Value Added Tax (VAT) guidelines for foreign nationals organizing and attending conventions in Austria

In principle, the same provisions apply in Austria as in other member states of the European Union.

Foreign convention organizers who are VAT registered companies in their home countries are also liable for VAT in Austria when organizing their conferences.
But under the EU’s reverse charge system, provided their costumers (conference delegates and Austrian exhibitors) are business enterprises, they are not obliged to invoice their congress services with value-added tax. Only if conference delegates are no business enterprises, conference organizers are obliged to charge them Austrian value-added tax.

The input value-added tax charged by hotels and other suppliers is then deducted from the total output value-added tax charged by the organizer. Even if a conference organizer does not charge any value-added tax, he is till entitled to deduct the Austrian value-added tax charged to him as input tax.

In Austria, as in other EU countries, value-added tax does not represent a cost factor.

Foreign, non-VAT registered, non-profit organizations are also exempted from VAT in Austria. They charge no VAT, but they also can not recover input tax. Provisions applying to them are the same as those in other EU member states.

VAT returns are to be completed by a "fiscal representative" (accountant) if the convention organizer is not resident or registered in Austria.

The application for repayment is to be directed to the Graz tax office (Finanzamt Graz-Stadt) no later than six months after the end of the calendar year in which the convention was held.

Since the VAT repayment represents a cut in expenditure for conference delegates it is advisable to draw their attention to this possibility.

Once you have decided to hold your convention in Vienna, your accountant can arrange for the necessary returns to be made to the Austrian tax authorities.

If the need arises, please turn to a specialist Austrian accountant, e.g.:
"CURA" - Treuhand- und Revisions GmbH
Gumpendorfer Strasse 26
A-1060 Vienna
Ms. Monica Stadler
phone: +43-1-587 95 72
fax: +43-1-586 43 81
office@cura.at

Publication has several benefits:

• your event is promoted worldwide - featured on the internet, giving you further chances of boosting attendance
• if you have your own event website, we automatically create a link to your homepage
• publication of your event is free of charge

If this is of interest to you, then please complete the form.

We require data for our annual statistics:
If you do not wish your event to be published please register your event as "confidential". Every year the Vienna Convention Bureau draws up convention, meeting and incentive statistics showing important economic data and trends. We would therefore appreciate your cooperation in completing the form to provide us with a basis for making statistical calculations.

Average weather conditions in Vienna:

January
temperature: -0,6°C=31°F / sunshine hours: 56 / percipitation: 38mm=1,5 inches
February
temperature: 1,6°C=35°F / sunshine hours: 78 / percipitation: 42mm=1,6 inches
March
temperature: 5,8°C=42°F / sunshine hours: 126 / percipitation: 41mm=1,6 inches
April
temperature: 10,5°C=51°F / sunshine hours: 170 / percipitation: 51mm=2,0 inches
May
temperature: 15,1°C=59°F / sunshine hours: 221 / percipitation: 61mm=2,4 inches
June
temperature: 18,2°C=65°F / sunshine hours: 223 / percipitation: 74mm=2,9 inches
July
temperature: 20,1°C=68°F / sunshine hours: 246 / percipitation: 63mm=2,5 inches
August
temperature: 19,7°C=67°F / sunshine hours: 228 / percipitation: 58mm=2,3 inches
September
temperature: 16,0°C=61°F / sunshine hours: 171 / percipitation: 45mm=1,8 inches
October
temperature: 10,6°C=51°F / sunshine hours: 137 / percipitation: 41mm=1,6 inches
November
temperature: 5,1°C=41°F / sunshine hours: 63 / percipitation: 50mm=1,9 inches
December
temperature: 1,2°C=34°F / sunshine hours: 52 / percipitation: 43mm=1,7 inches

For the daily weather forecast please check out following website: http://www.cnn.com/weather

Who does not need a visa

Citizens of all countries of the European Union, of Switzerland, Slovenia, Croatia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Roumenia and Israel, of most of the countries of North and South America, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and some other countries need a valid travel document to enter Austria. (In some cases valid ID cards or passports that have been invalid for no longer than five years are still appropriate.)

When in doubt please make sure to contact the Austrian Consulate or Embassy before departure.

At the borders between Austria, Germany and Italy, due to the Schengen Treaty, regular passport controls have been abandoned; however, the travel document still has to be carried along when entering another Schengen country.

Who needs a visa

Travellers who need a visa can be provided with the new Schengen Visa (Visa C), issued by all Schengen countries and valid for all these countries up to three months.

With a Schengen Visa issued by Austria for example one can enter Germany and Italy as well (and vice versa). In principle the visa is issued by the country that constitutes the major destination of the trip. In these cases the entry may also be via another Schengen country than the one that issued the visa. If there is no major destination of the trip (e.g. when visiting several countries) the first state via which Schengen country is entered, is in charge to issue the visa.

"Schengen country" at the moment consists of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.

emergency telephone numbers
fire department 122
police 133
ambulance & emergency services 144
emergency doctor 141
night and weekend dental services (recorded message in German) 512 20 78
pharmacies open nights and Sunday (recorded message in German) 1550

for 24 hour breakdown service, call one of the following automobile clubs
ARBÖ 123
ÖAMTC 120

The Vienna Transport Authority (Wiener Linien) offer a special rover ticket to delegates and accompanying persons.
This ticket enables the delegates to make use of the public transport network for the duration of the respective event. There is no minumum purchase and the convention ticket is very easy to purchase as there are no photographs or special procedures necessary.
Price per ticket for 3 days: EUR 12.90

For further information pleaso don not hesitate to contact us per e-mail: convention@vienna.info!

School holidays in Vienna 2008/2009:

Christmas holidays: 24 December 2008 - 6 January 2009
Semester break: 02 - 07 February 2009
Easter holidays: 04 - 14 April 2009
Pentecost holidays: 30 May - 02 June 2009
Summer holidays: 04 July - 05 September 2009

School holidays in Vienna 2009/2010:

Christmas holidays: 24 December 2009 - 6 January 2010
Semester break: 01 - 06 February 2010
Easter holidays: 27 March - 06 April 2010
Pentecost holidays: 22 - 25 May 2010
Summer holidays: 03 July - 04 September 2010

Public Holidays in Austria 2009:

New Year’s Day: 1 January 2009
Epihany: 6 January 2009
Easter Monday: 13 April 2009
Labour Day: 1 May 2009
Ascension Day: 21 May 2009
Whit Monday: 1 June 2009
Corpus Christi: 11 June 2009
Assumption of the Virgin Mary: 15 August 2009
National Holiday: 26 October 2009
All Saint’s Day: 1 November 2009
Immaculate Conception: 8 December 2009
Christmas Day: 25 December 2009
Boxing Day: 26 December 2009

Public Holidays in Austria in 2010:

New Year´s Day: 1 January 2010
Epiphany: 6 January 2010
Easter Monday: 5 April 2010
National Holiday: 1 May 2010
Ascension Day: 13 May 2010
Whit Monday: 24 May 2010 
Corpus Christi: 3 June 2010
Assumption of the Virgin Mary: 15 August 2010
National Holiday: 26 October 2010
All Saints´ Day: 1 November 2010
Immaculate Conception: 8 December 2010
Christmas Day: 25 December 2010
Boxing Day: 26 December 2010