Austrian income tax for individuals (Einkommensteuer): the E 1 return, the employee assessment (L 1) and prepayments (2026)
Source-cited draft: not reviewed by an accountant. This skill is general tax reference material for AI-assisted work. It has not been reviewed for any person's facts. Do not rely on it to file or pay without review by a Steuerberater or another licensed adviser in Austria.
Which text of the law. Einkommensteuergesetz 1988 (EStG), consolidated text on the federal legal database (RIS) as of 24 October 2026, last amended by BGBl. I Nr. 88/2026. The 2026 amounts in § 33 were written into the Act by the Abgabenänderungsgesetz 2025 (BGBl. I Nr. 97/2025). They match the Inflationsanpassungsverordnung 2026 (BGBl. II Nr. 191/2025) and apply to the 2026 assessment (§ 124b Z 481). The Budgetbegleitgesetz 2027-2028 (BGBl. I Nr. 62/2026) already rewrote some sections for 2027. Where RIS today shows the 2027 wording, this skill uses the text as in force on 30 June 2026 and says so. Bundesabgabenordnung (BAO), consolidated text as of 24 October 2026.
Tax year. The calendar year 2026, assessed in 2027. Each figure names its year.
Sibling skills. Social insurance for the self-employed (SVS, GSVG and FSVG) is in at-svs-contributions. Monthly wage tax, the 13th and 14th salaries and employee social insurance are in at-payroll-and-social-insurance. VAT and the small business exemption are in austria-vat-return and at-vat-return. Companies are in at-corporate-income-tax. Non-residents, moving in or out and treaties are in at-cross-border. The map of all Austrian taxes is at-tax-overview. This skill does not repeat them.
Who this applies to
- Unlimited tax liability. A person with a home (Wohnsitz) or habitual abode (gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt) in Austria is taxed on worldwide income (§ 1 Abs 2 EStG). This skill is for them: employees, pensioners, sole traders, freelancers (including freie Dienstnehmer), and people letting property privately.
- Limited tax liability. A person with neither is taxed only on the Austrian income listed in § 98 (§ 1 Abs 3). See Cross-border points and at-cross-border.
- Each person files alone. There is no joint filing for couples. Family situation works through credits, not through the tariff.
- The seven income types (§ 2 Abs 3 EStG). Farming and forestry, self-employed work (§ 22: freelance professions, supervisory board members, GmbH managers holding more than 25% of the shares) and trade or business (§ 23) are taxed on profit. Employment, capital, letting and other income (§ 29: for example speculative sales, occasional services, some annuities) are taxed on the surplus of receipts over Werbungskosten. Gains outside the seven types, such as lottery wins, gifts and inheritances, are not income.
- Final-taxed income stays out. Capital income is taxed at a special rate of 25% (bank deposits) or 27.5% (everything else) and is left out of the tariff income unless the taxpayer opts into the tariff (§ 27a Abs 1 and 5). Austrian banks withhold it as KESt. Private real estate gains are taxed at 30% (§ 30a Abs 1), usually collected as ImmoESt. This skill only points to those regimes.
- Out of scope, refer: partnerships' own returns (E 6) and their partners' schedules, farming flat rates, sector flat rates, the Kleinunternehmerpauschalierung (§ 17 Abs 3a), business sales and closures, real estate sales beyond the basic 30% case, start-up employee shares, audits, appeals and voluntary disclosures.
Rates, bands and thresholds
The 2026 tariff and credits were raised by 1.733% (two thirds of the 2.6% inflation rate) and rounded up to full euros (§ 33a Abs 4 EStG; Inflationsanpassungsverordnung 2026, § 2). The remaining third, which the government would otherwise hand back through a separate relief package (§ 33a Abs 5 and 6), is not handed back in the inflation adjustments made in 2025 to 2028 (§ 124b Z 477). The Kinderabsetzbetrag is not indexed for 2026 to 2028, so it stays at the 2025 amount (§ 124b Z 475, as amended by BGBl. I Nr. 62/2026). The EUR 1,000,000 step is never indexed.
