Employer of Record in Austria

Employ in Austria without your own entity. We employ your team through a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer, with social insurance, collective agreement pay, 14 salaries and payroll handled.

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Why hire in Austria through an EOR

Austria offers a skilled, multilingual workforce at the centre of the EU, and collective agreements that set pay for around 98% of employees. Hiring there without an Austrian company means using a licensed staff-leasing employer: under the Temporary Agency Work Act (AÜG) that is what an Employer of Record is, and it is what TopSource provides.

Parameter	Statutory requirement	EOR management
Legal basis	Staff leasing under the AÜG, by an employer with the Austrian trade licence for it	Your hire is employed by a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer
Social insurance	Employer 20.98% (21.23% in Vienna) on pay up to EUR 6,930 a month	Registered before day one and paid by the 15th
Pay	At least the collective agreement rate for comparable work, usually 14 salaries a year	Set against the agreement that applies to the role
Clients outside the EEA	A leasing permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts	Checked before your hire’s start date
Notice	Six weeks to five months, normally ending on a quarter day	Contracts written to Austrian law

Figures for 2026, verified in October 2026.

Licensed staff leasing

In Austria an EOR is staff leasing under the AÜG, which needs a trade licence. Leased employees are entitled to at least the collective agreement pay for comparable work and to the same working-time and leave rules as comparable staff at the client. We employ your team through a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer.

Social insurance up to the ceiling

The employer pays 20.98% social insurance, 21.23% in Vienna, on pay up to EUR 6,930 a month and EUR 13,860 a year on the 13th and 14th salaries. We register your hire with the health insurance fund before day one.

Employer levies on all pay

On top of social insurance come 1.53% to the severance fund, 3.7% to the family fund, a chamber levy of 0.31% to 0.40% and 3% municipal tax, none of them capped. We pay them all by the 15th of the following month.

Permits for clients outside the EEA

Since an April 2025 ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court, leasing an Austria-based employee to a company outside the EEA needs a permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts, even for fully remote work. We confirm the permit position for your company before the start date.

14 salaries and collective agreements

Collective agreements set minimum pay for around 98% of employees and give almost all of them a 13th and 14th salary, taxed at a reduced 6% within limits. We apply the agreement that fits the role.

Hire in Austria without setting up an entity

Austria pays salaries 14 times a year, funds social insurance up to a monthly ceiling and adds employer levies on all pay. Statutory employer costs come to about 30% of gross salary, and collective agreements, not statute, set minimum pay for almost every role. Getting it right takes registrations with the health insurance fund, the tax office and the municipality, plus a severance fund for every employee.

The structure matters as much as the payroll. Under the Temporary Agency Work Act (AÜG), an Employer of Record is staff leasing: the employer needs the Austrian trade licence for it, and leased employees are entitled to at least the collective agreement pay for comparable work. Since an April 2025 ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court, leasing to a company based outside the EEA also needs a permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts, even when the employee never leaves Austria.

We employ your team through a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer. We issue a compliant contract, register your hire for social insurance and the severance fund, apply the right collective agreement and run payroll on 14 salaries, so you can hire in Austria without setting up a GmbH.

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Calculate Your Employee Costs in Austria

Enter a gross annual salary, including the 13th and 14th salaries, to see the employer’s statutory cost in Vienna for 2026: social insurance up to the ceiling, the severance fund, the family fund, the chamber levy, municipal tax and the Vienna employer levy.

Employment Cost Calculator

*Indicative figures only and not definitive legal advice. Local regulations change frequently. Consult an expert

Austria

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	British Pound	Austria
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How EOR in Austria works: the process through TopSource

Step 1

Check the role and your location

We confirm the job, the salary, the collective agreement that applies and where your company is based, which decides whether a leasing permit is needed before the start date.

Step 2

Issue the contract

Your hire gets an Austrian employment contract and a written statement of terms covering the pay grade, working time, the 13th and 14th salaries, probation of up to one month and notice.

Step 3

Register and onboard

We register your hire with the health insurance fund before day one, enrol them in a severance fund and set up wage tax, the family fund contribution and municipal tax.

Step 4

Run payroll every month

Social insurance, wage tax and employer levies are paid by the 15th of the following month, the 13th and 14th salaries are taxed at the reduced rate, and annual pay slips go to the tax office by the end of February.

Step 5

Support the relationship day to day

Your account manager and the employee have a direct line for leave, sick pay, collective agreement pay rises, notice and anything else that comes up.

