What documents do I need for the e-Bilanz?
Updated: September 2026 · ~4 min read · eBilanz Fabrik (a tool, not tax advice)
Short answer: three things. Finished annual accounts (balance sheet and profit-and-loss statement), a valid ELSTER certificate, and your 13-digit German tax number. Everything else is master data you already know or can read off your commercial register extract. You need no XBRL file, no software and no power of attorney for a tax advisor.
The checklist
| What | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Balance sheet + P&L, finished (PDF) | the figures that get transmitted |
| ELSTER certificate (file + password) | authenticated transmission to the Finanzamt |
| 13-digit tax number | assigns the filing to your tax office |
| Company name, address, activity, register number | master data in the form |
1. The finished annual accounts
The e-Bilanz represents your annual accounts — it does not produce them. The balance sheet and P&L must be complete before you start. A PDF is enough: the values are read from it, you check them and release them.
If the accounts are not finished yet, that is where a tax advisor is needed — for the accounts, not for the transmission. See filing an e-Bilanz without a tax advisor.
2. The ELSTER certificate
Authenticated transmission to the Finanzamt requires a valid ELSTER certificate — the certificate file and its password. It is what assigns the filing to your company. How to obtain it in Mein ELSTER is in the ELSTER certificate guide.
3. The 13-digit tax number
ELSTER requires the federal 13-digit form, not the way it is printed on your tax assessment. Every Bundesland derives it differently, and the wrong order is one of the most common rejection reasons. Our free tax number converter handles all 16 states; the logic is explained in the 13-digit German tax number.
4. The master data the form asks for
eBilanz Fabrik asks for this in step 2. None of it needs preparing — it is on your commercial register extract or your tax assessment:
- Company name — in full, including the legal form
- Address — street, postcode and town; an incomplete address causes an ERiC rejection
- The Bundesland of your tax office and the tax number
- Business activity — one short sentence
- Commercial register number — for registered companies
- E-mail — where the Transferticket, the XBRL file and the invoice go
- For partnerships, additionally the partners with type and share, for the capital accounts
What you do not need
- No XBRL file. That is the output, not the prerequisite — we map your figures to the HGB XBRL taxonomy.
- No software installation. Transmission runs over the ERiC interface; there is nothing for you to set up.
- No power of attorney for a tax advisor. There is no advisor requirement for the transmission itself (no warranty on legal statements).
- Not the prior year's accounts for the Finanzamt. Only the current financial year is transmitted. For the Unternehmensregister filing, prior-year figures are a separate matter.
What we measured ourselves
Our funnel telemetry continuously records where a session stops. Across 4,080 analysed cases the single most frequent point is before the first figure field — that is, this exact question, asked before anything has been entered. That is why this page exists. This is our own measurement, not an official statistic.
Upload your finished annual accounts as a PDF, check the values, release — we transmit via ERiC to the Finanzamt and deliver the Transferticket.
Create your e-Bilanz →Frequently asked
What documents do I need for the e-Bilanz?
Three things: finished annual accounts (balance sheet and profit-and-loss statement), a valid ELSTER certificate and your 13-digit German tax number. Everything else is master data such as company name, address, business activity and commercial register number.
Do I need a finished XBRL file?
No. The XBRL file is the output, not the prerequisite. You upload your finished balance sheet and P&L as a PDF; eBilanz Fabrik maps the values to the HGB XBRL taxonomy.
Do I need the prior year's accounts?
Not for the transmission to the Finanzamt: we transmit only the current financial year. For the Unternehmensregister filing, prior-year figures can be a separate matter.
eBilanz Fabrik is a transmission tool and provides no tax advice and no review of content. Prices and legal statements without warranty; the statutory provisions govern (incl. § 5b EStG, § 149 AO). Price: 29.95 € per transmission, net plus 19 % VAT.