| Item | 2026 rate or amount | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taxable income up to EUR 13,539 | 0% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1, https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10004570 |
| Over EUR 13,539 up to EUR 21,992 | 20% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1 (same URL) |
| Over EUR 21,992 up to EUR 36,458 | 30% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1 |
| Over EUR 36,458 up to EUR 70,365 | 40% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1 |
| Over EUR 70,365 up to EUR 104,859 | 48% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1 |
| Over EUR 104,859 up to EUR 1,000,000 | 50% | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1 |
| Over EUR 1,000,000 | 55% (calendar years 2016 to 2029) | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 1, last sentence |
| Familienbonus Plus, child up to the month of the 18th birthday | EUR 166.68 a month (EUR 2,000.16 a year) | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 3a Z 1 lit a |
| Familienbonus Plus, older child while family allowance is paid | EUR 58.34 a month (EUR 700.08 a year) | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 3a Z 1 lit b |
| Kinderabsetzbetrag (paid with the family allowance) | EUR 70.90 a month per child | 2025 to 2028 | EStG § 33 Abs 3 Z 1 (RIS note 1: EUR 70.90 for 2025 under BGBl. II Nr. 314/2024) and § 124b Z 475 (no indexation 2026 to 2028) |
| Kindermehrbetrag | EUR 700 per child, less tariff tax | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 7 |
| Alleinverdiener- or Alleinerzieherabsetzbetrag | EUR 612 (one child), EUR 828 (two), plus EUR 273 for each further child | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 4 Z 1 and 2 |
| Sole earner: partner's income limit | EUR 7,411 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 4 Z 1 |
| Unterhaltsabsetzbetrag | EUR 38 a month (first child), EUR 56 (second), EUR 75 (each further) | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 4 Z 3 |
| Verkehrsabsetzbetrag (employees) | EUR 496 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 5 Z 1 |
| Increased Verkehrsabsetzbetrag with a Pendlerpauschale | EUR 853 up to income EUR 15,069, falling to EUR 496 at EUR 16,056 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 5 Z 2 |
| Zuschlag zum Verkehrsabsetzbetrag | EUR 804 up to income EUR 19,761, falling to nil at EUR 30,259 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 5 Z 3 |
| Pendlerpauschale, public transport reasonable (at least 20 km one way) | EUR 696 (20 to 40 km), EUR 1,356 (over 40 to 60 km), EUR 2,016 (over 60 km) a year | 2026 | EStG § 16 Abs 1 Z 6 lit c |
| Pendlerpauschale, public transport not reasonable for at least half the way | EUR 372 (2 to 20 km), EUR 1,476 (over 20 to 40 km), EUR 2,568 (over 40 to 60 km), EUR 3,672 (over 60 km) a year | 2026 | EStG § 16 Abs 1 Z 6 lit d |
| Pendlereuro | EUR 6 a year per km of one-way commute (with a Pendlerpauschale) | from 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 5 Z 4; § 124b Z 476 |
| Pensionistenabsetzbetrag | EUR 1,020, falling to nil between pension income EUR 21,614 and EUR 31,494 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 6 Z 3 |
| Increased Pensionistenabsetzbetrag | EUR 1,502 up to pension income EUR 24,616, falling to nil at EUR 31,494; spouse income at most EUR 2,720 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 6 Z 1 and 2 |
| SV-Rückerstattung (refund of social insurance where tax is below nil) | 55% of contributions, at most EUR 496 (EUR 750 with a Pendlerpauschale), plus EUR 804 (SV-Bonus) where the Zuschlag applies | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 8 Z 2 |
| SV-Rückerstattung for pensioners | 80% of contributions, at most EUR 723 | 2026 | EStG § 33 Abs 8 Z 3 |
| Werbungskostenpauschale (employees) | EUR 132 a year | 2026 | EStG § 16 Abs 3 |
| Gewinnfreibetrag | 15% of the first EUR 33,000 (Grundfreibetrag, at most EUR 4,950); 13% of the next EUR 145,000; 7% of the next EUR 175,000; 4.5% of the next EUR 230,000; at most EUR 46,400 | 2026 | EStG § 10 Abs 1 Z 2 and 3 |
| Basispauschalierung | 15% of turnover, at most EUR 63,000; 6% (at most EUR 25,200) for consulting, § 22 Z 2 activities, writing, lecturing, science, teaching and education | from the 2026 assessment | EStG § 17 Abs 1 |
