Working Life

EU/EEA and Swiss citizens can work in Austria without a work permit based on the free movement of workers within the European Union.

• EU/EEA, Swiss citizens
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• Third-country nationals
  If you’re a citizen of a non-EU country (a third-country national) and want to live and work in Austria, you’ll need a working permit. There are different options regarding your qualifications and field of work. Each application needs to be checked individually. For questions contact our team.
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As well as providing you with some extra cash, having a part-time job can be a good way of gaining valuable work experience and building your professional network alongside your studies. If you are a non-EU student, you can work within certain limits on a student residence permit. Many fields of study in Upper Austria offer employment opportunities before graduation. If you are looking for a job, check out the career services offered by your university.

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In general, employees receive five weeks' holiday per year. One week off equates to five vacation days. Employees must inform their employer as soon as possible if they are unable to work on the first day.

Holiday entitlement

Most employees are entitled to 5 weeks (25 working days) of paid vacation per year, based on a 5-day working week. After 25 years of work experience (including previous relevant jobs), this increases to 6 weeks (30 working days). Your HR team or the Chamber of Labour can help clarify what counts. Vacation dates must be approved by your employer. Some companies have fixed holiday periods, especially around summer or Christmas, so plan early! Austria has 13 public holidays each year. These are paid days off and not deducted from your vacation days.

Sick note

Employees must inform their employer as soon as possible if they are unable to work on the first day. The doctor will state the date on which the inability to work commenced in the sick note, which should be presented to the employer. Usually, it is the doctor's responsibility to inform the relevant social insurance authority that the patient has recovered. However, if the sick note does not specify an end date, employees may need to register their recovery themselves. Companies can regulate that process differently. So when starting in a new company just ask.

Sick leave

During sick leave, employees in Austria continue to receive their salary from the employer, according to how long they’ve been employed:

Employer-paid sick leave (100% of salary):

• 6 weeks: if employed less than 1 year
• 8 weeks: if employed 1 to 15 years
• 10 weeks: if employed 16 to 25 years
• 12 weeks: if employed more than 25 years

Reduced employer sick pay (50% of salary):
After the full-pay period ends, the employer pays 50% of salary for an additional 4 weeks.

After employer sick pay ends: 
The Austrian public health insurance (ÖGK or other relevant Krankenkasse) steps in with "Krankengeld" (sickness benefit). This replaces part of the salary — typically around 50–60% of net income, depending on the case and insurance.

Notification of pregnancy to the employer

As soon as you find out you're pregnant, you should provide your employer with a medical confirmation of the pregnancy. From that moment, you are legally protected against dismissal and benefit from special rights as a pregnant employee. It's important to note that while pregnancy-related dismissal is not allowed even during the probationary period, general protection from dismissal does not apply during probation unless the dismissal is directly linked to the pregnancy.

Pregnancy and working in Austria

Allowances

• Commuter allowance
  Employees can claim a commuting allowance (Pendlerpauschale) for travel between home and work if the distance is over 20 km, or over 2 km if public transport is not feasible (home office days may reduce the allowance). To claim, employees must submit a signed document to their employer with the travel distance, determined using the Pendlerrechner.
   
• Mileage allowance:  
  The official mileage allowance covers all costs incurred through the use of a private motor vehicle for business purposes, such as wear and tear, insurance, fuel and additional equipment. If an employer pays less than the permitted maximum for mileage driven for professional purposes, or nothing at all, the difference is tax deductible.  
   
• Maternity allowance
  During the maternity protection period (Mutterschutz), women are not permitted to work. From the start of this period, employed women can apply for maternity allowance (Wochengeld), which compensates for lost income. This is usually paid monthly in arrears and applied for at the relevant social insurance authority. To receive maternity allowance, a confirmation of employment and salary or a medical certificate with the predicted birth date must be presented.
  
  Here are some important information about the maternity protection period:  
  • Starts 8 weeks before the expected birth, during which women are not allowed to work.  
  • Application is made through the social insurance authority (e.g., ÖGK), with required documents including employment and salary confirmation or a medical certificate indicating the expected delivery date.
  • Duration: 8 weeks before, the day of birth, and 8 weeks after (extended to 12 weeks in cases of preterm birth, multiples, or Csections). Benefits also cover medically ordered early leave.  
    
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• Family allowance
  Parents receive a family allowance (Familienbeihilfe), which is not dependent on income. This can be applied for at the Tax Office (Finanzamt). To be eligible for family allowance, you must have a right of residence, and your main place of residence must be in Austria, and you must share a household with the child. EU/EEA/Swiss and eligible third-country nationals are also eligible if they have long-term or equivalent residence status.
  
