Expense Report in Austria: Everything You Need to Know

Travelling for work is part of everyday life for many people. These business trips are accompanied by costs for buses, trains, flights, hotel bills, restaurant bills and other expenses. Employees do not have to bear these costs themselves, but are reimbursed as a fixed amount, in whole or in part. An expense report must be submitted for this purpose. We explain what expenses are in Austria and how to claim them correctly.

What are Expenses?

Expenses are expenses incurred when professional activities are carried out outside the regular workplace. The prerequisite for this is that they are organised by the employer or client. This includes travelling at home or abroad, be it a business trip to visit customers, a conference lasting several days or even further training. It does not necessarily have to be a business trip lasting several days. Expenses are also incurred for a business meal or a meeting outside the regular place of work.

Another scenario in which employees incur expenses is when they are temporarily assigned to another location.

The following types of expenses exist:

What is an Expense Report?

In order not to have to bear the additional financial costs of professional activities away from the place of work yourself, but to be reimbursed, the expenses incurred are recorded in the form of an expense report.

An expense report makes it possible to track exactly which costs were incurred for what and when. Depending on the company’s requirements, the expense report can be in paper or digital form.

Basics of Expense Accounting in Austria

When it comes to expense claims, employers and employees in Austria are not in the dark. This is because contracts often stipulate which expenses are reimbursed and in what amount. The first contractual basis is the respective collective agreement. The reimbursement of travel expenses can also be regulated in the employment or service contract. There are also special agreements for federal services.

But what happens if there are no contractual agreements at all? In this case, the actual and necessary costs incurred will be reimbursed. It must be possible to prove the expenses.

Why is an expense report important?

The purpose of an expense report is to ensure that employees and self-employed persons do not have to bear expenses from professional activities themselves. If no expense report is submitted, the expenses will not be reimbursed. It is therefore an important document for regulating the reimbursement of expenses.

Many companies have specific guidelines for the reimbursement of travel expenses. If these company guidelines are adhered to, it is ensured that the expense report is submitted correctly and properly. With an expense report, the costs incurred are clearly and comprehensibly documented. This creates transparency for employers and employees and helps prevent misunderstandings.

In Austria, employees can deduct some work-related expenses for tax purposes as income-related expenses and entrepreneurs as business expenses. A correct expense report is the basis for being able to take advantage of these tax benefits.

Which travel expenses can be claimed?

Employers are obliged to reimburse employees for travel expenses incurred to a certain extent. These reimbursements are tax and duty-free under certain conditions. We show you which expenses can be reimbursed and to what extent:

Digital Expense Report: Advantages

Digital expense reports are quicker and easier than manual expense reports. It simplifies the entire expense reimbursement process.

We show in detail exactly what digitalisation brings for companies and employees:

Our solution helps with the switch from paper to digital expense reports. Thanks to intelligent automation, all relevant data is automatically extracted and country-specific deviations are taken into account.

There is also a clear focus on an intuitive user interface. But even the most user-friendly software solution needs a communication option, which is why our digital expense report has an integrated chat function.

Conclusion: Efficient Expense Reporting in Austria

In many companies, cost efficiency is an important issue in order to remain competitive. Greater cost efficiency does not have to be at the expense of business operations, nor does it have to be difficult to implement. Digitalisation plays a key role in increasing efficiency and transparency in companies.

Well-designed software solutions can make things noticeably easier for small, medium-sized and large companies in various areas, including expense reports. A digital expense report creates clear structures and clearly organised data that is available in real time. All expenses are recorded and accounted for automatically and correctly. This not only saves time and costs, but also reduces administrative effort and the susceptibility to errors.