| Basispauschalierung: prior-year turnover limit | EUR 420,000 | from the 2026 assessment | EStG § 17 Abs 2 Z 2 |
| Investitionsfreibetrag | 20% (22% for green assets) of cost falling from 1 November 2025 to 31 December 2026; otherwise 10% (15%); on at most EUR 1,000,000 of cost a year | 2026 | EStG § 11 Abs 1; § 124b Z 480 |
| Arbeitsplatzpauschale (self-employed working from home) | EUR 1,200, or EUR 300 if other active income over EUR 13,539 with a workplace elsewhere | 2026 | EStG § 4 Abs 4 Z 8 as in force on 30 June 2026, https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10004570&FassungVom=2026-06-30 |
| Low-value assets (GWG) expensed at once | Cost up to EUR 1,000 | 2026 | EStG § 13 |
| Special rate, capital income | 25% (bank deposits), 27.5% (other) | 2026 | EStG § 27a Abs 1 |
| Special rate, private real estate gains | 30% | 2026 | EStG § 30a Abs 1 |
| Church contributions (Sonderausgabe) | At most EUR 600 a year | 2026 | EStG § 18 Abs 1 Z 5 |
| Donations (Sonderausgabe) | At most 10% of total income after loss offset | 2026 | EStG § 18 Abs 1 Z 7 |
| Selbstbehalt for extraordinary expenses | 6% (income up to EUR 7,300), 8% (to EUR 14,600), 10% (to EUR 36,400), 12% above | 2026 | EStG § 34 Abs 4 |
| Filing duty, no wage-taxed income | Income over EUR 13,539 | 2026 | EStG § 42 Abs 1 Z 3 |
| Filing duty, wage-taxed income plus other income over EUR 730 (and the other § 41 Abs 1 cases named in § 42) | Income over EUR 14,769 | 2026 | EStG § 41 Abs 1 Z 1; § 42 Abs 1 Z 3 |
| Prepayment uplift | Last assessed tax plus 4% (first following year), plus 5% for each later year; rounded down to full euros; set at nil if the year's total would be EUR 300 or less | 2026 | EStG § 45 Abs 1 |
| Rounding of the assessed tax | To full euros (below EUR 0.50 down, from EUR 0.50 up) | 2026 | EStG § 39 Abs 3 |
| Anspruchszinsen | 2% a year above the base rate, from 1 October 2027 for 2026; not set below EUR 50; at most 48 months | 2026 | BAO § 205 Abs 1 and 2, https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10003940 |
| Base rate (Basiszinssatz), so the Anspruchszinsen rate | 2.03% from 16 September 2026, so 4.03% a year; 1.53% from 11 June 2025 to 15 September 2026, so 3.53%. The rate in force on each day applies | as at 24 October 2026 | OeNB, Basis- und Referenzzinssätze, https://www.oenb.at/isawebstat/stabfrage/createReport?report=2.1&lang=DE |
| Säumniszuschlag | 2%, then 1% and 1% | 2026 | BAO § 217 Abs 2 and 3 |
| Verspätungszuschlag | Up to 10% of the tax assessed | 2026 | BAO § 135 |
2025 figures, for 2025 returns still being filed. Bands EUR 13,308 / 21,617 / 35,836 / 69,166 / 103,072. Sole-earner credits EUR 601 / 813 / 268, partner limit EUR 7,284. Verkehrsabsetzbetrag EUR 487, increased EUR 838, Zuschlag EUR 790. Pensioner credits EUR 1,002 and EUR 1,476. Filing limits EUR 13,308 and EUR 14,517. These are the amounts that BGBl. I Nr. 97/2025 replaced with the 2026 figures. Never apply one year's bands to another year.
2027 figures, already published. The Inflationsanpassungsverordnung 2027 (BGBl. II Nr. 260/2026) raises the band limits by 2.2666% to EUR 13,846 / 22,491 / 37,285 / 71,960 / 107,236. Use them only for 2027 prepayments and planning.
The taxable base
Method, in order (§ 2 Abs 2 and § 33 Abs 2 EStG):
- Sort the income into the seven types. Leave out capital income at the special rates and real estate gains taxed by ImmoESt, unless the client opts into the tariff or no tax was withheld.
- Business income: receipts minus expenses (cash basis under § 4 Abs 3, or books), or the Basispauschalierung. Deduct social insurance (SVS), then the Gewinnfreibetrag as the last item, and the Investitionsfreibetrag where it applies.
- Employment income: start from the payslip data (Lohnzettel), which already reflect social insurance and the EUR 132 Werbungskostenpauschale. Add actual Werbungskosten above EUR 132.
- Add the types, offsetting losses within the year where allowed. Deduct Sonderausgaben (including loss carry-forwards) and extraordinary expenses above the Selbstbehalt. The result is the Einkommen.
- Apply the tariff. Deduct the Familienbonus Plus first, only down to nil; then the other credits (§ 33 Abs 4 to 6). A negative result is refunded only through § 33 Abs 8 (the sole-earner or single-parent credit, the SV-Rückerstattung, the SV-Bonus), and never more than the negative amount (§ 33 Abs 8 Z 5).
