20
Letters from Germany: what each one means
The letters an official body from Germany actually sends — what each one means, the deadline that runs, and what happens if you ignore it.
Tax
- Steuerbescheid (z. B. Einkommensteuerbescheid)A Steuerbescheid is the Finanzamt's official assessment of your tax for a year — a refund or an amount to pay, with a due date. After the one-month objection period, its content is fixed even if it is wrong.
- Vollstreckungsankündigung (Ankündigung der Vollstreckung)A Vollstreckungsankündigung says a debt is overdue and enforcement will begin unless payment arrives by a stated date. At this stage the letter is about collection — normally the underlying claim is already final.
- Mahnung des Finanzamts mit Säumniszuschlägen (Rückstandsanzeige)This is a demand from the Finanzamt listing unpaid tax plus Säumniszuschläge. The surcharges are not a penalty someone chose — they arise automatically by law once the due date passes.
- Steuerbescheid mit Schätzung der Besteuerungsgrundlagen (Schätzungsbescheid)A Schätzungsbescheid is a tax assessment in which the Finanzamt estimated your income or turnover — usually because no return was filed. Estimates are routinely higher than reality, and the duty to file remains.
- Erinnerung an die Abgabe der SteuererklärungThis letter from the Finanzamt says a tax return it expects from you has not arrived, and it sets a date by which the return must be filed. It is a reminder — the sanctions come only if it stays unanswered.
- Androhung eines Zwangsgeldes (Zwangsgeldandrohung)A Zwangsgeldandrohung is a formal written threat: a coercive fine of a specific amount will be imposed if a duty — typically filing a tax return — is not performed by a set deadline. It is a pressure instrument, not yet the fine.
Debt collection
- MahnungA Mahnung is a formal demand for payment from a private creditor. Its serious tone is real — it can put you into legal default — but it is still a private letter, not a court order.
- Inkassoschreiben (Zahlungsaufforderung eines Inkassodienstleisters)An Inkassoschreiben is a demand from a debt-collection company that has taken over a creditor's claim against you. It adds fees — but it has no state powers and cannot seize anything itself.
- ZahlungserinnerungA Zahlungserinnerung is a polite reminder from a company that says an invoice has not been paid. It is not from a court or an authority — it is the first and mildest step of private debt collection.
Court
- MahnbescheidA Mahnbescheid means a creditor has started the court dunning procedure against you. The court has not checked whether the claim is justified — but real court deadlines are now running.
- VollstreckungsbescheidA Vollstreckungsbescheid is the second stage of the court dunning procedure, issued because no objection was made to an earlier Mahnbescheid. It is the last chance to stop the claim with a simple objection.
- StrafbefehlA Strafbefehl is a criminal conviction issued without any court hearing — the court decided on the file alone. If nothing is done for two weeks, the conviction stands exactly as written.
- Vorladung (polizeiliche Vorladung zur Vernehmung)A Vorladung is a letter setting an appointment for questioning in a criminal investigation — either as a suspect (Beschuldigter) or as a witness (Zeuge). As a suspect, staying silent on the accusation is a protected choice.
Traffic
- BußgeldbescheidA Bußgeldbescheid is the formal fine decision in an administrative-offense case — speeding, a red light, and similar. It is not a criminal conviction, but it becomes final and enforceable if no Einspruch is filed within 2 weeks.
- Anhörungsbogen (Anhörung im Bußgeldverfahren)An Anhörungsbogen is a questionnaire sent to you as the suspected offender before any fine is issued — usually after a speed-camera or parking violation. Confirming your identity is mandatory; commenting on the accusation is not.
- ZeugenfragebogenA Zeugenfragebogen goes to the registered vehicle keeper when the authority believes the keeper did not commit the offense — the camera photo shows someone else. It asks who was driving. No fine is addressed to you.