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- Austria Tax Guide — 2025 Returns (Filed in 2026)
Austria Investment Tax Guide — 2025 Returns, filed by 30 June 2026
KESt 27.5% / 25%, §27b Crypto, E1 & E1kv via FinanzOnline
For Austrian residents with foreign brokerage accounts (Revolut, Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, eToro, Bitpanda, Binance, Kraken, etc.). Covers Kapitalertragsteuer, cost basis, crypto under §27b EStG, foreign-fund AGE, US dividend WHT credit, loss offsetting, the Steuerreporting-Verordnung 2025, and the new DAC8/CARF reporting that starts 1 January 2026. [S1][S2][S15]
What's new for the 2025 tax year
Steuerreporting-Verordnung 2025 — unified KESt report
Austrian banks, brokers and crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) must issue a single standardised Steuerreport for 2025 by 31 March 2026, replacing the older KESt-/Verlustausgleichsbescheinigung. Losses are now applied gross-against-gross and prioritised against the highest-taxed income inside the 27.5% basket. [S16]
DAC8 / CARF — first reporting period is 2026
Austria's Krypto-Meldepflichtgesetz (Krypto-MPfG) transposes EU directive DAC8 and OECD CARF. From 1 January 2026 crypto-asset service providers (Bitpanda, Coinbase, Kraken, Binance EU, Bitvavo, etc.) collect tax-relevant data on Austrian residents; the first automatic exchange between EU tax authorities is due by 30 September 2027. If you trade on a foreign exchange, expect the Finanzamt to receive matching data. [S15]
Progressionsabgeltungsgesetz 2025 — bracket indexation +3.83%
The 2025 brackets (Tarifstufen) were lifted by 3.8333%; the zero band rose to €13,308. For tax year 2026 indexation is +1.7333% — the zero band moves to €13,539. The progressive scale only matters for capital income if you elect Regelbesteuerung. [S4]
Austrian crypto KESt at source — second full year
Since 1 January 2024, Austrian-domiciled CASPs (Bitpanda, Coinfinity, 21bitcoin, Kurant, etc.) withhold 27.5% KESt on realised crypto gains and ongoing crypto income — same final-tax status as Wertpapier-KESt. Foreign exchanges (Binance, Kraken, Coinbase, Revolut Crypto, etc.) still do not withhold; you self-assess on E1kv. [S17]
2025 forms confirmed: E1 / E1kv published
The 2025 versions of E1 (Einkommensteuererklärung) and E1kv (Beilage Einkünfte aus Kapitalvermögen) are live on formulare.bmf.gv.at. Crypto Kennzahlen 171–176 (foreign/domestic, ongoing income/gains/losses) are unchanged from 2024. [S8][S9]
Key Austrian tax concepts for investors
Kapitalertragsteuer (KESt) — final tax
Most capital income is taxed at a fixed special rate (Sondersteuersatz) — 27.5% for §27a Abs 1 Z 2 items, 25% for bank-deposit interest. When an Austrian depot or paying agent withholds KESt, the income is endbesteuert (finally taxed) and need not be re-declared. Foreign brokers do not withhold Austrian KESt — the investor self-assesses. [S3]
No Sparerpauschbetrag, no annual investor allowance
Unlike Germany (€1,000 Sparerpauschbetrag), Austria has no general tax-free allowance for portfolio capital income. KESt applies from the first euro. The €730 Veranlagungsfreibetrag (§41 Abs 3 EStG) explicitly does not apply to Sondersteuersatz income; the €440 freigrenze under §31 applies only to private-asset speculation (gold, FX, NFTs). [S5]
Regelbesteuerungsoption — opt into the progressive tariff
If your marginal rate is below 27.5% (low-income year, student, early retiree), you may elect the Regelbesteuerungsoption on the main return E1 at Punkt 8.1 (§27a Abs 5 EStG) — there is no separate tick-box on E1kv. The Finanzamt then taxes all §27a-basket income (incl. crypto and dividends) at the progressive scale instead of 27.5% — all-or-nothing for the whole basket. Beneficial when total income is below roughly €21,617 (2025) / €21,992 (2026). The Finanzamt does not run an automatic Günstigerprüfung. [S4][S5][S8]
Foreign brokers (Revolut, IBKR, Trading 212, eToro, etc.)