- Credit prepayments and wage tax withheld (§ 46).
Gewinnfreibetrag (§ 10 EStG). The base is the profit, without sale gains (§ 24) and capital income at the special rate. The Grundfreibetrag (15% of up to EUR 33,000, so at most EUR 4,950) needs no investment. It is given once per person, even with several businesses, and also with a flat-rate method (§ 10 Abs 1 Z 3, 6 and 7). Above EUR 33,000 the investment-based part is given only up to the cost of qualifying assets bought or made that year (§ 10 Abs 1 Z 4 and 5): new depreciable fixed assets with at least four years' useful life in an Austrian business (§ 10 Abs 3 Z 1). For business years starting in 2026, securities under § 14 Abs 7 Z 4 held four years also qualify. That option ends for business years starting from 1 January 2027 and returns from 2030 (§ 10 Abs 3 Z 2; § 124b Z 496). Not eligible: cars (driving-school cars and cars at least 80% used for passenger transport excepted), aircraft, low-value assets, used assets, assets bought from a controlled company, and assets claimed for the research premium (§ 10 Abs 4). An asset that leaves within four years is taxed back (§ 10 Abs 5). Covered assets go in the asset register (§ 10 Abs 7). Partners share it by profit share (§ 10 Abs 2).
Basispauschalierung (§ 17 EStG). Only for § 22 and § 23 income under the cash basis, where no books are required or kept voluntarily and prior-year turnover was at most EUR 420,000 (§ 17 Abs 2). The flat rate replaces actual expenses. On top, at actual paid cost: goods and materials for resale, wages and payroll costs, outside labour going directly into the service, social insurance (§ 4 Abs 4 Z 1), 50% of a public transport pass used for business (§ 4 Abs 4 Z 5), travel costs fully reimbursed by the client (which also reduce the turnover base), and for 2026 the Arbeitsplatzpauschale (§ 17 Abs 1 as in force on 30 June 2026). Only the Grundfreibetrag is available, never the investment-based part (§ 10 Abs 1 Z 6) or the Investitionsfreibetrag (§ 11 Abs 1 Z 4). Leaving the flat rate locks it out for five business years (§ 17 Abs 3). From business years starting in 2027 the Arbeitsplatzpauschale is no longer allowed on top (§ 124b Z 495).
Investitionsfreibetrag (§ 11 EStG). An extra deduction on top of depreciation, only in the year of purchase or completion, for assets with at least four years' life in an Austrian business. Not on: assets used for the investment-based Gewinnfreibetrag; assets with special depreciation in § 8 (buildings, goodwill, cars), except zero-emission cars, heat pumps and similar; low-value assets; used assets; most intangibles outside digitalisation, ecology and health; fossil-fuel plant (§ 11 Abs 3). Not with any flat rate. For 2026 the rate is 20% (22% green) on cost falling from 1 November 2025 to 31 December 2026 (§ 124b Z 480).
Depreciation. Straight line over the useful life, or declining balance at up to 30% of book value (§ 7 Abs 1a). An asset used for six months or less in its first year gets half a year's depreciation (§ 7 Abs 2). Buildings up to 2.5% a year, buildings let for housing up to 1.5% (§ 8 Abs 1). Goodwill of a trade or farm over 15 years (§ 8 Abs 3). New cars over at least eight years (§ 8 Abs 6). Low-value assets up to EUR 1,000 are expensed at once (§ 13). A car or estate car counts at most at EUR 40,000 of cost, including VAT and NoVA, so at most EUR 5,000 a year of depreciation over eight years. Other cost-based running costs (comprehensive insurance, financing) are cut in the same proportion (PKW-Angemessenheitsverordnung § 1). Running costs are business costs only where business trips exceed 50% of the year's kilometres (USP, Kfz). Keep a logbook.
Travel, self-employed. Meals and lodging on purely business trips are deductible up to the § 26 Z 4 amounts without proof (§ 4 Abs 5): EUR 30 per 24 hours, one twelfth per started hour after three hours, and EUR 17 a night including breakfast where no higher cost is shown. A trip counts only where the person is at least 25 km from the centre of their activity. A private car used for business less than half the time: the official kilometre rate of EUR 0.50 per km (Reisegebührenvorschrift § 10 Abs 3 Z 2; USP, Reisekosten).
