Try it for yourself
280Having a tax assessment reviewed

An incorrect tax assessment can be challenged by an objection.

An assessment does not disappear when it is put aside. The question asks for the established legal remedy: an objection.

About 4 min readReviewed: 20 October 2026
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Fiscal CodeSection 347 · Objection
Symbolic review of papers, not an actual tax assessment or calculated amount.
The short answer

File an objection.

Someone who considers a tax assessment incorrect can seek review through an objection. The competent authority, required form and deadline matter. The general deadline is one month after notification; an objection alone does not automatically suspend a payment demand.

Try it for yourselfExam question · No. 280
If you want to dispute an incorrect tax assessment in Germany, you must …

Choose one answer. Your result stays on this page only.

Identify the assessment and the disputed point.

A tax assessment contains a binding decision by the tax authority. An objection is a formal procedure for obtaining review of such a decision. It can be submitted in writing, electronically or for recording by the authority. ELSTER provides a dedicated form.

Section 357 calls for identification of the challenged decision and what is disputed. The person making the objection must be identifiable. In practice, it helps to consider the assessment, supporting records and instructions on legal remedies together, rather than merely express general dissatisfaction.

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AI-generated study conversation without real financial data or personal tax advice.

The other three answers

The other answers leave the disputed assessment unresolved.

do nothing.

Doing nothing does not start an objection review. The deadline for the remedy may expire.

throw away the assessment.

Throwing the assessment away does not remove its legal effect. It also discards important information needed for review.

wait until another assessment comes.

Another assessment does not arrive simply because someone thinks the first is wrong. The question asks for the active legal remedy.

An objection and a payment suspension are different matters.

Under section 361, an objection generally does not suspend enforcement. Suspension must be applied for or assessed separately. The exam answer is therefore not an instruction simply to stop making payments that are due.

The start of the deadline and possible exceptions depend on notification and the circumstances. The applicable procedural rules matter, rather than a rough calculation from the printed date. The short question explains the remedy, not individual tax advice.

Section 347 · Objection · Fiscal Code ↗
Your memory cue

Review a tax assessment: object in the required form and within the deadline.

Keeping the document and responding specifically helps; ignoring or discarding it is not a legal remedy.

Three words for this question

der Steuerbescheidtax assessment
The authority’s decision determining a tax assessment.
die Bekanntgabenotification
The legally relevant communication of an administrative decision.
der Einspruchobjection
The legal remedy provided here for reviewing the decision.
Abgabenordnung · § 347 ↗

The nature of the concern determines the procedure.

276What should you do if you are treated badly by your contact person at a German authority?
Catalogue answer

I can complain to the head of the authority.

A complaint about conduct does not replace a formal legal remedy.

3Germany is a constitutional state (Rechtsstaat). What does this mean?
Catalogue answer

All residents and the state must abide by the laws.

Administrative decisions are also subject to legal review.

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Sources & context

An independently written study guide, not an official BAMF publication or advice for an individual case. The sources below were reviewed on 20 October 2026 for the claims explained here; the test question comes from the existing question bank.

  • Abgabenordnung · § 347 ↗Establishes the objection procedure for the tax matters covered.
  • Abgabenordnung · § 355 ↗Specifies a general objection deadline of one month after notification.
  • Abgabenordnung · § 357 ↗Governs form, competent authority and identifying the challenged assessment. Official indexed wording checked; direct individual retrieval unavailable.
  • Abgabenordnung · § 361 ↗An objection generally does not suspend enforcement; a suspension must be considered separately. Official indexed wording checked; direct individual retrieval unavailable.
  • ELSTER · Einspruch einreichen ↗Shows an official electronic route for an objection, reasons and, where relevant, an application to suspend enforcement.
  • BAMF · Gesamtfragenkatalog ↗Question 280 from the existing question bank, stated catalogue date 7 May 2025. The PDF could not be retrieved during this review; the existing questions and translations were not replaced.

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