Business Expense Compliance in Austria

Stay informed about digital expense management regulations in Austria.

Last updated in January 2024.

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Rules and Regulations in Austria

Discover guidelines on VAT rates, proof of payment & mileage allowance in Austria.

Proof of Payment

VAT Rates

Mileage Allowance

Paperless Proof of Payment

The law in Austria permits companies to reimburse their employees for work-related expenses.

According to § 138 and § 162 of the Federal Tax Code, companies are obliged to collect and retain all receipts for these expenses so that they can be properly recognized as income-related expenses.

In the event of an audit or upon request, companies must submit these receipts to the tax authorities. The prescribed retention period for the collected receipts is seven years in accordance with the statutory provisions.

Following §138 of the Federal Tax Code, electronic storage of receipts is permissible, provided the following conditions are ensured throughout the entire statutory retention period:

Completeness

Orderliness

Identical content

True-to-the-original reproduction

Digital Proof of Payment with Klippa SpendControl

With Klippa SpendControl, employees can capture images of receipts and invoices or upload electronic documents via email, web or mobile app.

Our intuitive software uses Optical Character Recognition to extract relevant document fields with 99% accuracy and seamlessly load the data into your system.

Once submitted, authorized employees can immediately review and approve transactions. The processed and approved data can then be seamlessly integrated into your accounting or ERP system via Klippa’s extensive range of over 20+ direct integration options.

Klippa retains all archived data for at least 10 years, guaranteeing the constant availability of your transaction documents for audits and tax authorities.

VAT Rates

Current regulations dictate that the Austrian government imposes value-added tax (VAT) on transactions involving goods and services. There are four distinct VAT rates pertinent to the management of expenses:

Standard VAT rate: 20% on all taxable goods and services

Reduced VAT rate: 13% on artworks, sporting events, and the delivery of live animals and plants

Reduced VAT rate: 10% on accommodation and transportation

Zero VAT rate: 0% on VAT excluded goods and services

Please refer to the Taxes in Europe Database for a complete list of taxable and exempted goods and services.

Automated VAT Rate Extraction with Klippa SpendControl

Klippa SpendControl automatically identifies and extracts Austrian VAT rates from various document formats, seamlessly integrating them into your system.

In addition, our solution allows users to add relevant VAT rates according to the company’s needs. After extraction, users can post the data to their preferred accounting or ERP system.

Mileage Allowance

The applicable guidelines of mileage reimbursement in Austria are designed to compensate costs incurred by the employee while using a private vehicle for business-related trips, excluding the daily allowance/per diem.

The Austrian government acknowledges the specified mileage allowances as a fixed sum to account for all expenses associated with the utilization of private vehicles during business trips. This sum is eligible for recognition up to a maximum of 30,000 kilometers per calendar year.

When employees travel using the specified methods, the following rates are applicable:

Car: 0.42 € per kilometer

Additional passengers: 0.05€ per kilometer

Motorbikes: 0.24€ per kilometer

Bicycle: 0.38 € per kilometer

The mileage allowance is paid per kilometer travelled. A maximum of 1,500 kilometres per calendar year can be claimed tax-free for business trips by bicycle.

Automated Mileage Tracking with Klippa SpendControl

Klippa SpendControlallows users to easily record and reimburse mileage expenses withGoogle Maps integration. Employees simply select the start and end point of the journey, while our solution calculates the distance based on the fastest route and applies a set rate.

Once an expense report has been submitted, SpendControl can apply custom compensation rules, such as per kilometer allowances, based on specific users, administrations or categories, and then forward the data to authorized person for approval.

Klippa stores all data for at least 10 years, ensuring that companies can access mileage records to easily and accurately reimburse their employees when required.