Tax in Austria

Who is the tax authority in Austria?

The Bundesministerium für Finanzen (BMF — Federal Ministry of Finance) sets policy for Austrian taxation; the Finanzämter (local tax offices) administer day-to-day tax assessment under BMF supervision. The Finanzamt Österreich (Austria-wide Tax Office) handles general personal and corporate income tax, while the Finanzamt für Großbetriebe handles large-business taxation [SC1][SC2]. The Finanzpolizei is the financial-police arm responsible for tax-evasion enforcement. The Bundesfinanzgericht (Federal Tax Court) is the first-instance dispute resolution body, with appeals running to the Verfassungsgerichtshof (Constitutional Court) and the Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Supreme Administrative Court). Steuerberater regulated under the Wirtschaftstreuhandberufsgesetz (WTBG) are the principal credentialed tax-adviser profession in Austria, with statutory authority to represent taxpayers before the tax administration. Wirtschaftsprüfer (auditors) are also regulated under the WTBG.

What is the Austrian tax year and the filing deadline?

The Austrian personal tax year is the calendar year. The annual income tax return — Einkommensteuererklärung (E1) — is filed by 30 April for paper filings and 30 June for online filings via FinanzOnline [SC3]. Filers represented by a Steuerberater receive an automatic extension via the agent-extension scheme, typically to the end of February or end of March of the year-after-following (so the 2024 return prepared by a Steuerberater is generally due by 31 March 2026). Tax owed is generally collected through monthly Lohnsteuer wage-tax withholding for employees and through quarterly Vorauszahlungen (advance-payment) instalments for self-employed and other filers; balancing payments are due upon final assessment. Companies file the Körperschaftsteuererklärung within the same April/June schedule, with longer extensions for Steuerberater-represented filers. Umsatzsteuer (VAT) returns are filed monthly or quarterly depending on revenue size.

How is Austrian tax residency determined?

Under section 26 of the Bundesabgabenordnung (BAO — the Austrian fiscal code), an individual is unrestrictedly tax-liable in Austria if they have either a Wohnsitz (residence — a dwelling held in circumstances indicating retention and use) or a gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt (habitual abode — physical presence for more than six months without short interruptions) in Austria [SC8]. Either trigger results in worldwide-income taxation. Treaty residency tie-breakers under Austria's bilateral DTCs apply where two jurisdictions both treat a person as resident. Limited tax liability applies to non-residents on Austrian-source income only.

Residents are taxed on worldwide income with limited exceptions under domestic-law double-taxation relief and treaty provisions. Austria operates the Zuzugsbegünstigung under section 103 of the Einkommensteuergesetz (EStG) for inbound researchers, scientists, artists, and athletes — providing reduced rates and partial exemptions for qualifying inbound migrants under specific conditions. The Forschungsprämie (R&D research premium) is a refundable cash subsidy of 14 percent of qualifying R&D expenditure for companies. Exit tax under section 6 Z 6 EStG applies to deemed disposals of substantial-shareholding positions and certain unrealised gains on emigration, with deferred-payment options under section 27 Abs 6 EStG.

How does Austrian personal income tax work?

Austrian personal income tax — Einkommensteuer — operates on a graduated bracket structure with seven brackets after the 2022–24 tax-reform reductions. Rates for 2025 are 0 percent up to EUR 13,308, 20 percent up to EUR 21,617, 30 percent up to EUR 35,836, 40 percent up to EUR 69,166, 48 percent up to EUR 103,072, 50 percent up to EUR 1 million, and 55 percent above [SC4]. The 55 percent top rate above EUR 1 million is set under the post-2016 reform (the Reichensteuer) and continues to apply through the current legislative period under the Solidarbeitrag-replacement framework. The personal allowance (Existenzminimum) is integrated into the 0 percent bracket up to EUR 13,308 — Austria's tax-free threshold is materially higher than most EU peers. Lohnsteuer (wage tax) operates as a withholding mechanism on employment income at the same progressive rates, computed monthly with year-end reconciliation through the Lohnsteuer-Jahresausgleich.

Investment income — interest from bank deposits, dividends, capital gains on listed securities — is taxed at a flat 27.5 percent KESt (Kapitalertragsteuer) under section 27a EStG; bank deposits in particular benefit from the same flat rate after the alignment from the historical 25 percent rate. Cryptoassets received an aligned 27.5 percent treatment under section 27b EStG from 1 March 2022 (see crypto section). Specific reduced rates apply to certain pension contributions and to the 13./14. monthly salary payments common in Austrian employment contracts (the special salary payment regime).

How does Austrian corporate tax work?

