Income-tax prepayment (Einkommensteuer-Vorauszahlung): the four dates

Page last checked: 2026-09-28

Self-employed people in Germany often pay income tax in advance, quarter by quarter. The dates are in the statute, the amounts in the tax office's notice — and neither has anything to do with the Künstlersozialkasse.

The four prepayment dates

Prepayment	Date every year	2027
First prepayment	10 March	Wednesday 10 March 2027
Second prepayment	10 June	Thursday 10 June 2027
Third prepayment	10 September	Friday 10 September 2027
Fourth prepayment	10 December	Friday 10 December 2027

Source: §37(1) sentence 1 EStG (gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__37.html), checked on 28 September 2026.

In the current year, the next prepayment is the one on 10 December 2026. How much is paid on each date is stated in your prepayment notice (Vorauszahlungsbescheid).

What the law says

§37(1) sentence 1 EStG: „Der Steuerpflichtige hat am 10. März, 10. Juni, 10. September und 10. Dezember Vorauszahlungen auf die Einkommensteuer zu entrichten, die er für den laufenden Veranlagungszeitraum voraussichtlich schulden wird.“ (The taxpayer pays prepayments on 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December on the income tax they are expected to owe for the current assessment period.)

Who sets the amount is governed by §37(3) EStG: „Das Finanzamt setzt die Vorauszahlungen durch Vorauszahlungsbescheid fest.“ (The tax office sets the prepayments by prepayment notice.) And further: „Die Vorauszahlungen bemessen sich grundsätzlich nach der Einkommensteuer, die sich … bei der letzten Veranlagung ergeben hat.“ (The prepayments are generally based on the income tax that resulted from the last assessment.)

Tax office dates, not KSK dates

The prepayments belong to income tax. The Künstlersozialkasse neither sets nor collects them. Its own dates are different: the income estimate (Einkommensschätzung) for the following year goes to the Künstlersozialkasse by 1 December, and the new KSK contribution is first due on 5 February.

All the fixed dates of a year — KSK, income-tax prepayments and the collecting societies' reporting deadlines — are listed together under KSK deadlines and dates through the year.

The dates in your own calendar

The calendar file ksk-fristen.ics contains the four prepayment dates as entries that recur every year, next to the Künstlersozialkasse's dates. You can import it once or subscribe via webcal, without an account.

What this page does not do

This page states the dates and reproduces the wording of the law. It calculates no tax, names no amount and says nothing about whether adjusting the prepayments is an option in your case. That is answered by the tax office or a tax adviser of your choice.

Frequently asked questions

When are income-tax prepayments (Einkommensteuer-Vorauszahlungen) due?

Under §37(1) sentence 1 EStG, prepayments are due on 10 March, 10 June, 10 September and 10 December. The amount of each prepayment is set in the tax office's prepayment notice (Vorauszahlungsbescheid).

What are the prepayment dates in 2027?

The 2027 income-tax prepayments fall on Wednesday 10 March, Thursday 10 June, Friday 10 September and Friday 10 December 2027.

Who sets the amount of the prepayment?

The tax office (Finanzamt). §37(3) sentence 1 EStG: „Das Finanzamt setzt die Vorauszahlungen durch Vorauszahlungsbescheid fest.“ (The tax office sets the prepayments by prepayment notice.)

Are the prepayment dates KSK deadlines?

No. They are income-tax dates under §37 EStG, and the tax office sets the amount. The Künstlersozialkasse expects the income estimate (Einkommensschätzung) by 1 December; the new KSK contribution is first due on 5 February.

Sources

By the Künstlerfinanzen editorial team. Page last checked: 2026-09-28. The information comes from:

This text reproduces the wording of the law. It is not legal advice and not tax advice. What applies in your case is answered by the tax office or an adviser of your choice.