Worth-It Check

Around 90 percent of tax returns lead to a refund, on average a few hundred to over a thousand euros. Yet millions leave their return undone - out of fear of the effort or because they believe it does not pay off for them. The Worth-It Check clears up this uncertainty: it sorts your case in a few minutes.

In twelve questions the check clarifies two separate things. First: are you obliged to file? There are mandatory filings under Section 46 - for example if you had side income over 410 euros, received wage-replacement benefits like short-time work, parental or sickness benefit over 410 euros, are married with tax-class combination III/V or IV with factor, or had several employers at once. If one of these criteria applies, you must file - the check names the reason.

Second: is it worth it voluntarily? If there is no obligation, you can make a voluntary assessment - and that almost always pays off if you had deductible costs. The check asks about the typical refund drivers: commuter allowance, home office, work expenses above the lump sum, craftsman costs, special expenses, donations, extraordinary burdens like medical costs, a second household or training. From your answers it estimates a refund range.

The check makes the deadlines unmistakable. For mandatory filing, 31 July of the following year is the cutoff (with a tax advisor, end of February of the year after that). If you are late, late-filing surcharges of 0.25 percent of the tax per month, at least 25 euros, loom. For voluntary assessment, however, you have four years - the assessment deadline. So you can still reclaim money for past years as long as the four years have not expired.

Finally the check compares the ways to do your return: ELSTER (free but without guidance), commercial tax software (cheap, with a question wizard), a wage tax help association (personal advice, income-based fee, later deadline) or a tax advisor (personal, optimised, later deadline, pricier). Depending on your case's complexity the check recommends the right path.

Everything runs in the browser; your entries stay on your device. The check is an orientation aid, not tax advice and not a binding calculation. It tells you whether and how to tackle your return - the detailed figures then come from ELSTER, your software or your advisor.