Germany - Obtain a Tax Identification Number

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Procedure

1. The Federal Central Tax Office (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern) issues a uniform and permanent tax identification number (TIN) to every individual who is subject to tax, for purposes of unambiguous identification in taxation procedures. Issuance of TIN is automatic. Identification numbers are also allocated to children. This is necessary because liability for tax can begin at birth.
2. The Federal Central Tax Office will send you a written notice informing you that a TIN has been issued to you and the data has been stored together with the TIN.

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Required Documents

List down the documents required for successfully completing the procedure.

e.g.
1. Proof of child birth from the Hospital.

Office Locations & Contacts

Federal Central Tax Office:
Bundeszentralamt für Steuern
Hauptdienstsitz Bonn-Beuel
An der Küppe 1
53225 Bonn

Phone: +49 228 406 1240
(Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 4:00 pm)

Eligibility

All individuals receive an 11-digit identification number to ensure their unique identification within the tax system.

Fees

Explain the fees structure which is required for obtaining the certificate/document.

Validity

Your TIN will not change even if you change your address or get married. It will remain with you for the whole of your life. It does not contain any information about you or the tax office responsible for your tax affairs. Introduction of the number will allow for an improved and more efficient use of electronic data-processing.

Documents to Use

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Sample Documents

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Processing Time

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Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications. 
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites. 	
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver, 
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

The Federal Central Tax Office (Bundeszentralamt für Steuern) issues a uniform and permanent tax identification number (TIN) to every individual who is subject to tax, for purposes of unambiguous identification in taxation procedures.

Required Information

A list which displays the kind of information which is required to complete the procedure.
e.g.
1. Date of Birth.
2. City or County of Birth.

Need for the Document

You will need to indicate your TIN on applications, declarations or notifications submitted to the revenue authorities.

Information which might help

TINs are comprised of 11 digits: 10 digits plus one check digit.

TINs are non - descriptive numbers, i.e. they provide no indications as to a taxpayer’s name, gender or other tax - related information

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

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e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

http://www.bzst.de

Others

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