No Austrian KESt is withheld on accounts at non-Austrian institutions. You must declare every realised gain, dividend and interest in Anlage E1kv via FinanzOnline. The €22-per-year reporting floor applies (per income type, including foreign capital income). [S2][S8]
📈 Capital Income (KESt)
Tax-rate summary by income type
| Income type | Rate | Legal basis & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends from shares / GmbH | 27.5% | §27a Abs 1 Z 2 EStG — final WHT if Austrian depot [S3] |
| Realised gains on shares, ETFs, bonds | 27.5% | §27 Abs 3 EStG — Neuvermögen only [S3] |
| Interest on bonds / fund distributions | 27.5% | Securitised debt — §27a Abs 1 Z 2 [S3] |
| Bank deposit / Sparbuch interest | 25% | §27a Abs 1 Z 1 EStG — separate basket [S3] |
| Crypto (Neuvermögen) — gains & ongoing income | 27.5% | §27b EStG, since 1 Mar 2022 [S1] |
| Derivatives (futures, options, CFDs) | 27.5% | §27 Abs 4 EStG [S3] |
| Private loans (Privatdarlehen) / non-securitised debt | Progressive | No KESt — tariff rates apply [S12] |
When KESt is NOT withheld at source
If no Austrian depositary entity pays KESt — the standard case for foreign brokers — the taxable income must be assessed by you on Anlage E1kv. The reporting floor is €22 of capital income per year (per income type). [S2]
Effective tax including church contribution / Soli — there isn't any
Austria does not add a Solidaritätszuschlag, and there is no church-tax surcharge on Sondersteuersatz income. The headline 27.5% and 25% are the all-in numbers — unlike Germany's 26.375% effective rate.
📊 Progressive income-tax brackets
The progressive scale only touches portfolio investors who (a) elect Regelbesteuerung on E1kv or (b) earn non-§27a income such as Privatdarlehen interest. Brackets are indexed annually for cold progression (§33a EStG); the executive can disapply up to one third of the indexation. [S4]
Tax year 2025 (filed in 2026)
| Income (EUR) | Rate |
|---|---|
| up to 13,308 | 0% |
| 13,308 – 21,617 | 20% |
| 21,617 – 35,836 | 30% |
| 35,836 – 69,166 | 40% |
| 69,166 – 103,072 | 48% |
| 103,072 – 1,000,000 | 50% |
| above 1,000,000 | 55% |
Tax year 2026 (filed in 2027)
| Income (EUR) | Rate |
|---|---|
| up to 13,539 | 0% |
| 13,539 – 21,992 | 20% |
| 21,992 – 36,458 | 30% |
| 36,458 – 70,365 | 40% |
| 70,365 – 104,859 | 48% |
| 104,859 – 1,000,000 | 50% |
| above 1,000,000 | 55% |
Source: BMF / USP "Tarifstufen" plus PwC Tax Summaries (2026 cold-progression indexation +1.7333%). [S4]
Special-rate income does not interact with the tariff
Income and gains/losses subject to the 27.5% (or 25%) special rate cannot be offset against tariff income, and tariff losses cannot reduce KESt. The only bridge is the Regelbesteuerungsoption — and it must be elected for the entire 27.5% basket. [S5]
🧮 Cost basis — gleitender Durchschnittspreis
For securities and derivatives with the same ISIN acquired in a sequence of transactions, §27a Abs 4 Z 3 EStG mandates the moving weighted-average cost in euros ("gleitender Durchschnittspreis"). FIFO is not permitted for Austrian retail tax — every new purchase recalculates the average price applied to every existing unit of that ISIN. [S10]
For Sondersteuersatz items under §27(3)–(4) EStG, acquisition costs are determined without ancillary costs (Anschaffungsnebenkosten such as commissions) — those costs are absorbed into the 27.5% rate. [S10]
Worked example — moving average on Apple shares
15 Jan 2024: Buy 10 AAPL @ €170 → pool: 10 units, avg €170
20 Sep 2024: Buy 5 AAPL @ €200 → pool: 15 units, avg (10×170 + 5×200) ÷ 15 = €180
10 May 2025: Sell 8 AAPL @ €220 → proceeds €1,760; cost basis 8 × €180 = €1,440 → gain €320 → KESt 27.5% = €88
Remaining pool: 7 AAPL, avg €180 (unchanged).
Important nuances
- Pools are per ISIN per depot: AAPL on IBKR and AAPL on Trading 212 are tracked as separate pools.
