EÜR template: preparing and sending the income surplus statement in ELSTER

The EÜR is how you work out your profit: business income minus business expenses. You transmit it as the Anlage EÜR (the electronic EÜR) to the tax office (Finanzamt), for example in ELSTER, together with your income tax return. The deadline is in principle 31 July of the following year; for 2026 it is Monday, 2 August 2027 (31 July is a Saturday).

Only VAT GPT sends all three returns itself. Of the tools we compare, according to the providers' own pages (checked 3 November 2026), only VAT GPT submits the OSS return itself to the BZSt, plus the VAT advance return and the annual VAT return via ELSTER to the tax office, calculated from your Amazon and eBay reports. You do not have to go into Mein ELSTER or the BZStOnline portal yourself. With the others, you upload the OSS file in the BZStOnline portal yourself, or a tax adviser or the provider's service files it for you. Sending needs Pro. OSS software compared

Last updated: 29 October 2026

In short

Who may: Freelancers, plus traders and online sellers up to €800,000 turnover and €80,000 profit; no GmbH or UG.
Timing: Income counts when received, expenses when paid; exception: recurring payments around New Year (10 days).
VAT: Under regular taxation it belongs in the EÜR; as a small business owner you use gross amounts.

Is there a sample to fill in?

The official template is the Anlage EÜR (the form “Einnahmenüberschussrechnung-Anlage EÜR”). You do not normally fill it in on paper: the income surplus statement must be transmitted in the officially prescribed data set by remote data transmission (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV), since the 2017 assessment period only with electronic authentication. A table of your own can collect your figures, but it is not what is transmitted.

Paper exists only in hardship cases: on application the tax authority can waive electronic transmission to avoid undue hardship. In that case a determination of profit on the officially prescribed form must be attached to the tax return; according to ELSTER these are the Anlage EÜR and the Anlage AVEÜR, where applicable with further annexes.

Two notes from ELSTER on filling it in: do not fill in lines and fields that do not affect you – not even with the value 0.00. And if ELSTER carries data over from the previous filing, it is only a little; that is not an error. Which amount belongs in which line is shown in the section “What belongs in the EÜR?”.

What this means for you: you send the Anlage EÜR electronically; paper is only for approved hardship cases.

How do I file the income surplus statement in ELSTER?

The form can be used for one business separately or in connection with the income tax return. Proceed like this:

Open the form: on elster.de under Forms and Services (“Formulare und Leistungen”) and All Forms (“Alle Formulare”), choose the form for the income surplus statement (“Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)”).
Choose the calendar year: in principle the year in which the profit determined with the Anlage EÜR is to be recorded in the tax assessment. As of 21 October 2026 ELSTER offers the years 2019 to 2025; 2026 cannot be selected there yet.
Enter the tax number: choose the federal state and enter the (business) tax number; the tax office is determined automatically. If you have no tax number for the business or the tax office has not yet told you one, choose the second option and state the competent tax office. How to get a tax number: Tax number in Germany: applying with the tax registration questionnaire online.
Select and fill in the annexes: the Anlage EÜR and, if they apply to you, the further annexes – see the next section.
Send: with electronic authentication; on paper only in a hardship case.

Which annexes belong to the EÜR? The ELSTER guide distinguishes these annexes:

Anlage EÜR: general details on the business as well as business income, business expenses, the determination of profit taking corrections into account (for example tax-exempt business income, non-deductible business expenses, investment deduction amounts), reserves and hidden reserves, and withdrawals and contributions.
Anlage AVEÜR: details on your business assets (fixed and current assets) and on the development of the book values of the assets.
Anlage SZ: details for determining the non-deductible debt interest for your sole proprietorship.
Further annexes: The annexes SE, AVSE and ER concern partnerships of co-entrepreneurs (Mitunternehmerschaften), the annex LuF vineyards and forestry businesses.

