The first invoices are out and the mandatory details are in place. Then the everyday questions arrive: a customer wants to make a down payment up front, an invoice already sent shows the wrong tax rate, a client only wants a PDF from now on, and one payment is late. Writing invoices in Austria is more than filling in a form with the right fields.
Which types of invoice are there, how is a wrong invoice corrected, what counts as an electronic invoice, when is an invoice due and how long does it stay in the archive? The answers are in the VAT Act (UStG), the Business Code (UGB) and the Federal Fiscal Code (BAO). They are explained by the business service portal USP of the Ministry of Finance and by the Austrian Economic Chamber (WKO). The individual mandatory details are covered in our separate article on invoice requirements in Austria.
Key points at a glance:
- Any document a business uses to bill a supply or service counts as an invoice, whatever it is called. Invoices to other businesses have to be issued within six months.
- For down payments, VAT arises as soon as the money comes in. The final invoice deducts the down payments and their tax.
- Only the issuer can correct a wrong invoice: with a correction note or a new invoice that refers to the old one.
- A PDF sent by email is already an electronic invoice if the recipient agrees. Structured e-invoices have been mandatory for supplies to the federal government since 2014 and will be for cross-border B2B transactions in the EU from 1 July 2030.
- Unless the contract says otherwise, statutory late-payment interest between businesses is 9.2 percentage points above the base rate where the customer is responsible for the delay.
- Invoices are kept for seven years, counted from the end of the calendar year.
What counts as an invoice and who has to issue one
Under § 11(2) UStG, an invoice is any document with which a business bills a supply or other service, whatever that document is called in business dealings. Whether the top line says «Rechnung», «Honorarnote» or «Abrechnung» makes no difference. The required details may even be in other documents, such as an order confirmation, a delivery note or a contract, as long as the invoice refers to them.
Any business may issue an invoice. It has to issue one when it supplies another business for its business purposes, or a legal person. Towards private customers the duty applies to taxable work deliveries and work services connected with a property. The deadline is six months after the transaction; for certain services to businesses in other EU states it ends on the 15th day of the following month. The duty applies even if the customer does not ask for the invoice, and it also covers VAT-exempt and reverse-charge transactions.
In turn, business partners have a civil-law claim to a proper invoice, because without one they generally cannot deduct input VAT. What a proper invoice contains is set out in § 11(1)(3) UStG: among other things the name and address of both parties, the service and its date, the net amount, the tax rate and the tax amount, the issue date, a sequential number and the VAT ID. Up to €400 gross, a simplified invoice is enough. Our article on invoice requirements in Austria explains the list in detail.
Types of invoice: which invoices there are
In law there is basically one invoice, which goes by different names depending on the occasion. In everyday business, though, several types of invoice have become common, and some come with their own rules. The overview shows what they stand for:
| Type of invoice | Used for | What applies |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice | billing a supply or service that has been provided | details under § 11 UStG, to businesses within six months |
| Down payment invoice | money before the supply or service | invoicing rules apply accordingly; VAT arises with the payment |
| Interim invoice | part of the price during an ongoing job | for services not yet provided, the same rules as for a down payment |
| Final invoice | billing at the end, after down payments or interim invoices | down payments and their tax are deducted (§ 11(1)(4) UStG) |
| Standing invoice | unchanged monthly rent charge | accepted in administrative practice, usually issued once a year |
| Small-amount invoice | invoices up to €400 gross | simplified details (§ 11(6) UStG) |
| Self-billing credit note | the customer does the billing | counts as an invoice under the conditions of § 11(8) UStG, for example if both parties agree |
| Correction (often called a cancellation invoice) | correcting a faulty invoice | only by the issuer, with a reference to the original invoice |
For every type, the name on the document is not what matters. Whether a document counts as an invoice for tax purposes depends on whether it bills a service. Terms such as cancellation invoice or pro forma invoice come from practice; the VAT Act does not use them.
Down payment invoice and interim invoice
If a business asks for money before it supplies or performs, the rules on issuing invoices apply accordingly (§ 11(1)(4) UStG). A down payment invoice therefore contains the same details as a normal invoice but relates to a service still to come. The same goes for an interim invoice for part of the price while the job is not yet done.
For VAT, what counts is the payment received. The tax on down payments arises without exception, including under accrual-based VAT, at the end of the VAT return period in which the payment came in. It is due only on the amount actually received, even if the down payment invoice shows a higher amount. For the customer it works the other way round: the input VAT from a down payment invoice can only be deducted once it has been paid.
Final invoice: deduct the down payments
Once the job is finished, the final invoice follows. It deducts the down payments received beforehand and the tax on them, if invoices were issued for those down payments (§ 11(1)(4) UStG). The WKO advises deducting the net down payments from the total net amount in the final invoice and showing VAT only on the difference. If the tax is shown on the whole amount, the tax on the down payments is owed a second time. An example with 20% VAT, where the customer paid €3,000 net on a down payment invoice in advance:
This way the final invoice shows only the tax on the remaining amount, and both parties have already booked the down payment.