- For crypto, the same moving-average rule applies per coin per wallet from 1 January 2023 (Kryptowährungs-VO). [S14]
- Altvermögen (pre-1-March-2021 crypto, or pre-2011 securities) is excluded from the new-asset pool — kept separately under §31.
- All amounts must be converted to EUR at the ECB reference rate on the transaction date (or the broker's documented rate, applied consistently).
💰 Dividends & foreign withholding tax
How the US/Austria mechanism works in practice
The Austria–US double-tax convention caps US source-state withholding on portfolio dividends at 15%. Brokers apply the treaty rate when a valid W-8BEN is on file (Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, Lightyear and most EU brokers do this automatically). Without a W-8BEN the broker withholds the statutory 30%. Austria allows credit only up to the treaty rate — recover any excess from the US source. [S18]
Worked example — US dividend on IBKR with W-8BEN on file
Gross dividend: €100
US WHT withheld (15%): €15
Net received on IBKR: €85
Austrian KESt due (27.5% of €100): €27.50
Foreign-tax credit on E1kv (capped 15%): €15
Net Austrian tax to pay at filing: €27.50 − €15 = €12.50
Effective combined tax on the dividend: 27.5%.
Common treaty rates on portfolio dividends
- United States — 15% with W-8BEN; otherwise 30% (excess reclaimable from IRS)
- Ireland — 0% (most Ireland-domiciled ETFs distribute dividends gross)
- United Kingdom — 0% on dividends
- Germany — 26.375% gross; treaty cap 15%; refund the difference via BZSt application
- Switzerland — 35% gross; treaty cap 15%; refund the difference via Form 86 / DA-1
- France — 26.5% gross; treaty cap 15%; refund via Form 5000/5001
Austria credits only the treaty rate (typically 15%). Excess foreign WHT is not creditable — recover from the source country. [S18]
📚 Investment funds & ETFs (OeKB Meldefonds vs Schwarze Fonds)
Meldefonds (OeKB-reporting funds)
A fund is a "Meldefonds" if its tax representative files an annual notification (Jahresmeldung) with OeKB. The OeKB tax portal (my.oekb.at) lets you check reporting status by ISIN — almost all major iShares, Vanguard, Xtrackers, Amundi, Lyxor, etc. Ireland- and Luxembourg-domiciled UCITS ETFs are reporting funds. Tax then follows the fund's actual income. [S6]
Ausschüttungsgleiche Erträge (AGE) — deemed distributions
For accumulating (thesaurierende) funds, dividends/interest the fund earns but doesn't distribute are taxed annually as if distributed — at 27.5%. AGE increases your acquisition cost, so the same income is not taxed twice on later sale. Conversely, tax-free substance distributions reduce acquisition cost. [S11]
Schwarze Fonds (non-reporting funds) — punitive lump-sum tax
If a fund is not on the OeKB list, §186 InvFG kicks in: deemed annual income = the higher of 90% of (year-end Rücknahmepreis − year-start Rücknahmepreis), or 10% of the year-end Rücknahmepreis. That phantom income is taxed at 27.5% — even in a flat year — and it is added to acquisition cost. Most non-EU ETFs (US-domiciled SPY, QQQ, VOO, etc.) are Schwarze Fonds for Austrian residents. Always check OeKB before buying a non-UCITS ETF. [S6]
Worked example — accumulating MSCI World ETF (IE00B4L5Y983)
Year start: 100 units at €90 (cost basis €9,000)
OeKB AGE for the year: €1.20 per unit = €120
Tax on AGE (27.5%): €33 (declared in E1kv)
New cost basis: €9,000 + €120 = €9,120 (so a later sale at €100/unit yields €1,000 − €120 = €880 of residual taxable gain).
₿ Cryptocurrency (§27b EStG)
Old vs. new — the 1 March 2021 cut-off
| Acquired | Classification | Tax treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Before 1 March 2021 | Altvermögen | Old §31 regime: tax-free if held >1 year; otherwise progressive. [S1] |
| On/after 1 March 2021 | Neuvermögen | §27b: 27.5% on gains and ongoing income — no holding period. [S1] |
If old BTC is staked or lent after the reform, the new units created are Neuvermögen.
