Looking to hire in Austria

Employment in Austria combines collectively agreed minimum pay levels with a statutory benchmark of EUR 23,800 per year and a progressive income tax system ranging from 0% to 55% across several income bands. Employees contribute to social security through pension at 10.25%, health at 3.87%, and housing at 0.75%, with total employee social contributions typically falling in a 14.87–17.82% range depending on circumstances. Employers face substantial on‑top costs, with a flat headline rate of 29.61% covering pension at 12.55%, health at 3.78%, unemployment at 2.95%, accident at 1.1%, housing at 0.75%, insolvency at 0.25%, family fund at 3.7%, severance at 1.53%, and municipal tax at 3%. This structure supports Austria’s extensive social protection system while making it important for international employers to budget carefully for total employment costs beyond gross salary.

We can help you get a new employee started in Austria fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 48 hours. Our team ensures fast, compliant employee onboarding and payroll processing. The onboarding timeline starts once the employee submits all required information via the NEO platform.

Payroll in Austria includes significant social security contributions from both employer and employee, covering pension, health, unemployment, accident, housing, insolvency protection, family benefits, severance, and municipal tax elements.

Austria applies a progressive personal income tax system, with tax rates increasing as taxable income rises.

In Austria, the standard full-time working schedule is based on a 5‑day workweek from Monday to Friday, with a total of 40 hours per week.

Austria observes the following nationwide public holidays in 2026. These days are typically treated as paid non-working days for employees.

Communication and workspace costs are reimbursable when they are clearly business-related and supported by proper documentation. Where a tax invoice or receipt is required, it must show the date, amount, currency, the service provider or merchant name, and a short description of the purchase or service. Some recurring or non-business uses are treated as taxable income or as an allowance.

For screen eyewear, employees must provide a receipt or tax invoice together with eye exam results and medical certification of the need. For eye exams, a receipt or tax invoice is required. An administrative limit applies to the combined annual reimbursement that can be approved without prior sign-off.

National per diem rates are defined by Austrian rules and vary by year and destination. Within Austria, there are separate day and night rates; for international travel, the applicable government per diem tables must be used.

For employees covered by the EOR collective bargaining agreement, domestic per diem rates are set by that agreement. If these CBA rates are lower than the maximum national rates, employees can claim the difference, known as Differenzwerbungskosten, in their annual tax assessment.

The actual domestic per diem depends on how many meals the employer provides. The more meals covered, the lower the day rate that applies.

For international travel, per diem rates are based on Gebührenstufe 3 of the Austrian Federal Employees’ regulation for the specific country. Adjustments depend on meals and accommodation provided by the employer.

Mileage is reimbursed at fixed per-kilometer rates that vary by vehicle type and year. For cars and motorcycles, non-taxable reimbursement is available up to 30,000 km per year. For bicycles and e-bikes, the non-taxable distance limit is lower and differs by year.

For every incentive or commission payment, the description should clearly explain how the payment works and how often it is paid. This helps ensure correct tax treatment and payroll processing.

Allowances in Austria can be statutory or discretionary. They may be paid as one-off or recurring amounts and can be treated as taxable or non taxable income depending on the type of allowance and local rules.

In Austria, employment relationships are subject to statutory rules on notice periods and probation periods that shape how terminations can take place.