The tax authorities of the German federal states recently issued the annual coordinated guidance on filing deadlines for 2009 tax returns. Unchanged from 2008, (corporate) income tax, trade tax and VAT returns for the assessment period 2009 must be filed with the tax office by 31 May 2010. Where the taxpayer has engaged a tax advisor to prepare the return, the filing deadline is generally extended until 31 December 2010. A further extension of the deadline until 28 February 2011 may be granted upon request in individual cases at the discretion of the tax office. However, irrespective of the general filing extension, the tax office may still request filing at an earlier date (e.g. if substantial tax payments can be expected, if losses are assessed for partners in a partnership or if the tax office considers early filing necessary for their workflow).
