Advertising tax

General information

Advertising tax must be paid on advertising services rendered for payment in Austria by an advertiser.

Advertising services, i.e. advertising, is the specific promotion of the benefits of services offered on the market which aim to have a direct or indirect marketing effect.

The advertising must take place within Austria, or involve foreign adverts intended for an Austrian audience. If an advertising service on radio and television intended for reception in Austria is broadcast from abroad, it shall be deemed to be provided in Austria.

Self-promotion is not taxable.

The following are considered to constitute advertising services (advertising)

• Publication of advertisements in printed media within the meaning of the Mediengesetz. This also includes:
  • advertising in the printed media itself ("printed advertisements")
  • inserting advertising supplements in printed media
  • affixing advertising supplements to printed media
  • any other form of adding an advertisement to printed media (simple inserts, sending or delivering together)

• Releasing advertisements on radio or television
  • as part of a self-contained commercial break
  • as a plug-in during other transmissions
  • during a sponsored broadcast (e.g. this programme was dedicated to you)
  • as part of product placement in return for payment

• Permitting the use of surfaces and spaces for disseminating advertising messages (e.g. building surfaces, vehicles, display stands, flags, banners, projections)

Tax rate

The advertising tax amounts to 5 percent of the tax base.

Tax base

The tax calculation is based on the fee within the meaning of section 4 of the Umsatzsteuergesetz 1994 (UStG 1994) which the client is charged by the party receiving the order. The advertising tax is not part of the tax base.

Entrepreneurs who calculate their revenue in accordance with section 17 of the UStG (actual taxation), calculate tax in accordance with monies received.

Enterprises affected

Advertisers are

• publishers of print media within the meaning of the Mediengesetz (in particular newspaper Publishers)
• operators of radio and television media (in particular ORF (Austria's public service broadcaster), private broadcasters)
• people and institutions who provide surfaces and spaces for disseminating advertising messages ("lessors" of billboards, banners inter alia)

Entrepreneurs who merely undertake the procurement of advertising services for advertisers (in particular advertising agencies) are not considered advertisers.

Taxable party

The tax becomes chargeable at the end of the month in which the taxable service was rendered. The taxable party is the party that is entitled to a fee in return for performing an advertising service. The taxable party must calculate the tax themselves and pay it by the 15th day of the second month after the tax became chargeable, as soon as the sum of the taxable fees within the assessment period reaches 10,000 Euro.

De minimis limit

While the sum of the taxable fees for advertising services remains below 10,000 Euro within an assessment period (see the "Procedure" section), these advertising services are exempt from advertising tax. The obligation to submit an annual tax declaration does not apply if the sum of taxable fees within an assessment period remains below 10,000 Euro.

Competent authority

The tax office responsible for collecting VAT from the taxable party.

Procedure

If a taxable party is paying the advertising tax for the first time, an advance notification to the tax office is required insofar as the status on the taxable party's tax account does not contain a WA signal.

The taxable party is assessed for advertising tax after the end of the calendar year (marketing year). The taxable party must submit an annual tax declaration for the previous year electronically three months after the end of the marketing year. This annual tax declaration must include the types of advertising services and the fees payable for them.

Entrepreneurs who calculate their revenue in accordance with section 17 of the UStG (actual taxation), calculate tax in accordance with monies received.

Required documents

Entrepreneurs must keep records of advertising services undertaken, the clients and the basis for calculating advertising tax.

Legal bases

Werbeabgabegesetz 2000

Expert information

There is no expert information available.

Link to form

For your tax return or your applications to the tax office, please use the forms from the forms database (→ BMF)^{German text} of the Federal Ministry of Finance.