Arbeitsplatzpauschale, 2026 (§ 4 Abs 4 Z 8 as in force on 30 June 2026). For a self-employed person with no other room for the business: EUR 1,200 if they have no other active income over EUR 13,539 with a workplace elsewhere, otherwise EUR 300 (plus up to EUR 300 for ergonomic furniture). Once per person, split by receipts across several businesses. It excludes a study (Arbeitszimmer) deduction. From 2027 only an ergonomic-furniture deduction of up to EUR 300 remains (BGBl. I Nr. 62/2026).
Not deductible (§ 20 EStG). Private living costs. Representation costs, including meals with business friends; a meal is half deductible only where the taxpayer shows it serves advertising and the business reason far outweighs (§ 20 Abs 1 Z 3). Income tax itself. Costs linked to tax-free income or to income at the special rates.
Employees: Werbungskosten. The EUR 132 pauschale covers the first EUR 132 (§ 16 Abs 3). Above it: work tools and clothing, training, double housekeeping, travel, and the Pendlerpauschale (§ 16 Abs 1 Z 6; the amount comes from the BMF Pendlerrechner). Telework in 2026: the employer may pay up to EUR 3 per telework day for at most 100 days tax free (§ 26 Z 9). Where it paid less, the difference to EUR 3 is a Werbungskosten deduction (§ 16 Abs 1 Z 7a lit b, as in force on 30 June 2026).
Sonderausgaben (§ 18 EStG). Compulsory church contributions up to EUR 600 (Z 5). Tax adviser fees paid to licensed advisers, where not a business expense or Werbungskosten (Z 6). Donations to listed bodies up to 10% of total income after loss offset, together with business donations (Z 7). Voluntary continued insurance and buying back periods in the statutory pension scheme (Z 1a). Annuities and permanent burdens (Z 1). The receiving bodies report church contributions, donations and voluntary pension payments, and the tax office applies them automatically (§ 18 Abs 8).
Extraordinary expenses (§ 34 EStG, schedule L 1ab). Illness and similar costs count only above the Selbstbehalt in the rates table, measured on income before these expenses. The rate falls by one point where the sole-earner or single-parent credit applies (or the partner earns at most EUR 7,411), and by one point for each child. Disability costs under § 35 have no Selbstbehalt.
Losses. Losses are set against other income of the same year, except where the law bars it (§ 2 Abs 2a, for example loss-making models). Business losses worked out under §§ 4 to 14 from proper books or a proper cash-basis account carry forward as a Sonderausgabe to the extent not used before, with no time limit in the text (§ 18 Abs 6). Letting and other surplus losses do not carry forward. A year's net loss on private real estate sales is cut to 60% and spread over that year and the next 14, against letting income only; on application the cut loss is set against letting income of the loss year instead (§ 30 Abs 7). File in a loss year so the loss is on record.
Familienbonus Plus, 2026 (§ 33 Abs 3a). Only where Austrian family allowance is paid for the child and the child lives in the EU, EEA or Switzerland. Tested month by month. The family-allowance recipient or their partner takes all of it, or each takes half. A parent paying statutory support (with the Unterhaltsabsetzbetrag) shares it the same way. If the claims add up to more than the full amount, each gets half (§ 33 Abs 3a Z 3 lit c). It reduces tax to nil at most and is never paid out (§ 33 Abs 2 Z 1). The employer can apply it (form E 30), but the return must claim it again on schedule L 1k (one per child; L 1k-bF where support was not paid in full), with the child's social insurance number (§ 33 Abs 3a Z 6). From 2027 the full-amount option ends for a child aged four or over where no child under four belongs to the household: the split is then 75/25 or half each, unless only one person qualifies (§ 33 Abs 3a Z 2 and 3 as amended by BGBl. I Nr. 62/2026).
Kindermehrbetrag, 2026 (§ 33 Abs 7). For a person with taxable active income on at least 30 days in 2026 (or only childcare benefit, maternity benefit or care leave pay all year) whose tariff tax is under EUR 700. The refund is EUR 700 less that tax, plus EUR 700 for each further child. The person must get the sole-earner or single-parent credit, or have a partner whose tariff tax is also under EUR 700; in that case only the family-allowance recipient gets it. With one child, tariff tax stays under EUR 700 up to income of EUR 17,038 (20% of EUR 3,499 is EUR 699.80).
