The standard tax rate amounts to 20%, the reduced rate of 10% respectively 13% applies to food, books, theatrical and cultural events, artistic activity, domestic passenger transportation and rentals for private residential use. The value added tax on accommodation services (and camping) will rise to 13% as of May 1, 2016.
Production companies without a registered office or fixed establishment in Austria who effect no taxable transactions, generate only tax-exempt revenues, or make only supplies for which the tax liability is shifted to the recipient of the supply (reverse charge system pursuant to Art. 19 (1)) may file for a VAT refund.
In the context of a service production, the VAT is refunded via the partner company based in Austria.
The amount to be refunded must at least be EUR 400. This does not apply, if the refund period is the calendar year or the last period of a calendar year. For these refund periods, the amount to be refunded must be at least EUR 50.
When is the amount refunded?
The filed refund period shall include at least three consecutive months per calendar year and shall not exceed one entire calendar year. The last months of a calendar year are the only exception to this rule. In such cases, the refund period may be shorter (e.g. November and December or just December). Exclusively full calendar months are accepted for refund periods.
The application shall be filed by 30 June of the calendar year following the refund period. Therefore, the refund application for the year 2016 shall be filed by 30 June 2017 at the latest.
The following completed forms and original documents shall accompany the application to be filed at the Austrian tax office Graz-Stadt:
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Questionnaire Verf 18 (German) upon first application
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Claim form U 5 (German) with company signature
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Original certificate of entrepreneurial status U 70 (German) (proof of tax identification number)
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Original Invoices
The Austrian tax office only accepts original invoices complying with provisions on issuing invoices as well as the provisions on input tax deduction. Find out more about "Deduction of Import of VAT in Specific Cases".
