Überprüfung von Subunternehmern
The Federal Government aims to implement further reforms in the area of fraud prevention with the Fraud Prevention Act.
Income Tax
In the construction sector, the liability of clients in cases of temporary employment is being expanded. If the provision of construction services is fully or partially transferred from one company to another, the contracting company is currently liable for wage-dependent taxes to be collected by the tax office, up to a maximum of 5% (or for social security contributions up to 20%) of the work remuneration provided. From January 1, 2026, the liability for services provided in the form of temporary employment will be increased to 8% for wage-dependent taxes and to 32% for social security contributions, thus increasing the total to 40%.
As far as foreign foundations are comparable to an Austrian foundation, donations from such foundations, like those from Austrian private foundations, have already been taxed as income from capital assets. To prevent misuse in this regard, the scope of capital asset taxation will be expanded, by focusing solely on comparability with a "private law foundation" and thus abstractly on the existence of a foundation-like entity.
Value Added Tax
Currently, the rental of real estate for residential purposes is subject to 10% value-added tax, which allows for the input tax deduction on pre-services. The rental of particularly representative properties ("luxury real estate") for residential purposes will henceforth be mandatorily exempt from tax (without the option for taxation), meaning that the right to input tax deduction related to these properties will no longer apply.
A property qualifies as such if the acquisition and/or production costs for the property for residential purposes, including ancillary buildings (e.g., garages, garden houses) and other constructions (e.g., swimming pools), exceed €2 million within a period of five years from the acquisition or the start of production. For rental properties or properties that are typically intended for the rental of multiple residential units (e.g., apartment buildings), the cost limit will be assessed based on each individual rental object. Services from homeowners' associations for the maintenance, management, or operation of such properties are also covered. This regulation applies to properties acquired or produced after December 31, 2025.
Changes in the Financial Penal Code
Changes are also planned in the Financial Penal Code. Among other things, the scope of the shortening surcharge will be expanded. In the future, this can be applied to established back taxes of up to €100,000 (a maximum of €33,000 per assessment period). If the total amount of tax claims exceeds €55,000, the shortening surcharge will increase from 10% to 15%.
Furthermore, a new criminal offense of tax evasion will be created in the case of unjustified losses. In the future, it will be punishable - in addition to causing a reduction in taxes - if someone intentionally declares unjustified losses that could be claimed as income-reducing in future assessment periods. In the case of unjustly declared losses, tax evasion is committed upon the announcement of the notice or decision showing the unjustly declared loss.