Bank-statement patterns.
| Pattern | Treatment |
|---|---|
| Client transfer, HONORAR, STRIPE or PAYPAL payout | Business receipt, net of VAT under the net method (see the VAT skills) |
| GEHALT, LOHN, PENSION | Already on the Lohnzettel; do not add twice |
| MIETE received | Letting income, schedule E 1b |
| ZINSEN, DIVIDENDE | Capital income; final if Austrian KESt was deducted |
| SVS, SELBSTÄNDIGENVORSORGE | Business expense, also with the flat rate |
| RESTAURANT | Half, only with proof of advertising purpose |
| KIRCHENBEITRAG, SPENDE | Sonderausgabe within the limits |
| KREDITZINSEN on a business loan | Business expense |
| USt payment | Excluded under the net method; an expense under the gross method |
| ESt VORAUSZAHLUNG, FINANZAMT refund, PRIVATENTNAHME, loan principal | Exclude |
Deadlines and filing
Who must file for 2026.
| Case | Duty |
|---|---|
| Asked by the tax office | Always file (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 1) |
| Business owner keeping books (balance-sheet method) | Always file (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 2) |
| No wage-taxed income | File if income is over EUR 13,539 (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 3) |
| Wage-taxed income plus other income over EUR 730, two employments or pensions at once not taxed together, or an employer-applied relief without entitlement | Assessed (§ 41 Abs 1); a return is due if income is over EUR 14,769 (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 3) |
| Capital income at the special rate with no KESt (for example a foreign broker) | File, unless the tariff option would give no tax (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 4) |
| Private real estate gain without ImmoESt | File (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 5) |
The § 41 Abs 1 list also makes an employee assessable where the employer applied, without entitlement, the Familienbonus Plus, the sole-earner or single-parent credit, the increased Verkehrsabsetzbetrag or pensioner credit, the Pendlerpauschale, a telework allowance, a tax-free profit share, or an exemption notice (§ 41 Abs 1 Z 8 and 12).
Returns. Form E 1 with schedules: E 1a (business income), E 1b (letting), E 1kv (capital income), L 1k or L 1k-bF (children), L 1ab (extraordinary expenses), L 1i (foreign wages without wage tax). Employees with only wage income file the L 1. The return goes in electronically through FinanzOnline (§ 42 Abs 1). Paper is allowed only where electronic filing is not reasonable for lack of the technical means. A person filing their own return must file electronically only if they have internet access and must file VAT pre-returns because their turnover is over the limit (FinanzOnline-Erklärungsverordnung § 2). That limit is prior-year turnover of EUR 55,000 (Verordnung über die Abstandnahme von der Verpflichtung zur Abgabe von Voranmeldungen, § 1). So a self-filer with prior-year turnover of at most EUR 55,000 may file on paper.
Deadlines for the 2026 return (§ 134 Abs 1 BAO). 30 April 2027 on paper; 30 June 2027 through FinanzOnline. The tax office can extend on a reasoned request (§ 134 Abs 2), also through FinanzOnline. A client represented by a Steuerberater under the quota system can file until 31 March 2028, and the tax office can extend that to 30 June 2028 (§ 134a Abs 1 and 3 BAO). The quota deadline does not apply to returns declaring only wage-taxed employment income (§ 134a Abs 2).
Employee assessment (L 1) by choice. Within five years after the year ends, so for 2026 by 31 December 2031 (§ 41 Abs 2). If no return arrives by the end of June 2027, the tax office makes an automatic assessment where the file shows a refund of at least EUR 5 and no higher refund is expected (§ 41 Abs 2a Z 1). A return filed within the five years replaces it (§ 41 Abs 2a Z 3).
Prepayments (§ 45 EStG). Due 15 February, 15 May, 15 August and 15 November (§ 45 Abs 2). Set from the last assessed tax, less ImmoESt and withheld tax, plus 4% for the first following year and 5% more for each later year (§ 45 Abs 1). Employees pay them only in the § 41 Abs 1 Z 1 and 2 cases. In the first business year they rest on an estimate of profit. After 30 September the tax office cannot change the current year's prepayments, unless the taxpayer applied by 30 September (§ 45 Abs 3). A reduction can be requested, with reasons, until then. An increase notified after 15 October is payable within one month.
Payment of the balance. A balance set by the assessment is due one month after the notice (§ 210 Abs 1 BAO). A due date on a Saturday, Sunday, public holiday, Good Friday or 24 December moves to the next working day (§ 210 Abs 3). A bank transfer that reaches the tax office within three days after the due date is on time (§ 211 Abs 2).
Appeal. A Beschwerde against the notice is due within one month (§ 245 Abs 1 BAO).