Crypto-to-crypto swap — not a taxable event
§27b Abs 3 Z 2 EStG: trading one cryptocurrency for another (BTC ↔ ETH, ETH ↔ USDC, etc.) is not a disposal. Acquisition cost carries over to the new coin ("Fußstapfentheorie"). Stablecoins (USDT, USDC) meet the §27b Abs 4 definition, so a swap into a stablecoin is also non-taxable. NFTs and security tokens fall outside §27b — exchanging crypto for those is a taxable realisation. [S1]
DeFi income — what's taxed at receipt vs. later
| Activity | Taxed at receipt? | Cost basis on receipt |
|---|---|---|
| Mining (PoW) | Yes — 27.5% on FMV | FMV at receipt |
| Lending / Verleih | Yes — 27.5% on FMV | FMV at receipt |
| Staking (pure PoS validation) | No | €0 — full proceeds taxed at later sale |
| Airdrops & hard forks | No | €0 |
| Liquidity mining / DeFi yield | Depends on substance | FMV if effectively lending |
BMF substance-over-form: a process labelled "staking" but functionally a transfer for consideration is taxed at receipt. [S1]
Moving-average cost basis mandatory since 2023
§27a Abs 4 Z 3a EStG and the Kryptowährungs-Verordnung (BGBl II 455/2022) require the gleitender Durchschnittspreis per coin per wallet/address from 1 January 2023. FIFO is no longer permitted for crypto. Altvermögen is excluded from the pool. [S14]
Worked example — staking + later sale
Jan 2024: Buy 10 ETH @ €2,000 on Binance → pool: 10 ETH, avg €2,000
Mar–Dec 2025: Receive 0.5 ETH from pure PoS staking → not taxable at receipt; pool becomes 10.5 ETH with new average (10×2,000) ÷ 10.5 = €1,904.76
May 2025: Sell 4 ETH @ €3,000 → proceeds €12,000; cost basis 4 × €1,904.76 = €7,619.05 → gain €4,380.95 → KESt 27.5% = €1,204.76
Declared in E1kv crypto-foreign section (Kennzahl 174).
Austrian crypto providers — KESt at source since 2024
§93 Abs 4a EStG plus the Kryptowährungs-Verordnung mean Austrian-domiciled CASPs withhold 27.5% KESt on realised crypto gains and ongoing crypto income. Final-tax status mirrors Wertpapier-KESt. Providers currently operating this regime ("steuereinfach"): Bitpanda, Coinfinity, 21bitcoin, Kurant. Withholding only applies to Neuvermögen. [S17]
Foreign exchanges (Binance, Kraken, Coinbase, Revolut Crypto, Bybit, KuCoin) do not withhold Austrian KESt — every realised gain and every ongoing-income event must be self-assessed via E1kv (Kennzahlen 172/174/176).
What §27b does NOT cover
- NFTs — not a "generally accepted medium of exchange" → fall under §31 Spekulation (tax-free after 1-year holding)
- Security tokens / asset tokens backed by securities, real estate, etc. — taxed under the general rules of the underlying right (often §27)
- Tokenised gold — treatment depends on whether it is securitised; physically-backed bullion ETCs may be either KESt or §31 — verify case-by-case
📉 Loss offsetting — what cancels what
§27 Abs 8 EStG carves up capital income into baskets. Losses inside a basket reduce income inside the same basket — same calendar year only, with no carry-forward in the private sphere. [S13]
| Loss source | Can offset against | Cannot offset against |
|---|---|---|
| Share / ETF / bond / derivative losses (27.5%) | Dividends, bond interest, fund AGE, crypto gains & ongoing income, derivative gains — all 27.5% basket | Bank-deposit interest (25%); tariff income; private-foundation distributions |
| Crypto losses (§27b) | Other 27.5% capital income (shares, ETFs, derivatives, dividends, bond interest) | Bank interest (25%); tariff income |
| Bank-deposit interest (25%) | Nothing — siloed basket | Everything else |
| §31 Spekulation (gold, FX, NFTs) | Other §31 gains in the same year only | Anything outside §31 — and losses are not deductible if no §31 gain to absorb them |
Automatic vs. manual Verlustausgleich
- Single Austrian depot: the bank/CASP nets gains and losses automatically per calendar year and issues a Verlustausgleichsbescheinigung — no action required.
- Multiple Austrian depots (different banks): you must elect Verlustausgleichsoption on E1kv to consolidate them.
- Foreign brokers / mixed: consolidation only via E1kv — and only inside the matching basket.
