Austria has amended its Federal Fiscal Code to let businesses meet receipt obligations for cash payments by giving customers electronic access on site, with a paper receipt still required on request.
Austria has amended Section 132a of its Federal Fiscal Code (BAO) to simplify the electronic issuance of fiscal receipts, effective 1 October 2026.
The change covers cash payments, including card payments, vouchers accepted instead of cash and other comparable electronic payment methods. A business can now fulfil its receipt obligation by letting the customer access the receipt electronically on a terminal device on site. This complements the existing option of sending electronic receipts directly to the customer
Electronic receipts can be sent by e-mail, mobile application or web download, in human-readable (PDF) or structured (XML) format, or retrieved through a customer-facing screen display or QR code linked to the payment. Businesses must provide a paper receipt if the customer or the tax authority asks for one, and must record the issuance method in their electronic recording system.
Section 132a also requires a valid receipt to show the entrepreneur’s identification, a unique consecutive number, the date, the description of goods or services and the total amount. Duplicates and related records must be retained for seven years from the end of the calendar year of issuance.
Special authorisation cards or tickets, such as admission or transit tickets, are exempt from sequential numbering, date requirements and duplicate storage, provided complete recording is otherwise ensured.
Existing retention, cash register and content requirements remain unchanged.