2025 returns, as at 24 October 2026. The 2025 deadlines (30 April and 30 June 2026) have passed unless extended or held by a Steuerberater under the quota system (31 March 2027). Interest on 2025 balances has run since 1 October 2026. A 2025 L 1 can be filed until 31 December 2030.
Penalties and interest
| What | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Anspruchszinsen | A 2026 balance (or refund) is charged (or credited) interest at 2% a year above the base rate (4.03% a year from 16 September 2026), from 1 October 2027 until the notice; not set below EUR 50; at most 48 months. A voluntary payment (Anzahlung) before then reduces the base | BAO § 205 Abs 1 to 4 |
| First late-payment surcharge (Säumniszuschlag) | 2% of the tax not paid on time | BAO § 217 Abs 2 |
| Second and third surcharges | 1% each, if still unpaid three months after enforceability, and three months after that | BAO § 217 Abs 3 |
| No first surcharge | Delay of at most five days, and all taxes on the same account paid on time in the previous six months | BAO § 217 Abs 5 |
| Reduction on request | Where there was no gross fault | BAO § 217 Abs 7 |
| Small surcharges | Not set below EUR 50 | BAO § 217 Abs 10 |
| Late filing (Verspätungszuschlag) | Up to 10% of the tax assessed, if the delay is not excusable | BAO § 135 |
| Familienbonus Plus over-claimed | Found after the notice is final: a retroactive event, so the notice is changed (§ 295a BAO) | EStG § 33 Abs 3a Z 3 lit d |
Cross-border points
- Non-residents are taxed only on § 98 income. Their tariff tax is computed with EUR 11,077 added to the income (§ 102 Abs 3, 2026), and they must file where assessable Austrian income is over EUR 2,463 (§ 42 Abs 2).
- Option for EU and EEA nationals (§ 1 Abs 4). A non-resident EU or EEA national can ask to be treated as fully liable where at least 90% of their income is taxed in Austria, or the income not taxed in Austria is at most EUR 13,539 (2026), shown by a foreign tax certificate. This opens the credits.
- Foreign income of a resident is declared on the E 1 (foreign wages on L 1i). Where a treaty exempts it, it still raises the rate on the rest. The average rate is worked out before the Familienbonus Plus and the credits, which are then deducted (§ 33 Abs 10).
- Foreign capital income with no Austrian KESt is declared at the special rate (§ 42 Abs 1 Z 4).
- Family benefits need the child to live in the EU, EEA or Switzerland (§ 33 Abs 3 and 3a).
- Investment reliefs need an Austrian business or permanent establishment; assets mostly hired out outside the EU or EEA do not qualify (§ 10 Abs 3, § 11 Abs 2).
- Residence tests, moving in or out, exit tax and treaties: at-cross-border.
Worked examples
Example 1: Freelancer on the Basispauschalierung, 2026
A graphic designer (trade income, cash basis, no books, prior-year turnover under EUR 420,000) has 2026 turnover of EUR 60,000 and actual expenses of EUR 8,000. SVS contributions paid in 2026 are EUR 9,000. She has no other income and works from a rented studio, so no Arbeitsplatzpauschale. She paid prepayments of EUR 1,400 a quarter (EUR 5,600).
The 15% flat rate gives EUR 9,000, more than her actual EUR 8,000, so the flat rate is better. Profit is EUR 60,000 less EUR 9,000 (flat rate) less EUR 9,000 (SVS on top) = EUR 42,000. The Grundfreibetrag is 15% of EUR 33,000 = EUR 4,950. There is no investment-based allowance and no Investitionsfreibetrag, because both are barred with a flat rate. Taxable income is EUR 37,050. Tariff tax: EUR 8,453 at 20% (EUR 1,690.60), EUR 14,466 at 30% (EUR 4,339.80) and EUR 592 at 40% (EUR 236.80) = EUR 6,267.20, which the notice rounds to EUR 6,267 (§ 39 Abs 3). She is not an employee, so no Verkehrsabsetzbetrag. After the prepayments she owes EUR 667, due one month after the notice. Paying that amount as an Anzahlung before 1 October 2027 keeps Anspruchszinsen off it.