Know your Austria hiring costs before you commit

Tell us the role, the salary and where your company is based. We’ll send back the full employer cost on 14 salaries within one business day.

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Employer Costs in Austria at a Glance

30 %

Statutory employer cost on EUR 4,500 a month in Vienna

14

Salaries a year under collective agreements

EUR 6,930

Monthly social insurance ceiling in 2026

Employer Costs in Austria Explained

An Austrian employee costs about 30% on top of gross salary: 20.98% employer social insurance, or 21.23% in Vienna, plus 1.53% to the severance fund, 3.7% to the family fund, a chamber levy and 3% municipal tax. On EUR 4,500 a month, paid 14 times in Vienna, the employer pays about EUR 18,900 a year on top of EUR 63,000 of salary. The rules that shape the rest are the staff-leasing law and the collective agreements.

The employer pays 20.98% of gross pay in social insurance in 2026: 3.78% health, 12.55% pension, 2.95% unemployment, 1.10% accident insurance, 0.10% insolvency fund and 0.50% housing contribution. The employee pays 18.07%. Vienna raised the housing contribution to 1.5% from January 2026, split 0.75% each way, which takes the employer rate there to 21.23%. Contributions stop at the maximum contribution base of EUR 6,930 a month, and EUR 13,860 a year on the 13th and 14th salaries. Employees earning up to EUR 2,225 a month pay no unemployment contribution, and work paid up to EUR 551.10 a month is marginal employment, insured against accidents only. Employees must be registered with the health insurance fund before they start. Our Austrian payroll guide covers each contribution in detail.

On top of social insurance, the employer pays 1.53% of gross pay to the employee’s severance fund from the second month of employment, 3.7% to the family burden equalisation fund, a chamber levy of 0.31% to 0.40% depending on the federal state, 0.36% in Vienna, and 3% municipal tax. Employers in Vienna add EUR 2 per employee for each week or part week. None of these levies has a ceiling. Wage tax is withheld monthly on the 2026 scale: nothing up to EUR 13,539 of annual income, then 20%, 30%, 40%, 48% and 50%, and 55% above EUR 1 million. The 13th and 14th salaries are taxed separately: after an allowance of EUR 620 a year, special payments within a sixth of regular annual pay are taxed at 6%. Social insurance, wage tax and the levies are due by the 15th of the following month, and annual pay slips go to the tax office by the end of February.

Austrian law treats an Employer of Record as staff leasing under the Temporary Agency Work Act (AÜG). Leasing staff is a regulated trade, so the employer needs the Austrian trade licence for it. Leased employees are entitled to appropriate pay: at least the collective agreement rate that comparable employees at the client would earn, or the leasing employer’s own agreement if that is higher, and the same rules on working time, overtime, rest and leave as comparable staff at the client. How collective agreements set pay in Austria explains the grades. Since an April 2025 ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court (Ro 2024/11/0002), leasing an employee to a company based outside the EEA, including the US and the UK, needs a permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts, even when the employee works only from Austria. The authority refuses it where labour market or economic reasons speak against it, and leasing without one can lead to fines for each managing director. Companies based in the EU and EEA need no permit. We employ your team through a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer, and we confirm the permit position for your company before the start date.

Probation can last up to one month, during which either side can end the contract at any time. After that, employer notice is six weeks in the first two years of service, two months after two years, three after five, four after 15 and five after 25 years, normally ending on a quarter day unless the contract allows the 15th or the last day of a month. Where the business has a works council, it must be informed before notice is given, and an employee can challenge a dismissal in the labour court. Pregnant employees can’t work in the eight weeks before and after the birth, 12 after a multiple, premature or caesarean birth, and are protected against dismissal until four months after it. Employees get five weeks of paid leave, 25 working days, rising to six weeks after 25 years, and sick pay in full for six to twelve weeks a year depending on service, then four weeks at half pay. Austria has no statutory minimum wage: the collective agreement sets the floor.

EOR or entity setup: which one fits your Austria plan?

Setting up an Austrian GmbH takes EUR 10,000 of share capital, at least half paid in cash, registration in the commercial register and your own registrations with the health insurance fund, the tax office and the municipality. An EOR makes sense while you test the market or hire a first small team. Your own entity makes sense once headcount and permanence justify the overhead, and for a company based outside the EEA it removes the need for a leasing permit.