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• Childcare allowance
  There are two forms of childcare allowances in Austria, with different criteria to be met:
  • Income-based childcare allowance (einkommensabhängiges Kinderbetreuungsgeld)  
  • Flat-rate childcare allowance (KinderbetreuungsgeldKonto)  

You don’t know if you are a candidate for one of these allowances? Make an appointment for a consultation: Things change on a regular basis and questions relating to allowances can be a real bureaucratic minefield. The Chamber of Labour and your health insurance company will offer you good advice regarding your individual situation in a personal consultation. 

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Interest groups

The Austrian Chamber of Labour (Arbeiterkammer) is the interest group for employees in Austria and offers free legal advice relating to labour law and consumer rights. Legislation stipulates mandatory membership of the Chamber of Labour for all employees in a company.

Workers’ council

The workers’ council (Betriebsrat) is an interest group representing employees within a company. Its areas of competence relate to providing information, carrying out checks and monitoring (e.g. ensuring compliance with collective agreements and health and safety regulations), and exercising rights of intervention (e.g. improving working conditions and providing training). All the rights and obligations of the workers’ council are legally defined, and the council is elected by the employees every four years. The establishment of a workers’ council is not legally required. 

Working hours and breaks

The full-time basis for working hours is regulated by the collective agreement. If there is no collective agreement, the information is provided in the works agreement (Betriebsvereinbarung). Generally, the following applies:

• Working hours
  • 40 hrs/week (statutory working hours)
  • 38,5 hrs/week (possible arrangement in a collective agreement)
  • 8 hrs/day (as a rule, but this may differ)
  • 12 hrs/day (maximum allowed working time per day, including overtime)
  • 60 hrs/week (maximum allowed working time per week, including overtime)
  • 48 hrs/week (maximum allowed average working time over a period of 4 months
     
• Mandatory breaks
  • ½ hr break after 6 working hours
  • 11 hrs break between two working days (this can be shortened to 8 hrs according to some collective agreements)
  • Weekend: rest of 36 consecutive hrs

In Austria, all-inclusive agreements where overtime is not remunerated are often used. Nevertheless, staff may not work more hours than is legally allowed.

 Mandatory breaks and resting hours

The negotiated gross salary is subject to social insurance and income tax. Both are deducted from the gross salary and paid directly by the companies. Most collective agreements include 14 salaries per year - the additional holiday subsidy and Christmas subsidy being taxed less than the normal monthly wage. The Gross-Net Calculator from the Federal Ministry of Finance helps to calculate the taxation.

Gross-Net Calculator 

Income and Taxes in Austria

Tax Rates

Income tax rates in Austria

The taxation in Austria also depends on the following employment relations existing in Austria:

In Austria, individuals can work under three types of contracts: employment (Dienstvertrag), freelance (freier Dienstvertrag), or work contract (Werkvertrag). These contracts differ in terms of legal status, taxation, and social security obligations.

• Employment Contract (Dienstvertrag): Employees receive income from dependent work, with the employer withholding taxes and social security contributions. They are protected by labor laws.
• Freelance Contract (freier Dienstvertrag): Freelancers are self-employed for tax purposes and manage their own taxes. They don’t receive labor law protections and have more flexibility in working conditions.
• Work Contract (Werkvertrag): Individuals work on specific projects or tasks, classified as self-employed for tax purposes. Like freelancers, they handle their own tax declarations.

Employment Income Subject to Income Tax

This includes monetary compensation as well as benefits in kind. Benefits in kind are usually taxed on the basis of their market value. There are, however, a number of special regulations for determining the value of company cars and company-provided accommodation, for instance. Some benefits in kind are tax-free, others are partially tax-free.

Income-related expenses

Austrians pay high income taxes, but on the other hand, all employees get 14 monthly salaries a year: Urlaubsgeld in summer and Weihnachtsgeld before Christmas.  

The Brutto-Netto-Rechner helps you calculate your social insurance, income tax and what you take home after all deductions have been made: 

www.bruttonettorechner.at

These reduce the tax base and can be claimed in the tax return in the course of the annual tax assessment. However, some of these expenses may already have been taken into account by monthly payroll accounting such as:

• Commuting Allowance  
• Family Bonus Plus  
• Tax-exempt amounts based on a corresponding assessment
• Lump sum for Income-Related Expenses: 132 Euros (already included)
• Lump sum for Special Expenses: 60 Euros (already included)
• Lump sum for Income-Related Expenses for expatriates  
• Contributions to the statutory social insurance system

 

Double Taxation in Austria

Anyone with their primary residence registered in Austria is subject to income tax in Austria, regardless of where they are employed abroad. To avoid double taxation, Austria has bilateral agreements with neighboring and EU countries, ensuring income tax is paid only in the country of residence.  