oaname: Austria freelancer on the 15% Basispauschalierung, 2026 bands inputs: turnover: 60000 svs: 9000 prepayments: 5600 steps: - flat_rate: min(turnover * 0.15, 63000) - profit: turnover - flat_rate - svs - grundfreibetrag: min(profit, 33000) * 0.15 - taxable: profit - grundfreibetrag - band_20: (min(taxable, 21992) - 13539) * 0.20 - band_30: (min(taxable, 36458) - 21992) * 0.30 - band_40: (min(taxable, 70365) - 36458) * 0.40 - tax: band_20 + band_30 + band_40 - assessed_tax: round(tax) - balance_due: assessed_tax - prepayments expected: flat_rate: 9000 profit: 42000 grundfreibetrag: 4950 taxable: 37050 tax: 6267.20 assessed_tax: 6267 balance_due: 667
Example 2: Employee whose Familienbonus Plus is larger than her tax, 2026
An employee has 2026 Einkommen of EUR 19,000 (after social insurance and the Werbungskostenpauschale). She has two children under 18 all year and receives the family allowance. She claims the full Familienbonus Plus for both; her partner, who earns EUR 40,000, claims none. Her compulsory employee social insurance and chamber levy were EUR 3,900. Her employer withheld EUR 300 of wage tax.
Tariff tax is EUR 5,461 at 20% = EUR 1,092.20. The Familienbonus Plus for two children is EUR 4,000.32, but it only reduces tax to nil (§ 33 Abs 2 Z 1), so EUR 1,092.20 is used and EUR 2,908.12 is lost. Then the other credits: the Verkehrsabsetzbetrag of EUR 496 and the full Zuschlag of EUR 804 (income is under EUR 19,761) take tax to minus EUR 1,300. A negative tax is paid out only as the SV-Rückerstattung: 55% of EUR 3,900 is EUR 2,145, capped at EUR 496 plus the SV-Bonus of EUR 804, and at the negative tax, so EUR 1,300. With the EUR 300 withheld, the refund is EUR 1,600. There is no Kindermehrbetrag: she gets no sole-earner credit, and her partner's tax is over EUR 700. Had the partner claimed the bonus in full, or each claimed half, the unused EUR 2,908.12 would have cut the partner's tax instead.
oaname: Austria employee, Familienbonus Plus capped at tariff tax, SV refund, 2026 inputs: income: 19000 children_under_18: 2 sv_contributions: 3900 wage_tax_withheld: 300 steps: - tariff_tax: (min(income, 21992) - 13539) * 0.20 - fbp_full: children_under_18 * 166.68 * 12 - fbp_used: min(fbp_full, tariff_tax) - fbp_lost: fbp_full - fbp_used - tax_after_fbp: tariff_tax - fbp_used - tax_after_credits: tax_after_fbp - 496 - 804 - sv_refund: min(sv_contributions * 0.55, 496 + 804, -tax_after_credits) - total_refund: wage_tax_withheld + sv_refund expected: tariff_tax: 1092.20 fbp_full: 4000.32 fbp_lost: 2908.12 tax_after_credits: -1300 sv_refund: 1300 total_refund: 1600
Ask the client first
- Did you have a home or habitual abode in Austria all of 2026? If not, or if you moved, see at-cross-border.
- Which income did you have in 2026: wages or pension (one employer or several at once), trade or freelance, letting, capital (with or without Austrian KESt), real estate sales? The mix decides L 1 or E 1 and the deadline.
- Self-employed: books or cash basis, and last year's turnover? Did you use the flat rate before, or leave it in the last five years? Do you work from home with no other room?
- What new business assets did you buy in 2026, when, at what cost, and will you keep them four years?
- Children: ages, who receives the family allowance, is support paid, and how do you and your partner want to split the Familienbonus Plus? What did your partner earn?
- Does a Steuerberater file for you, and do you have the latest assessment and prepayment notice?
Sources
Not yet confirmed: the 25 km minimum distance for a business trip and the rule that car running costs are business costs only above 50% business use, both read on USP and not found in the EStG or a regulation; the bookkeeping-duty thresholds that decide Basispauschalierung eligibility (§ 125 BAO, § 189 UGB) for 2026; the old version's BMF example of a home computer written off over three years with a 40% private share (Steuerbuch, 2025 assessment), not re-checked and left out; the 10% limit on donations from business assets (§ 4a), not re-read; Liebhaberei (hobby activities produce no tax loss, Liebhabereiverordnung), covered in the old version and not re-checked.
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Today's figures and who stands behind this skill
This file is an AI skill (tax rules your AI follows) from OpenAccountants, copied on 2026-10-24. Rates, thresholds and deadlines change. For the current version of this skill, its official sources and the named accountant (if any) who stands behind it, call get_skill with slug at-income-tax on the OpenAccountants connector (https://www.openaccountants.com/connect), or read https://www.openaccountants.com/skills/at-income-tax. If neither is available, confirm every figure against the official source pages cited above before relying on it.


