Tax ID never arrived (or got lost)

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It''s been weeks since your Anmeldung and no tax ID letter — or it came and vanished in the moving chaos. HR is asking, emergency tax class looms. Recovery routes, fastest first: Your local Finanzamt, in person: passport + Anmeldebestätigung, and they can look you up and hand over the number directly (some offices print an official confirmation on the spot). Online re-request at the Bundeszentralamt für Steuern (form "Mitteilung der Steuer-ID") — free, but the letter takes up to 4 weeks; it only goes to your registered address. Already employed? Check old payslips — the Steuer-ID appears on them once known. Your first employer may already have received it electronically via ELStAM. Meanwhile at work: HR runs you on emergency tax class VI temporarily — annoying but fully refundable. The overpaid months come back automatically once the correct ID lands, or at the latest with a tax return. Never arrived at all? Verify your name on the mailbox and your address spelling at the Bürgeramt — the letter is delivery-only and returns to sender if the postman can't match the name.