 AO – either once, for a specific matter, or on a permanent basis. In that case, § 122a does not apply to you. Without this application, the digital route remains the standard case.

Fee information

Costs and payment

Deadlines around the noticeEverything depends on the date of provision
Retrieval via Mein ELSTERFree of charge
Notification for electronic retrieval4th day after provision
Notification by post (domestic)4th day after dispatch
Notification by post (abroad)One month
Period for objectionOne month after notification
ObjectionFree of charge, reasoning can follow later

Retrieval and the Einspruch cost nothing. What matters are the deadlines, and specifically the question of when they start running. For making available for electronic retrieval, the notice is deemed notified under § 122a AO on the fourth day after provision – expressly not from the moment of retrieval. If the date is disputed, however, the authority bears the burden of proof for the time of provision. For domestic postal delivery, under § 122 Abs. 2 Nr. 1 AO the fourth day likewise applies, here after dispatch to the post; for delivery abroad it is one month. From notification, the period for objection of one month runs under § 355 Abs. 1 AO. One detail brings peace of mind: under § 357 AO, the Einspruch does not need to be substantiated to meet the deadline. If you notice on the last day that something is wrong, you lodge it first and give the reasoning afterwards – that is not a trick, but the process the law itself provides for.

Good to know

Important notes

Since 1 January 2026, digital is the standard case. The redrafted § 122a AO has abolished the previous consent requirement. If you filed electronically, your notice is made available rather than sent to you.

The deadline runs from provision, not from when you read the notice. This is the most dangerous point of the new rule: a missed notification email costs days of the period for objection without you noticing.

Paper remains possible — but only on request. § 122a does not apply if you have applied for notification by post under § 122 Abs. 2 AO, either once or on a permanent basis. You have to make this decision actively.

The Einspruch does not need to be substantiated. Under § 357 AO, lodging it within the deadline already preserves your rights. You provide the reasoning afterwards – so lodge it first, and check things over afterwards.

The burden of proof for the date of provision lies with the authority. If receipt is disputed, the Finanzamt must prove the time. Still, note down yourself when you were notified.

Watch out for “provisional” and “subject to review”. Subject to review (§ 164 AO), the case remains fully open to change – including to your disadvantage. Provisionality (§ 165 AO), by contrast, affects only the points named.

Keep your email address up to date. Since 2026, it is the only channel through which you learn of a notice. A dead address in your account means a notice you know nothing about.

An Einspruch does not suspend enforcement. A back payment remains due despite the Einspruch; for that, you need a separate application for suspension of implementation (Aussetzung der Vollziehung) under § 361 AO.

Avoid these mistakes

Common mistakes

Waiting for the letter that no longer comes. Since 1 January 2026, for electronically filed returns the notice is made available rather than sent. If you wait for post, in the worst case you lose the entire period for objection.

Calculating the four-day deadline from the retrieval. It runs from provision. If you open the notice two weeks later, you have two weeks less than you think.

Waiting to lodge the Einspruch until all the evidence is in. Unnecessary and risky: under § 357 AO, the Einspruch does not need to be substantiated to meet the deadline.

Skipping the explanatory notes. They state where the Finanzamt has deviated and whether the notice is issued provisionally or subject to review. Without this part, you are not really checking the notice at all.

Assuming an Einspruch stops the payment. It does not. For a postponement of payment, you need an application for suspension of implementation.

Leaving an old email address in your account. Since 2026, it is the only notification channel. If it is not read, the deadline still runs.

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

Will I still get the tax notice on paper?

Only if you apply for it. Since 1 January 2026, § 122a AO applies in its new version: the consent previously required no longer applies, and for electronically filed returns the notice is made available for electronic retrieval as the standard case. § 122a is expressly not applicable if you have applied for notification by post under § 122 Abs. 2 AO – which you can do either once, for a specific matter, or on a permanent basis.

From when does the period for objection run?

From notification, which for making available for electronic retrieval occurs on the fourth day after provision – not on the fourth day after retrieval, and not four days after you read the notice. After that, under § 355 Abs. 1 AO you have one month to lodge the Einspruch. If you miss the notification, you lose these days without any way to recover them.

What happens if I did not receive the notification?

The deemed notification is tied to provision, not to receipt of your email. However, the authority bears the burden of proof for the time of provision if this is disputed. If you genuinely had no knowledge, restoration of the status quo ante (reinstatement after a missed deadline) under § 110 AO may also come into consideration – but that requires that you were prevented through no fault of your own, and a neglected inbox (Postfach) is a weak argument for that.

Do I need to give reasons for the objection?

Not in order to meet the deadline. Under § 357 AO, lodging it within the deadline is enough; you can provide the reasoning later. In practice, that means: if you notice on the last day of the deadline that something is wrong, lodge the Einspruch first and check things over calmly afterwards. That is not a trick, but the process the law itself provides for.

Do I have to pay a back payment despite the Einspruch?

Yes. An Einspruch has no suspensive effect – the payment set out in the notice remains due on the date stated. If you do not want to pay the amount before the decision is made, you additionally need an application for suspension of implementation under § 361 AO. This application is usually made together with the Einspruch, because otherwise it is easily forgotten.

What does “subject to review” (Vorbehalt der Nachprüfung) mean?

That under § 164 AO, the notice remains open to change in full for as long as the reservation applies – in both directions. The Finanzamt can later correct it to your disadvantage, but equally you can apply for a change at any time, without being bound by the period for objection. This is to be distinguished from provisionality under § 165 AO: it covers only the points expressly named in the notice, usually because of pending court proceedings.

How do I find out that a notice has arrived?

§ 122a requires that you be notified electronically on the day of provision, including a reference to the option to retrieve the notice and its legal consequences. This notification goes to the email address held in your ELSTER account. Since 2026, it has been your only channel – keep the address up to date and treat such emails like an official letter.

Does the four-day rule also apply to notices on paper?

Yes, but it counts from a different event. For domestic postal delivery, under § 122 Abs. 2 Nr. 1 AO the notice is deemed notified on the fourth day after dispatch to the post, and for delivery abroad only after one month. For making available for electronic retrieval, by contrast, it is the fourth day after provision that counts. Same number, different starting point – which is why it is worth checking the relevant date in each individual case.

Related official procedures

File a tax return
Deadlines for 2026 and 2027
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Correct the return
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Register an ELSTER account
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