The lines on VAT (15, 17, 18, 57 and 58, and line 12 for a small business owner) are explained by the table in the section “What belongs in the EÜR?”.

What this means for you: open the ELSTER form, pick the year, enter the tax number and send it with electronic authentication.

Is it called EÜR, income surplus statement or profit and loss account?

Usually the same form is meant: in ELSTER it is called "Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)", EÜR for short; it is also written "Einnahmen-Überschuss-Rechnung" or "Einnahme-Überschuss-Rechnung". "Einkommensüberschussrechnung" is a mix-up; the form is not called that. The legal basis is § 4 para. 3 EStG: the profit is the surplus of business income over business expenses.

A profit and loss account (Gewinn- und Verlustrechnung, GuV) is something else: together with the balance sheet it forms the annual financial statements that merchants must prepare (§ 242 HGB). An "informal" profit calculation is not enough for the EÜR: it must be sent electronically in the officially prescribed data set, on paper only in cases of hardship (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV).

What this means for you: If you look for the "Einnahmenüberschussrechnung" in ELSTER, you are in the right place; a self-made profit and loss account or Excel sheet does not replace the Anlage EÜR.

May I use the EÜR?

The EÜR (§ 4 para. 3 EStG) is open to you if you are not required by law to keep books and prepare financial statements – and do not do so voluntarily.

You are …	EÜR possible?
Freelancer	Yes. The tax bookkeeping obligation under § 141 AO applies only to commercial entrepreneurs and to farmers and foresters.
Trader or online seller with at most €800,000 of turnover and at most €80,000 of profit	Yes, as long as you do not have to keep books under commercial law.
Trader above one of these limits	The tax office notifies you of the bookkeeping obligation; it applies from the financial year after that notification. Then you determine the profit with a balance sheet.
Sole trader in the commercial register	Under commercial law you are exempt from bookkeeping if on two consecutive balance sheet dates you each have no more than €800,000 of revenue and €80,000 of annual net income; for a new founding the first balance sheet date is enough.
GmbH or UG	No. The GmbH (also as a UG) counts as a commercial company, and every merchant must keep books.

Unsure whether you are obliged to keep books? Clarify this with a tax adviser before the annual closing.

What this means for you: you may use the EÜR if you are not obliged to keep books and do not do so voluntarily.

What belongs in the EÜR?

Basic principle – inflow and outflow: Income counts in the year in which you receive it; expenses in the year in which you pay them (§ 11 EStG). An exception applies to regularly recurring income and expenses that flow shortly before or shortly after the turn of the year: these count in the year to which they economically belong. The official ELSTER guide gives a period of 10 days for this.

VAT in the EÜR (regular taxation):

What	How in the Anlage EÜR (lines according to the guide to the EÜR 2025)
Taxable income subject to VAT	net in line 15
The VAT received with this income	business income in line 17, at the time it is received
VAT refunds from the tax office	business income in line 18
Expenses	as a rule net; the input VAT paid as a business expense in line 57, when you pay it
VAT paid to the tax office (advance returns, annual return)	business expense in line 58

Example from the ELSTER guide: The VAT prepayment for December is due on 10 January of the following year. If you actually pay it by 10 January, it is a business expense of the old year. Note: 10 January 2027 is a Sunday – whether the December 2026 payment then still belongs to the old year, clarify with a tax adviser if in doubt.

As a small business owner: You enter your business income with the total amount actually received in line 12 and your expenses gross; as a rule you do not use lines 15 to 17.

Further rules from the guide: You transmit a separate Anlage EÜR for each business. If you sell fixed assets, you enter the proceeds without VAT; private withdrawals, such as goods for private use, you enter without VAT and the VAT on them in line 17.

A marketplace example is in eBay seller EÜR.

What this means for you: count income when received and expenses when paid, and enter VAT in its own lines.

How do I fill in the Anlage EÜR as a small business owner (Kleinunternehmer)?

