Erfurt (dpa/th) – The submission of the property tax return creates a high need for advice – the hotlines of the tax offices in Thuringia are overloaded. “The property tax hotline is currently reaching its limits,” informed the Thuringian Ministry of Finance on Tuesday in Erfurt. On some days more than 20,000 calls were received. Callers often have to put up with long waiting times before they can get their questions answered.
You can understand the displeasure of many citizens, explained Finance Minister Heike Taubert (SPD). “Of course it’s annoying when you don’t get through.” But more is currently not possible. In the past few weeks, Taubert had informed himself about the situation in the tax offices and the status of processing the data for the property tax reform.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the calls are primarily about entering data in the online program of the financial management “Elster” or about ordering paper forms or file numbers for properties. The financial administration asks for patience with paper forms – sending them can sometimes take several days.
The financial administration expects even more calls after the end of the holiday in Thuringia. It refers to alternative sources of information to help property owners with the explanation. The ministry has put various sample instructions online, including for single-family houses or condominiums. Instructions on how to fill them out are also stored online in the Elster forms behind the blue question marks.