Short Answer
The German Tax Office will never contact you via electronic mail to request your credit card details or digital banking credentials. Official tax authorities correspond with residents almost exclusively through physical paper letters or via the encrypted internal Elster portal inbox.
What Most Expats Don't Realize
You received an email featuring an official-looking state logo claiming a tax refund of €450 was waiting to be deposited into your account. You clicked the attached link and filled out a digital payment form with your primary credit card number to clear the administrative transfer. The anonymous sender cloned your data instantly and executed a series of unauthorized foreign retail purchases before you noticed the alerts. You lost €1,800 from your checking balance because you expected a modern digital payout method from a traditional state office.
What To Do
- Call your banking provider's emergency fraud hotline immediately to block your compromised credit card.
- Open your web browser and log directly into your secure "Elster" portal profile to check your actual tax status.
- "Ich werde keine Bankdaten per E-Mail weitergeben." (I will not share banking data via email.) — repeat this rule whenever you receive an electronic message claiming to represent a federal agency.
The Truth
Scammers exploit the fear and respect Germans have for the Finanzamt. Because people are so desperate to get their tax back, they forget that a government office would never use a "click here" link for a payout.