Hire in Austria
Republic of Austria, 9.1 million population, $56,800 GDP per capita. Everything you need to know about employment law, tax, compliance and hiring in Austria.
Capital
Vienna
Currency
Euro (EUR)
Languages
German
Time zones
UTC+1 (CET) / UTC+2 (CEST)
Hiring overview
- Typical time to hire
- 2-4 weeks for contractor, 4-6 weeks for full-time
- Entity requirement
- Austrian GmbH. Registration at Firmenbuch (commercial register).
- EOR available
- Yes, from $399/employee/month through a Corpshore entity
- Contractor of record
- Yes, from $39/worker/month
Employment law
- Standard workweek
- 38.5-40 hours (sector-dependent; 40 statutory)
- Maximum weekly hours
- 48 hours
- Minimum annual leave
- 25 working days (30 after 25 years of service)
- Public holidays
- 13 per year
- Maternity leave
- 16 weeks (8 before + 8 after), fully paid by health insurance
- Paternity leave
- Familienzeitbonus: 1 month unpaid at birth. Parental leave: up to 24 months shared.
- Notice period
- 6 weeks to 5 months (employer, depending on tenure). Employee: 1 month.
- Severance
- Abfertigung Neu (since 2003): employer contributes 1.53% of gross salary to severance fund (Mitarbeitervorsorgekasse) monthly. Employee claims at termination.
- Probation
- 1 month
- Overtime rules
- 50% premium (standard), 100% (Sundays/holidays). Maximum 20 overtime hours per week.
Tax overview
- Income tax range
- 0% to 55%
- Corporate tax
- 23% (reduced from 25% in 2024)
- Social contributions
- Employer: ~21%. Employee: ~18%.
- VAT / GST
- 20% (standard); 13% (tourism); 10% (food, books)
- Tax year
- Calendar year
- Treaty network
- Over 90 tax treaties
Compliance landscape
- Worker classification
- Austrian tax and social security authorities assess based on personal and economic dependence. Werkvertrag (contract for work) vs. Dienstvertrag (employment contract).
- Data protection
- GDPR + Datenschutzgesetz (DSG). Datenschutzbehorde enforces.
- Right to work
- EU nationals: free movement. Non-EU: Red-White-Red Card (points-based) for skilled workers.
- Non-compete
- Enforceable if reasonable. Maximum 1 year. Must protect legitimate interest. Compensation expected by courts.
- Collective bargaining
- Extremely strong: WKO (economic chambers) and union OGB negotiate. Collective agreements cover ~98% of employees, among the highest in Europe.
Payment rails
SEPA standard. Austrian banking is well-developed. Two extra salary payments (13th and 14th) are taxed at a preferential 6% rate.
Key considerations for hiring
- 13th and 14th salary payments are mandatory and taxed at preferential 6% rate
- Collective agreement coverage at ~98% is the highest in Europe
- Vienna consistently ranks #1 globally for quality of life (Mercer/Economist rankings)
- Strong manufacturing and R&D base, especially automotive (Magna, AVL) and pharma
Business and cultural context: Austria
Business culture
Formal, structured, and thorough. Titles (Herr Magister, Frau Doktor) are important. Meetings are well-prepared. Punctuality is expected. Austrian German differs from German German in vocabulary and tone.
Key industries
Talent pool strengths
Historical context
Austria's social partnership model (Sozialpartnerschaft), where employer and worker chambers negotiate wages and working conditions with minimal government intervention, has been a pillar of economic stability since 1945. The nearly universal collective agreement coverage it produces is unique in Europe.
Ready to hire in Austria?
Use our EOR service from $399/month and we handle employment law, payroll, tax and compliance in Austria for you.