ELSTER Certificate

German: ELSTER-Zertifikatsdatei

The ERiC interface requires an ELSTER certificate (*.pfx file) for the authenticated transmission of filings to the tax authorities. The certificate is being generated during the registration process of an ELSTER account within Mein ELSTER (elster.de).

1. Foreign entities

Foreign companies usually do not have a German tax number (Steuernummer). Therefore before creating an ELSTER account you need to apply for a so called Ordnungskriterium. To do so fill out the following form:

https://download.elster.de/download/dokumente/Antrag_auf_Erteilung_eines_Ordnungskriteriums.pdf

Further information can be found in the section Hilfe zur Registrierung ausländischer Datenübermittler und inländischer Behörden of the ELSTER FAQ area.

2. Create account

After receiving the Ordnungskriterium - a so-called organizational certificate for a tax number should be applied for and generated. Start with:

https://www.elster.de/eportal/registrierung-auswahlwww.elster.de

The following three steps need special attention:

Select "Zertifikatsdatei" as certificate type

In the next step select "Für eine Organisation"

And in the next step "Mit Steuernummer"​

You will be led through the process. Go through the registration process and fill out all required fields at. After completing all steps (in especially after receiving the Aktivierungs-ID by email and Aktivierungs-Code by post) a certificate will be generated.

The complete process (including postal delivery) takes several business days. In case of foreign entities it might take about 2 weeks.

Store the generated certificate and password safely.