Authorised recipient under § 123 AO: what you need to know when you leave Germany

What is an authorised recipient under § 123 AO?

An authorised recipient (Empfangsbevollmächtigter) is a person or organisation in Germany that is entitled to receive official post on your behalf. The legal basis is § 123 of the German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung, AO).

The rule in essence: if you have no residence, habitual abode, management or registered office in Germany or in another EU or EEA state, the tax authority can ask you to name an authorised recipient in Germany. Anyone can name an authorised recipient voluntarily.

Where the obligation applies: for Germans living in Spain, France or Austria, it does not. For Germans in the United Kingdom, the USA, Turkey or Thailand, it does. At first, this sounds harmless, but ignoring a request can have serious consequences.

Many Germans who live abroad permanently still have tax obligations in Germany, for example from rental income, a pension or a business. They need a reliable way to receive post from German authorities. And if they live outside the EU and the EEA, the tax office may ask them to name an authorised recipient.

How does deemed delivery work?

Fourth day in Germany, one month abroad: under § 122 (2) AO, a decision such as a tax assessment notice (Steuerbescheid) that is sent by post within Germany is deemed to be notified on the fourth day after it was posted. This applies to letters posted after 31 December 2024; before that, it was the third day. If the letter is sent to an address abroad, it is deemed notified one month after posting.

Deadlines run from that date, not from the day you actually read the letter. This rule is called deemed delivery (Zugangsfiktion). So a deadline can expire before you even know that the letter exists.

There is an exception: the rule does not apply if the letter did not arrive at all or arrived later. In case of doubt, the tax office must prove that the letter arrived and when.

If you ignore a request to name one, deemed delivery applies in full: under § 123 AO, every letter is deemed received one month after it was posted, and a document sent electronically on the fourth day after it was sent. This only does not apply if it is established that the document did not reach you, or reached you later. In practice, you are the one who has to show that.

In concrete terms, this means:

• A tax assessment notice can count as delivered even if nobody has read it, for example because it sits in a letterbox in Germany that nobody empties
• Objection periods start to run without you knowing
• Notices become final before you had a chance to react

Who is affected?

The rule affects all individuals and companies that:

• have moved their residence abroad
• no longer have their habitual abode in Germany
• but still have tax obligations in Germany (for example rental income, a pension or a business)

The obligation under § 123 AO itself only applies if you live outside the EU and the EEA, and only once the tax office asks you.

Those affected most often are:

• Emigrants and expats who own property in Germany
• Retirees abroad whose tax affairs are handled by the Neubrandenburg tax office (Finanzamt Neubrandenburg) and its unit for pension recipients abroad (RiA)
• E-commerce sellers who sell to customers in Germany from abroad
• Freelancers and digital nomads with a German business

What are the risks without an authorised recipient?

The risks are varied, and they can become expensive:

1. Missed objection deadlines: A tax assessment notice becomes final if you miss the one-month deadline for an objection (Einspruch, § 355 AO). After that, corrections are hardly possible.

1. Estimated assessments: If you do not file a tax return because you never received the request, the tax office estimates your income in an estimated assessment (Schätzungsbescheid), often clearly to your disadvantage.

1. Penalty payments and fines: Official orders that never reach you can lead to penalty payments (Zwangsgeld).

1. Late payment surcharges: If tax is not paid on time, a late payment surcharge (Säumniszuschlag) of 1 % of the unpaid tax, rounded down to the nearest €50, is added for each month or part of a month (§ 240 AO). This adds up quickly.

How can PortoDoc be your authorised recipient?

Your German postal address: you get your postal address in Ahrensburg near Hamburg with your personal PD number. It is a delivery address for letters, not a business, registered-office or imprint address.

With a power of attorney under § 123 AO, we receive your post as your authorised recipient. You name PortoDoc to the tax office yourself; your online account shows under “For the tax office” what to enter.

Every incoming letter is:

• Scanned: We scan each letter and you get a notification by e-mail. The letter is then available in your online account.
• Classified by AI (non-binding): red = urgent, yellow = action needed, green = for information
• Marked for possible deadlines from the Business plan: an AI deadline hint marks possible deadlines: a non-binding aid. The letter itself is what counts, and you (or your tax adviser) check every deadline yourself.

This way, you stay in control of your official German post, wherever in the world you live. More on the role itself: our guide Authorised recipient in Germany.

Conclusion

It is not a minor formality: if you live outside the EU and the EEA and still have tax obligations in Germany, you have to name an authorised recipient under § 123 AO once the tax office asks. And even where it is voluntary, it helps make sure that official post reaches you. Deemed delivery can cause real financial damage.

With PortoDoc, your letters arrive at a German address, are scanned and are waiting in your online account, with your data on servers in the EU (Hetzner, Finland).