- From 2025: the Steuerreporting-Verordnung shifts to gross-against-gross netting with priority to the highest-taxed income. [S16]
Worked example — netting across brokers
During 2025 on foreign brokers: realised €800 gain on AAPL (IBKR), €500 loss on TSLA (Trading 212), €300 dividend from MSFT, €200 loss on ETH (Binance), €100 interest on a Revolut EUR savings vault.
27.5% basket: 800 − 500 + 300 − 200 = €400 net gain → KESt 27.5% = €110
25% basket: €100 interest → KESt 25% = €25
The €100 interest cannot be reduced by the crypto/share losses — different basket.
🥇 §31 — Speculation income (gold, FX, NFTs)
Private assets outside §27 capital income and §30 real estate fall under §31 EStG — the classic 1-year Spekulationsfrist. Held longer than one year: tax-free. Disposal within one year: taxed at your progressive tariff rate. [S19]
- Physical gold & silver bullion — VAT-exempt under EU rules; gains tax-free after 1 year. Securitised gold ETCs (e.g. Xetra-Gold) may be treated as securities and taxed at 27.5% — verify the prospectus.
- Foreign currency held as non-interest-bearing cash — Spekulationsfrist applies (1-year tax-free). Interest-bearing FX deposits are §27 capital income, not §31.
- NFTs and collectibles — outside §27b; §31 applies (tax-free after 1 year).
- €440 Freigrenze: if all §31 income in the year is ≤ €440, the entire amount is tax-free; cross the threshold and the whole amount is taxable. Losses are not deductible and not carried forward. [S19]
🏦 P2P lending & Privatdarlehen
Interest from private loans (Inrento, Robocash, Fintown, Raize, etc.) is non-securitised and therefore not subject to KESt. You declare it on E1 (main return) and it is taxed at your progressive tariff rate. Withholding taxes applied at source (e.g. 10% Latvian WHT on Mintos legacy notes) are creditable against Austrian tax up to the relevant treaty rate. [S12]
📝 Forms, Kennzahlen and filing
Which form does what
E1 — main income-tax return
Employment, pension, business profits, P2P interest, §31 speculation income. Triggers the assessment.
E1kv — capital-income annex
All §27 / §27b income: dividends, share/bond/ETF gains, fund AGE, foreign WHT credit, crypto. Mandatory when no Austrian KESt was withheld. [S8]
E1kv 2025 — Kennzahlen most retail investors actually use
Verified against the official BMF E1kv form (version vom 02.10.2024, used for tax years 2024 and 2025 — the 2025 PDF carries the same Kennzahl structure). The form distinguishes inländische (Austrian depot) and ausländische (foreign depot) Kapitaleinkünfte in every line. The codes below are the foreign-depot codes — exactly what you need for Revolut, IBKR, Trading 212, eToro, Bitpanda, Binance, etc. [S8]
| Form Punkt | KZ (ausland) | German label on the form | What you enter here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.3.1 | 863 | Einkünfte aus der Überlassung von Kapital (Dividenden, Zinserträge aus Wertpapieren) 27,5% | IBKR / Trading 212 dividends; bond coupon interest |
| 1.3.2 | 994 | Überschüsse aus realisierten Wertsteigerungen 27,5% | Realised gains on shares / ETFs / bonds (Revolut, IBKR sale at profit) |
| 1.3.2 | 892 | Verluste (aus realisierten Wertsteigerungen) | Realised losses on shares / ETFs / bonds |
| 1.3.3 | 995 | Verbriefte Derivate — Überschüsse 27,5% | Profits on certificates, warrants, structured products |
| 1.3.3 | 896 | Verbriefte Derivate — Verluste | Losses on certificates / warrants |
| 1.3.4 | 898 | Investmentfonds — tatsächliche Ausschüttungen | Distributions from IE/LU UCITS ETFs / mutual funds |
| 1.3.4 | 937 | Investmentfonds — Ausschüttungsgleiche Erträge 27,5% | AGE on accumulating IE/LU ETFs (deemed distribution) |
| 1.3.5 | 172 | Kryptowährungen — laufende Einkünfte | Binance/Coinbase lending interest, mining rewards (FMV) |
| 1.3.5 | 174 | Kryptowährungen — Überschüsse aus realisierten Wertsteigerungen | Sell BTC / ETH on Kraken / Binance to EUR at profit |
| 1.3.5 | 176 | Kryptowährungen — Verluste | Sell crypto at loss on foreign exchange |
| 1.2.1 | 861 | Zinsen aus Geldeinlagen / nicht verbrieften Forderungen bei Kreditinstituten 25% | Interest on foreign bank deposit / Revolut EUR vault if classed as deposit interest |
| 1.1.2 | 857 | Sonstige tarifsteuerpflichtige Einkünfte (Privatdarlehen-Zinsen, non-securitised derivatives) | P2P platform interest (Inrento, Robocash, Mintos) — progressive tariff |
| 1.6 | 998 | Anrechenbare ausländische (Quellen)Steuer auf 27,5%-Einkünfte | US 15% WHT credit on dividends; treaty-capped foreign WHT |
| 1.7 | 901 | Anrechenbare ausländische (Quellen)Steuer auf 25%-Einkünfte | Foreign WHT on deposit interest (rare) |
| 1.4 | 899 | Einbehaltene Kapitalertragsteuer auf inländische Kapitaleinkünfte | Austrian KESt withheld by Bitpanda / Coinfinity / Erste / etc., to credit at assessment |
Two non-obvious things about E1kv
- The Regelbesteuerungsoption is not a tick-box on E1kv. It is exercised on the main return E1 at Punkt 8.1. The Finanzamt does not auto-compare 27.5% vs. tariff — you must elect it explicitly when it benefits you.
