Which notice is valid? Paper or electronic?

Electronic vs. Paper Tax Notice

Through ELSTER, no complete tax notice is provided. The tax authorities only make the electronic notice data available – not the official notice itself.

The electronic tax notice displayed in Lohnsteuer kompakt is solely for comparison with the calculation from Lohnsteuer kompakt and is not legally binding.

If in doubt, compare the displayed data with the paper notice you receive by post from the tax office.

Important: Only the paper notice sent by post is legally considered the official tax notice.

In exceptional cases, there may be discrepancies – for example, if individual values are not transmitted electronically or if ELSTER calculates differently than expected.