Such agreements ensure that expatriates are not required to pay taxes in both Austria and their country of citizenship simultaneously.

If you live abroad, it is important to review the specific terms of the agreement between Austria and your country to ensure that you are paying the correct amount of tax.

Double tax conventions

Additional taxes for Individuals in Austria

Expats in Austria may be subject to additional taxes charged on individuals:

• Church tax: If you are a member of the Catholic Church in Austria, you may be required to pay contributions. The church tax depends on your income and can be paid once or four times a year. Some people are exempt if they have low income or are still in school.
• Property transfer tax: When purchasing or transferring real estate, a tax known as the property transfer tax is levied on the transaction.
• Vehicle tax: Vehicle owners in Austria must pay a tax depending on the type, size, and emissions of their vehicle.
• Dog tax: Individuals who own dogs must pay a special tax, the dog tax, to cover the costs of dog-related services and infrastructure.

Family Bonus Plus

For each child qualifying for family allowance, up to 2,000 Euros can be deducted from the annual tax base, which can be applied to monthly payroll upon submission of form E30.

• Commuting allowance  
  Employees can claim commuting allowance, better known as Pendlerpauschale, for travel between their place of residence and their workplace for distances of more than 20 km, or of more than 2 km if using public transport is not feasible. For this purpose, employees must submit a signed document to their employer specifying the distance travelled, which can be determined using the commuter calculator, the so called Pendlerrechner: 

  Pendlerrechner
   

• Notification on Tax Exemptions
  A notification on tax exemptions (better known as Freibetragsbescheid) enables the ongoing consideration of forecasted income-related expenses, special expenses and extraordinary burdens during payroll accounting. Otherwise, tax is only deducted in the annual tax assessment after the end of the year.
   
• Lump Sum for Income Relatex Expenses for Expatriates
  Austria offers working expats a 20% flat deduction on their gross salary for work-related expenses. No proof is required — simply apply the deduction when filing your taxes.
  • Deduction rate: 20% of your gross salary
  • Maximum benefit: €10,000 per year
  • No receipts or documentation required
    
    This is called the Expatriate Lump Sum Deduction (Werbungskostenpauschale für Expatriates).
    You're eligible if you meet all of the following conditions:
     
  • You're employed by a foreign company but working in Austria (for example, at a local branch or affiliate).
  • Your assignment in Austria is temporary—no longer than five years.
  • You haven’t lived in Austria during the past 10 years.
  • Your primary residence is still abroad.
  • Your salary is taxed in Austria.
     
• Relocation Expenses
  Payments of relocation expenses by the employer are exempt from tax if they are granted to the employee upon assignment to another location. The same applies to intra-corporate transferees. Payments of relocation expenses include compensation for travelling expenses incurred by employees and their families to their new place of residence, actual freight charges for household effects as well as other expenses. No proof of payment is required, with flat-rate compensation capped at a maximum of one fifteenth of the annual gross income. Please note that this only applies when leaving your current residence.

Annual Tax Assessment

Employees can apply for a yearly tax assessment to reclaim overpaid taxes—especially relevant if employment began mid-year. Work-related and certain private expenses are deductible.

Deductible items include:

• Work tools (e.g. computer, internet)
• Travel and commuting costs
• Training, relocation, dual households
• Church tax (up to €600), donations, tax advisor fees, high medical costs

No deductions for everyday clothing.

Additional relief is available for people with disabilities and parents of disabled children.

The assessment is voluntary and can be submitted online (up to 5 years retroactively) via FinanzOnline. Tax offices and advisors offer support. Moreover Come2Upper Austria offers information events regarding the tax system in Upper Austria. Take a look at our current events or write us for more information!

Tax Advisers

Taxes can be confusing, and you're not alone—many Austrians also find them difficult to understand. It's often helpful to consult a tax adviser, as it can simplify the process. Additionally, as you've learned, certain expenses can be deducted during your annual tax assessment, making it worthwhile to seek professional advice: 

Mitgliederverzeichnis - KSW

Work and Family

Parents are legally entitled to parental leave, which is an unpaid period of time off work. This can be taken until the child's second birthday, provided they live in the same household.