As a VAT small business owner (Kleinunternehmer) you enter your full business income, as the total amount actually received, in line 12. Small business owners generally do not fill in lines 15 to 17. You enter business expenses at the gross amount. The details come from the official ELSTER guide to the Anlage EÜR 2025.

What this means for you: You fill in fewer lines and calculate without VAT; the full guide with an example is at Anlage EÜR as a small business owner.

Which type of business do you enter in the Anlage EÜR?

At the top of the Anlage EÜR are the general details (lines 1 to 11). The ELSTER guide to the Anlage EÜR 2025 names three things for them:

the tax number under which the business is managed
the type of business or activity (main focus)
the legal form of the business, for example sole trader (Einzelgewerbetreibende(r)) or member of the liberal professions (Angehörige(r) der freien Berufe)

For the business year (line 4) you only enter something if it differs from the calendar year.

"Type of business" is free text. Describe briefly what your main income comes from. We did not find a selection list for it in the guide.

You are ...	Type of business (example)	Legal form (example)
Online seller on Amazon and eBay	Online trade in household goods	Sole trader (Einzelgewerbetreibende(r))
Freelance copywriter	Copywriting and proofreading	Member of the liberal professions (Angehörige(r) der freien Berufe)

The examples are our own wording, not official requirements. If they do not fit you, write what your business is at its core. The entry should match what you stated when you registered the business and in the tax registration questionnaire: Tax number in Germany: applying with the tax registration questionnaire online.

What this means for you: describe your type of business briefly in free text and make it match your registration.

How and by when do I file the EÜR?

Electronic: You transmit the Anlage EÜR in the officially prescribed data set by remote data transmission (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV). Paper is permitted only in hardship cases.
With the income tax return: Anyone with business income (trade, self-employment, agriculture and forestry) also transmits the income tax return electronically (§ 25 para. 4 EStG).
Deadline: at the latest seven months after the end of the calendar year (§ 149 para. 2 AO). If the end of the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, the next working day applies (§ 108 para. 3 AO) – for 2026 that is Monday, 2 August 2027. If a tax adviser prepares your return, longer deadlines apply (§ 149 para. 3 AO).
Too late: If you file late, the tax office can set a late-filing penalty (§ 152 AO).

If …	Then … (§ 152 AO)
You file late	For annual returns such as the income tax return with EÜR, the penalty is 0.25 percent of the assessed tax for every started month of delay, reduced by the assessed advance payments and the tax deductions to be credited, at least €25 per started month; at most €25,000 (§ 152 para. 5 sentence 2, para. 10 AO).
The return is missing 14 months after the end of the calendar year	The penalty must then be set, not just may be set (para. 2).

What this means for you: 2 August 2027 is the deadline for 2026; every started month after that costs at least €25 once a penalty is set.

What else comes with the EÜR?

Trade tax (Gewerbesteuer): Trade tax concerns trade businesses; practising a liberal profession is not a trade business. If you have to file a trade tax return – for example because your trade income exceeds €24,500 (§ 25 (1) GewStDV) – you transmit it electronically (§ 14a GewStG). For natural persons and partnerships an allowance of €24,500 on trade income applies. More on this: Trade tax return in Germany, also for small businesses.
VAT: With regular taxation you additionally transmit the annual VAT return; during the year the advance VAT returns are due.

What this means for you: expect further annexes next to the EÜR, depending on your business.

Which mistakes happen often?

Forgetting VAT. With regular taxation, VAT received is business income; input VAT paid and VAT paid to the tax office are business expenses.
Booking by invoice date instead of by payment. In the EÜR, inflow or outflow counts in principle.
Applying the 10-day rule wrongly. The rule applies only to regularly recurring income and expenses around the turn of the year.
Sending the EÜR on paper. Without an approved hardship case it must be submitted electronically.
Packing several businesses into one EÜR. Each business has its own Anlage EÜR.
Overlooking the bookkeeping obligation. Anyone who must keep books under commercial law or has been asked to by the tax office may not use an EÜR.