Austrian corporate income tax — Körperschaftsteuer (KöSt) — has been at 23 percent on taxable profits from 1 January 2024, after the multi-year reduction trajectory from 25 percent (which applied through 2022) and 24 percent (which applied in 2023) [SC4]. There is no separate state or federal-state corporate tax — the tax is fully national. The minimum corporate tax (Mindestkörperschaftsteuer) of EUR 1,750 per year applies to GmbHs and EUR 3,500 per year to AGs regardless of profit, creditable against later assessments. Austria implemented the OECD Pillar Two Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) rules through the Mindestbesteuerungsgesetz with the Income Inclusion Rule and Domestic Top-up Tax applying for fiscal years beginning on or after 31 December 2023 for groups with consolidated revenue above EUR 750 million [SC5]. The Austrian CFC regime under section 10a KStG implements the EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive Model A. The participation-exemption regime under section 10 KStG fully exempts qualifying intra-group dividends and capital gains. The Group Taxation regime (Gruppenbesteuerung) under section 9 KStG allows consolidated taxation of Austrian-resident group members and qualifying foreign subsidiaries within an EU/EEA framework.

How does indirect tax work in Austria?

Value Added Tax — Umsatzsteuer (USt) — is the principal indirect tax, applying within the EU VAT Directive framework. The standard rate is 20 percent. The reduced rate of 10 percent applies to most foodstuffs, water, books and newspapers, public passenger transport, residential property leases, restaurant meals (excluding alcohol), and a number of social-policy supplies. The intermediate reduced rate of 13 percent applies to hotel accommodation, sporting events, cultural admission, and a number of other categories [SC4]. Special rates of 19 percent (Jungholz and Mittelberg, two German-speaking enclaves of Tirol with VAT alignment to German rates for cross-border-trade reasons) and 0 percent (intra-EU B2B supplies, exports) operate alongside. The Kleinunternehmerregelung small-business exemption applies up to EUR 35,000 of revenue per year (raised from EUR 30,000 from 2020). Cross-border digital services are taxed under the EU OSS framework. The mandatory e-invoicing regime applies to public-sector supplies; B2B e-invoicing is being phased per the EU ViDA proposals.

How is crypto taxed in Austria?

Austria implemented a comprehensive cryptoasset tax regime under section 27b EStG with effect from 1 March 2022, materially aligning crypto with stock and bond taxation. For individual filers, gains on the disposal of cryptoassets acquired on or after 1 March 2021 are taxed at the flat 27.5 percent KESt rate under the same regime that applies to listed securities [SC5]. Cryptoassets acquired before 1 March 2021 (Altbestand) remain under the prior speculation-period regime — exempt if held more than one year. Disposals subject to the new regime include sale for fiat, exchange between cryptoassets and stable coins (with crypto-to-crypto exchanges generally exempt under the inter-cryptoasset deferral except for stable-coin exchanges), and use of crypto to acquire goods and services. Mining and staking rewards are taxable as ordinary income at fair market value on receipt under the new regime. Receipt of crypto as employment income is taxable under Lohnsteuer at fair market value on receipt. The Austrian crypto framework is one of the most explicit and codified in the EU, providing materially more legal certainty than most peer jurisdictions.

How does Austria handle tax treaties?

Austria maintains a network of approximately 95 comprehensive Double Taxation Conventions in force, covering most of Austria's principal trading partners across Europe, the Americas, Asia, and other regions [SC5]. Most Austrian treaties follow the OECD Model with Austria-specific reservations on the credit-versus-exemption method (Austria generally applies the exemption-with-progression method for active income from treaty partners and the credit method for passive income). Austria signed and ratified the OECD Multilateral Instrument; the MLI's modifications, including the Principal Purpose Test, apply to many of Austria's covered DTCs for periods from 2019 onward. EU intra-group flows benefit from the Parent-Subsidiary and Interest-Royalties Directives within scope. Foreign tax-credit relief is generally claimed under section 33 Abs 11 EStG for individuals and under specific provisions for corporations.

What are the common penalties and pitfalls for foreigners?

Late filing of an Einkommensteuererklärung triggers a Verspätungszuschlag (late-filing surcharge) of up to 10 percent of the assessed tax [SC1]. Late payment of tax triggers a Säumniszuschlag of 2 percent on the unpaid amount, with additional 1 percent surcharges at three-month and six-month intervals. Penalties for tax-fraud offences under the Finanzstrafgesetz (Tax Offences Act) range from monetary fines to imprisonment up to 10 years for serious cases, with reductions for cooperative-disclosure procedures (Selbstanzeige).

Common pitfalls for arrivals to Austria include: assuming Wohnsitz requires a formal lease when the case-law position is broader (a maintained dwelling under circumstances indicating retention can suffice); missing the gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt threshold at six months when short interruptions do not interrupt the count; underestimating the Group Taxation regime's reach to qualifying foreign subsidiaries; and missing the section 27b EStG transitional cut-over between Altbestand (pre-1-March-2021 acquired) and Neubestand (post-1-March-2021 acquired) crypto holdings. For complex residency, group-taxation, or crypto scenarios, common approaches discussed by practitioners include consulting a credentialed Steuerberater registered under the WTBG before relying on a single-test conclusion.