- The Verlustausgleichsoption is not a separate tick-box either. You exercise it implicitly by entering Substanzverluste in KZ 891/892, 895/896 or 175/176. Per Anm 4 on the form: the option can be exercised for individual income items — it does not have to cover everything (unlike Regelbesteuerung).
Filing deadlines for the 2025 tax year
- 30 April 2026 — paper submission
- 30 June 2026 — electronic submission via FinanzOnline (the standard route)
- ~31 March 2027 — with a registered tax advisor (Quotenregelung)
- 31 March 2026 — deadline for Austrian banks/CASPs to issue the unified Steuerreport for 2025 (StRepV)
Filing is electronic via FinanzOnline (§133 BAO). [S7]
When you must file E1 + E1kv as a portfolio investor
- You held any account at a foreign broker / exchange and earned more than €22 of capital income for the year.
- You want to claim a foreign-tax credit (e.g. US dividend WHT) — only via E1kv.
- You want to net losses across multiple Austrian depots (Verlustausgleichsoption).
- You want Regelbesteuerung at the progressive rate (low-income year).
- You realised disposals on Schwarze Fonds — the lump-sum tax is paid through assessment.
❓ Frequently asked questions
Does Revolut Trading withhold Austrian KESt?
No. Revolut's investment entity is not an Austrian depositary, so no Austrian KESt is withheld on dividends, interest or share sales. Every realised gain and dividend must be self-assessed on E1kv via FinanzOnline. The same applies to Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, eToro, Lightyear, DEGIRO, XTB, and similar EU/international brokers.
Is buying a US-domiciled ETF (SPY, VOO, QQQ) a tax problem in Austria?
Likely yes — US ETFs are almost always not OeKB-reporting (Schwarze Fonds), so §186 InvFG applies: deemed annual income equal to the higher of 90% of the year-on-year price change or 10% of the year-end Rücknahmepreis, taxed at 27.5%. Buying an Ireland-domiciled equivalent (CSPX, VUSA, EQQQ) avoids that problem and is also typical for MiFID retail restrictions.
Are crypto-to-crypto trades really tax-free?
Yes for Neuvermögen — §27b Abs 3 Z 2 EStG explicitly carves out crypto-to-crypto exchanges from realisation. Acquisition cost carries over to the new coin. The exemption covers all assets that meet §27b Abs 4 (incl. stablecoins like USDT/USDC). It does not cover exchanges into NFTs, security tokens, or fiat — those are taxable disposals.
If I hold BTC bought in 2018 (Altvermögen), can I sell it tax-free?
Yes — anything acquired before 1 March 2021 and held longer than 1 year falls under the old §31 regime and is tax-free on disposal. Keep proof of the acquisition date (exchange statement, wallet transaction record). New units created from staking/lending old BTC after the reform are Neuvermögen.
Can I deduct broker commissions and FX spreads from my taxable gain?
Not separately for Sondersteuersatz income. §27a Abs 4 Z 2 EStG bars Anschaffungsnebenkosten (commissions, exchange fees, FX spreads) from being added to cost basis — the flat 27.5% rate is meant to compensate. Only the raw purchase/sale price in EUR matters.
My total foreign capital income for 2025 is €30. Do I really have to file?