Factor	TopSource Austria EOR	Your own Austrian entity
Speed to hire	Days for companies in the EEA; others need a leasing permit first	Weeks to months to incorporate and register
Capital	None	EUR 10,000 for a GmbH, half paid in cash
Pay and filings	Collective agreement pay on 14 salaries, run for you	Your own payroll, registrations and filings
Best fit	1-10 employees, market entry	Scaled, permanent operations

Consider an EOR if you’re:

Testing the Austrian market before incorporating a GmbH
Hiring a first small team in Vienna or elsewhere in Austria
Hiring EU, EEA or Swiss nationals, who need no work permit
Needing social insurance, the severance fund and the 14 salaries running from the first month

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Shops and cafe terraces along the Graben with the Plague Column, Vienna, Austria

Why TopSource for Employing in Austria

TopSource for Employer of Record, global payroll or any other of our services represent a simpler, more reliable and transparent option.

We don’t hide fees or sneak price increases. We don’t lock you in for employees you don’t use. But we do give you a dedicated point of contact, available on the phone so you get answers fast, including on the questions Austria raises, from collective agreement grades and the 14 salaries to leasing permits for companies outside the EEA. We blend HR advisory with in-market expertise, and we stay flexible around the needs of your business.

EOR Services Austria Payroll Services

Alpine village with a church spire in a mountain valley, Austria

“Their expertise and understanding of the unique hiring, payment, and human resource practices in each country has been nothing short of outstanding. Our Client Success Manager, has done just that … ensured our success. Her availability and willingness to engage on a personal level has made all the difference.”

Director of Research Operations,

“Excellent service, especially from our account manager who has gone above and beyond to help us use the platform effectively. Our manager, significantly simplifies my workload. It is like having your own TopSource HR representative on your team.”

Chief Human Resources Officer,

“TopSource has been our go-to resource for international hiring. They are responsive, thorough, respectful and knowledgeable. The Client Success team has provided us with the utmost customer service, and the more we use TopSource, the more, it gives us access to more resources and knowledge.”

Senior Manager, Human Resources ,

More than an Employer of Record.

Employer of Record services are only one way that we help you accelerate your global growth goals. From talent advisory to entity management, we give you the tools you need to research, enter and expand into your key markets.

Market Selection Advisory

Compare available talent, compensation, additional costs and regulations across different countries

Salary Benchmarking

Identify and prioritize markets for growth based on talent, cost & regulations

Global Skills Analysis

Map skill availability by region to align talent strategies with business goals..

Talent Acquisition

Find, hire & onboard the highly skilled team members you need in each locality.

Talent Strategy Optimization

Optimize your talent strategy to enable your organization to achieve it’s global ambitions.

Global Benefits Review

Benchmark your global benefits to boost employee retention.

Frequently
asked questions

Yes, as staff leasing under the Temporary Agency Work Act (AÜG). The employer needs the Austrian trade licence for staff leasing, and leased employees are entitled to at least the collective agreement pay for comparable work. Since an April 2025 ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court, leasing to a company based outside the EEA also needs a permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts. We employ your team through a licensed Austrian staff-leasing employer.

Yes, if it is based outside the EEA, for example in the US or the UK. Since an April 2025 ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court, leasing an employee to such a company needs a permit from the trade authority before the assignment starts, even when the employee works only from Austria. The authority refuses it where labour market or economic reasons speak against it. Companies based in the EU and EEA need no permit.

About 30% on top of gross salary. On EUR 4,500 a month, paid 14 times in Vienna, the employer pays about EUR 18,900 a year in social insurance, the severance fund, the family fund, the chamber levy, municipal tax and the Vienna levy, on top of EUR 63,000 of salary. Social insurance stops at EUR 6,930 a month; the levies have no ceiling.

Not by statute, but collective agreements give them to almost every employee, including leased employees under the agreement that applies. After an allowance of EUR 620 a year, special payments within a sixth of regular annual pay are taxed at 6%.

Probation can last up to one month, during which either side can end the contract at any time. After that, employer notice is six weeks in the first two years of service, two months after two years, three after five, four after 15 and five after 25, normally ending on a quarter day unless the contract allows the 15th or the last day of a month.

An EOR wins on cost of entry: no EUR 10,000 of share capital and no registrations of your own. Your own GmbH wins on scale, and for a company based outside the EEA it removes the need for a leasing permit. Many clients start with an EOR and move the team to their own entity once Austria is proven.