VAT Number Format In Austria

All EU member states have a fixed format for their VAT numbers. In Austria, it includes 8 digits and the prefixes AT and U (e.g., ATU12345678).

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VAT Rates In Austria

The standard VAT rate in Austria is 20%, with reduced rates of 13% and 10% on certain goods and services. Some services are exempt from Austrian VAT, like transport and some hospitality services.

• 20% (Standard) – Applies to all taxable supplies, with certain exceptions
• 13% (Reduced) – Domestic flights, tickets for cultural, sports events, and amusement parks, some agricultural supplies
• 10% (Reduced) – Some foodstuffs, pharmaceutical products, transport (excl. domestic flights), international and intra-community road and rail transport, newspapers and periodicals, books (incl. e-books), social services, TV services, some agricultural supplies
• 0% (Zero) – Intra-community and international transport‍

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‍5% (Reduced due to Covid-19) - some services, like restaurant and hospitality services, admissions to cultural and sporting events, are taxed at the 5% VAT rate due to the Covid-19 crisis. This measure will be in force until December 31, 2021.

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VAT Payments And Returns In Austria

All businesses with Austrian VAT number must submit periodic VAT reports and payments.

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VAT Returns Frequency In Austria

For all companies that operate in Austria, VAT returns must be submitted depending on the yearly revenues generated:

• Quarterly – if annual revenues in the preceding calendar year were less than EUR 22,000.
• Monthly – if annual revenue in the preceding calendar year were higher than EUR 22,000.

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Penalties in case of late filings or misdeclarations

In the case of the late filing of VAT returns and payments, the Austrian government prescribed the penalties as follows:

Failure to register and late registration

• The penalty for failure to register for VAT if done with intent can be up to EUR 5,000.
• Penalties of 2% of the VAT due for late payment of VAT

Late submission of VAT returns can trigger a fine of up to 10% of the VAT due.

Periodic VAT returns that are incomplete or contain incorrect information can be corrected during the relevant fiscal year. In case the amended periodic VAT return or the annual VAT return results in additional VAT is due, the Austrian tax authorities generally impose a penalty for late payment of VAT.

If accounts are not kept in accordance with VAT requirements, VAT may be assessed up to EUR 5,000 by the tax authorities.

Full VAT invoices issued in Austria must contain the following:

• Supplier data (name, address, email address, UID number)
• Customer data (registered name, address, UID number)
• Invoice number
• Date of invoice
• Delivery date or service period
• Optional terms of payment (if these are not specified, is “due immediately”)
• Payment details (IBAN or payment method)
• Information about goods and services supplied (description, quantity, unit, unit price, VAT rate)
• The total price (gross, net, sales tax)

All suppliers billing the Government are obligated to submit their invoices electronically.

For B2B and B2C, tax regulations do not recognize an obligation for the service provider to issue an electronic invoice. However, there is a possibility of issuing such an invoice.

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Date updated [May 12, 2021]

The Austrian digital services tax will be imposed at a rate of 5% on the turnover from advertising services rendered by service providers in Austria. According to Article 1, section 1 of the law, a digital advertising service will be deemed to be rendered in Austria if the digital advertisement is received on a device with an Austrian IP-address and if the advertisement (also) addresses Austrian users.

Other terms in the legislation are defined as follows:

• Digital advertising service - defined as an advertisement on a digital interface (e.g., banner advertisements, search engine advertisements, and comparable advertising services)
• Service provider - to be determined as a digital advertisement service provider, two thresholds must be satisfied:

• A global turnover must be €750 million or more.
• A turnover in Austria (from online advertising services) must be at least €25 million.

• User - an individual or legal person that has access to a digital interface with a device.
• Digital interface - a digital interface is defined as any kind of software, including websites or part of websites as well as mobile applications.