Benefit-in-kind taxation for company electric vehicles confirmed from 2027

The monthly benefit-in-kind amounts to:

• in 2027: 0.375% of the acquisition costs, capped at EUR 180.00;
• from 2028 onwards: 0.625% of the acquisition costs, capped at EUR 300.00.

If the average monthly private use does not exceed 500 km (6,000 km per calendar year), half of the benefit-in-kind value may be applied in accordance with Section 4 (2) of the Austrian Benefit-in-Kind Values Regulation (Sachbezugswerteverordnung).

Please note: The provision of e-bikes, bicycles and motorcycles to employees is not affected by the planned amendment and will therefore remain exempt from taxes and social security contributions.

The new rules on benefit-in-kind taxation for electric cars raise the following key questions in practice:

1. Do existing agreements on the private use of company electric cars need to be amended as of 1 January 2027?

In principle, no. The benefit-in-kind taxation taking effect from 1 January 2027 results from a change in tax law and, as a general rule, does not require existing vehicle provision agreements to be amended. A mere reference to the previous benefit-in-kind exemption generally does not give rise to an entitlement to compensation for future wage tax and social security contributions, due to its typically purely informative and declaratory nature.

The situation may be different if the employer has expressly agreed under the contract to bear such taxes and contributions or indemnify the employee against them, although this is rare in practice.

2. For employees covered by the old severance pay scheme (Abfertigung Alt), will the tax benefit-in-kind value for electric cars have to be taken into account in future?

For the purposes of the old severance pay scheme (Abfertigung Alt), the actual value of the opportunity for private use is generally decisive. While the tax benefit-in-kind value may serve as a guideline, it is not binding if it differs significantly from the actual value of the private use.

This is particularly relevant for electric cars due to their comparatively low taxable benefit-in-kind values. For employment law purposes, consideration may therefore be given, in particular, to applying by analogy the mileage allowance method adopted by the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, OGH) for vehicles with internal combustion engines (see OGH 23 November 2020, 8 ObA 113/20f).

Accordingly, the monthly value of private use is calculated as follows:

Average number of kilometres driven privately per month (e.g. based on a logbook or a realistic estimate) × official mileage allowance (currently EUR 0.50 per kilometre).

3. Will the rules on tax-free charging of electric cars and charging equipment continue to apply?

Irrespective of the introduction of benefit-in-kind taxation for electric vehicles, the rules governing the tax-free charging of zero-emission vehicles pursuant to Section 4c of the Austrian Benefit-in-Kind Values Regulation (Sachbezugswerteverordnung) will remain in force.

Accordingly, the provision of charging equipment for company electric vehicles, or the reimbursement of the related costs, will continue to be exempt from taxes and social security contributions up to an amount of EUR 2,000.00.