Must I report a gift to the tax office in Austria?
Above set thresholds yes — reported, not taxed. A gift report (Schenkungsmeldung) must be filed with the tax office within 3 months of the gift. Among relatives it's only needed above a combined value of €50,000 within one year, and among non-relatives above €15,000 in 5 years. It is a transparency/reporting duty, not a tax — Austria has had no gift or inheritance tax since 2008, so the report triggers no tax. Both donor and recipient (and any participating notary/lawyer) must report. Customary occasional gifts and household items are exempt. In short: yes, above the thresholds, but only as a report.
📋 The rules
- Report within 3 months of the gift
- Relatives: from €50,000/year
- Non-relatives: from €15,000/5 years
- It's a report, not a tax
- Donor and recipient must report
🔓 Exceptions
- Real estate isn't covered by the gift report
- Customary occasional gifts and household items are exempt
- Voluntary disclosure relieves penalty only within 1 year of the deadline
⚠️ Penalties & fines
Deliberately failing to report is a tax offence under the Tax Offences Act, punishable by a fine of up to 10% of the fair value of the gifted assets. A voluntary disclosure relieves the penalty only within one year after the 3-month deadline expires. Beware a myth: "gifts are taxed in Austria, so I'll owe gift tax" is false — there is no gift tax; the duty is only to report qualifying gifts, and the penalty arises from not reporting, not from any tax. Tip: report larger gifts in good time online via FinanzOnline.
📎 Official sources
❓ Frequently asked
Must I report a gift?
Above certain value thresholds yes. Among relatives a gift report is needed above a combined value of €50,000 within one year, and among non-relatives above €15,000 within five years. The report must be filed with the tax office within three months of the gift.
Do I pay gift tax?
No. Austria has had no gift or inheritance tax since 2008. The gift report is a pure transparency and reporting duty that itself triggers no tax. The duty is therefore only to report qualifying gifts, not to tax them.
Which gifts are exempt?
Customary occasional gifts and ordinary household items are exempt from the reporting duty. Real estate is also not covered by the gift report, because property gifts go through the real-estate transfer tax and the land register, not this report.
Who must file the report?
Both the donor and the recipient must report, as must any participating notary or lawyer. It's enough for one of the reporting persons to file the gift report on time for the duty to be met.
What happens if I don't report?
Deliberately failing to report is a tax offence. It can be punished with a fine of up to 10 percent of the fair value of the gifted assets. A voluntary disclosure relieves the penalty only within one year after the three-month deadline expires.
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