Strictly yes — the €22 reporting floor applies per income type, and €30 crosses it. The administrative cost is filing one E1kv line plus the E1 header. If you cross the threshold even once, file.
Will the Finanzamt automatically see my Binance/Kraken account from 2026?
From 1 January 2026, EU and CARF-participating CASPs collect KYC + transaction data on Austrian residents. The first cross-border data exchange is due by 30 September 2027. Treat 2026 as the year visibility flips on — under-reporting risk rises sharply. [S15]
Are stock splits taxable?
No — a clean share split is a tax-neutral Kapitalmaßnahme. Cost basis spreads pro-rata across the new shares. Some Austrian banks have historically misclassified specific splits as dividends (e.g. BYD 2025) and withheld KESt erroneously — recoverable through assessment, but action is required.
Can I carry capital losses forward to next year?
No — Austrian private-investment losses are usable in the year they are realised only. There is no carry-forward in the außerbetrieblich sphere (carry-forward exists only for business income). Plan tax-loss harvesting before 31 December.
What FX rate do I use for foreign transactions?
The EUR conversion must use a documented rate on the transaction date — typically the ECB reference rate. The broker's executed rate is acceptable if applied consistently. The BMF accepts monthly average rates as a simplification for high-volume retail traders.
¿Cuánto vale realmente tu tiempo?
Considera el valor de tu tiempo y la tranquilidad que viene con tener una herramienta confiable y precisa para gestionar tu declaración de impuestos
(el pago cubre la declaración de este año correspondiente a 2025 y años anteriores, renovación manual el próximo año)
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📚 Sources
- [S1] BMF — Steuerliche Behandlung von Kryptowährungen (§27b EStG): bmf.gv.at — Krypto
- [S2] BMF — Capital gains or income from realised value increases (English): bmf.gv.at/en — Capital gains
- [S3] BMF — Besteuerung der Kapitalerträge im Inland (KESt 27.5% / 25%): bmf.gv.at — KESt
- [S4] PwC Tax Summaries — Austria individual taxes on personal income (2025 + 2026 brackets, cold-progression indexation): taxsummaries.pwc.com — Austria
- [S5] PwC Tax Summaries — Austria income determination (loss offsetting, Regelbesteuerung): taxsummaries.pwc.com — Income determination
- [S6] OeKB — Steuerdaten für Fonds (Meldefonds list, KMG): oekb.at — Steuerdaten
- [S7] FinanzOnline (electronic filing portal): finanzonline.bmf.gv.at
- [S8] BMF Formulare — E1kv 2025: service.bmf.gv.at — E1kv · PDF 2025
- [S9] BMF Formulare — E1 (main return): service.bmf.gv.at — E1
- [S10] EStG 1988 §27a — gleitender Durchschnittspreis (moving average cost): RIS — EStG
- [S11] InvFG 2011 — Ausschüttungsgleiche Erträge & Anschaffungskosten: RIS — InvFG
- [S12] BMF — Information zu Einkünften aus Kapitalvermögen (Privatdarlehen): bmf.gv.at — Kapitalvermögen Info
- [S13] BMF — Verluste aus Veräußerung von Kapitalvermögen und Derivaten: bmf.gv.at — Verluste
- [S14] Kryptowährungs-Verordnung BGBl II 455/2022 (gleitender Durchschnittspreis for crypto from 2023): RIS — KryptowährungsVO
- [S15] Krypto-Meldepflichtgesetz (DAC8/CARF) — entry into force 1 January 2026: Kinstellar — Austria CARF · EU Commission — DAC8
- [S16] Steuerreporting-Verordnung 2025 (StRepV) — unified broker/CASP reporting from 2025: Enzinger — StRepV 2025
- [S17] Austrian crypto KESt at source since 1 Jan 2024 — Bitpanda, Coinfinity, 21bitcoin, Kurant: BMF — KESt Krypto
- [S18] BMF — Relief from Austrian withholding taxes under DTC (foreign WHT credit): bmf.gv.at/en — DTC relief · PwC — Austria WHT
- [S19] EStG §31 — Spekulationsgeschäfte (gold, FX, NFTs, €440 Freigrenze): JUSline — §31 EStG
Last updated: May 18, 2026. This guide is general information for Austrian residents using foreign brokerage accounts — not individual tax advice. Always verify the official BMF form against your situation before filing, and consult a Steuerberater for complex cases.