What this means for you: book by payment, include VAT, send one EÜR per business and file electronically.

What matters in EÜR software?

If you want to transmit the EÜR with software, it must be able to transmit the Anlage EÜR electronically in the officially prescribed data set (§ 60 para. 4 EStDV). ELSTER keeps a directory for this of software products that support ELSTER (“Softwareprodukte, die ELSTER unterstützen”): in it you choose the operating system and see the supported forms and functions, among them the income surplus statement (EÜR). Also check whether the software records VAT in the right lines (table above) and calculates by inflow and outflow.

Whether you fill in ELSTER yourself or use software is compared in ELSTER alternative for online sellers: Mein ELSTER or software?.

What this means for you: choose software that transmits the Anlage EÜR in the official data set.

How VAT GPT helps with the EÜR

Upload: You upload your invoices and your Amazon or eBay CSV reports. The AI reads amounts, countries and tax rates; VAT GPT breaks down the VAT for Germany and the EU (OSS).
Check: You see your values in the layout of the Anlage EÜR with its line numbers, check and confirm them. In the same account you also prepare your trade tax return and your income tax return.
Send: With VAT GPT Pro it goes via ELSTER to the tax office, plus the annual VAT return.

There is Free (basic features, free of charge), Go (30 days free with all Pro features) and Pro. Try for Free Now

Frequently asked questions about the EÜR

Is there a template for the EÜR? The official template is the Anlage EÜR. You transmit it electronically, for example in ELSTER; a paper form applies only to hardship cases on application to the tax office.

How do I file the income surplus statement in ELSTER? On elster.de under Forms and Services (“Formulare und Leistungen”) and All Forms (“Alle Formulare”), open the form for the income surplus statement (“Einnahmenüberschussrechnung (Anlage EÜR)”), choose the calendar year, enter the tax number, fill in the annexes and send with electronic authentication.

What is the Anlage EÜR? The official form for determining profit under § 4 para. 3 EStG. It covers general details on the business, business income, business expenses, the profit, and withdrawals and contributions. Annexes such as the Anlage AVEÜR for business assets are added.

May I use an EÜR as an online seller? Yes, if you are not obliged to keep books: as a trader you become so under § 141 AO only from more than €800,000 of turnover or €80,000 of profit and only after a notification from the tax office; as a sole trader in the commercial register the limits of § 241a HGB apply.

Do I have to submit the EÜR electronically? Yes. Paper is permitted only in hardship cases, on application to the tax office.

By when must the EÜR 2026 be with the tax office? Together with the income tax return, at the latest seven months after the end of the year. For 2026 that is Monday, 2 August 2027, because 31 July 2027 is a Saturday. With a tax adviser, longer deadlines apply.

Does VAT belong in the EÜR? With regular taxation, yes: VAT received and refunds are business income, input VAT paid and VAT paid to the tax office are business expenses. As a small business owner you calculate with gross amounts.

What does a late EÜR cost? If the tax office has set a late-filing penalty, the following applies to the income tax return with EÜR: 0.25 percent of the assessed tax, reduced by the assessed advance payments and the tax deductions to be credited, for every started month, at least €25 for every started month (§ 152 para. 5 sentence 2 AO).

When does income count? In principle when the money reaches you. Regularly recurring income shortly before or after the turn of the year counts in the year to which it economically belongs.

Do I need a separate EÜR for each business? Yes, you transmit a separate Anlage EÜR for each business.

Do I pay trade tax as a freelancer? No. Practising a liberal profession is not a trade business. Sole proprietors and partnerships with a trade business submit a trade tax return if their trade income exceeds €24,500, if loss carry-forwards (vortragsfähige Fehlbeträge) were determined separately or if the tax office asks for it (§ 25 (1) GewStDV); for natural persons an allowance of €24,500 on trade income applies.