Standing invoice and small-amount invoice
In letting, a new invoice is not needed every month, according to the WKO: the tax administration accepts a standing invoice for the monthly rent charge, usually issued once a year. At the other end is the small-amount invoice. Up to €400 gross, the recipient’s name and address, the running invoice number and the VAT ID can be left out. Small businesses that are exempt from VAT may use the simplified invoice at any amount, the USP says. Anyone who wants to can still issue a full invoice.
Correcting an invoice: correction, cancellation, credit note
A wrong tax rate, VAT instead of reverse charge or a simple arithmetic error: these are typical mistakes that call for a correction. Incorrect invoices may in principle be corrected. The right and the duty to do so lie with the issuer. In everyday use, such a correcting document is often called a cancellation invoice (Stornorechnung); the VAT Act speaks of correcting an invoice. There are two ways: a separate correction note that refers to the original invoice, or a new, corrected invoice. This is how a correction works:
The first step is to pin down what is wrong: tax rate, tax amount, recipient or a missing detail. Only the business that issued the invoice can correct it.
The correction note lists the changes and refers to the original invoice. A new invoice with the old number carries a note that it has been corrected; with a new number it refers to the old invoice and its number.
According to the WKO, the correction only takes effect once the customer has demonstrably received it. It therefore goes out by a method that proves receipt.
The issuing business adjusts its VAT and the customer its input VAT deduction. Both go into the VAT return.
In principle, a correction does not apply retroactively. One correction note can also correct several invoices at once. And the customer has a claim, enforceable in the civil courts, to have an incorrect invoice corrected.
Too much VAT or VAT shown without entitlement
A business that shows another business more VAT on an invoice than it owes, for example 20% instead of the correct 10%, owes the amount shown because of the invoice until it corrects it (§ 11(12) UStG). This is known as tax owed by virtue of the invoice. According to the WKO, an exception applies to invoices to private customers: VAT shown too high there does not have to be paid to the tax office.
VAT shown without entitlement is treated in a similar way. Anyone who shows VAT although they are not a business or have not provided the service named also owes the amount (§ 11(14) UStG). A look at the tax rate and tax amount before sending therefore saves a later correction.
Cash discount, rebate and cancellation
Not every change after sending needs a new invoice. If the price is reduced afterwards, for example by a cash discount, a rebate or a price reduction after a complaint about defects, the law does not require the invoice to be corrected. § 11(13) UStG requires it only where the price is reduced by deducting bill-of-exchange discount interest. Both parties still adjust the VAT: under § 16 UStG the supplier corrects the tax owed and the customer its input VAT deduction, for the period in which the price changed.
If a deal falls through entirely, many people speak of a cancellation. How it is treated for tax depends on the case: an invoice with wrong details is corrected. If the deal is reversed or the price changes, it goes through § 16 UStG. If in doubt, a tax adviser can clarify it.
Self-billing credit note: when the customer bills
In VAT law, a credit note (Gutschrift) means something other than in everyday language. It is a document with which the customer itself bills a service it has received (§ 11(7) UStG). Examples are the billing of licences by the licensee or of authors’ fees by the publisher. Such a credit note counts as the supplier’s invoice if
Then the supplier no longer has to issue an invoice itself. If the recipient objects to the tax amount in the credit note, it loses the effect of an invoice to that extent. An electronic credit note must also be labelled as such.
Electronic invoices and e-invoicing in Austria
With e-invoicing in Austria, two things are often mixed up. Electronic means any invoice issued and received in an electronic format, so a PDF attached to an email as well. A «real» e-invoice in a standardised format such as XML or UBL, by contrast, offers far more scope for automatic processing. So far this structured format is mandatory only in certain cases.
A PDF by email already counts as an electronic invoice
A business may send an invoice to another business by email, as an email attachment, web download, PDF or text file, as a scanned paper invoice or by fax. Since 1 January 2013 the electronic invoice has been treated the same as the paper invoice, provided the recipient agrees. This consent needs no particular form: under the VAT guidelines, it is enough that both parties actually work this way and so tacitly accept it.
Anyone who sends an invoice in several formats, such as a PDF and an XML file, or on paper and by email, notes this on the invoice itself. This avoids owing the tax several times by virtue of the invoice.
Ensuring authenticity, integrity and legibility
An electronic invoice only counts if the authenticity of its origin, the integrity of its content and its legibility are assured (§ 11(2) UStG). Authenticity means the issuer’s identity is certain. Integrity means the required content has not been changed. Which procedure a business uses for this is its own choice. Any of the following is enough:
Important for small businesses: according to the USP, a manual check of the invoice against the existing documents is also enough, for example against the order, the job, the purchase contract or the delivery note, as long as a reliable audit trail links the invoice to the service.
E-invoices to the federal government and the outlook for 2030
The structured e-invoice has been mandatory since 1 January 2014 for supplies and services to federal government offices; they no longer accept paper invoices. The e-invoice is submitted via the business service portal or via PEPPOL, and registration with the USP is required. The XML standard ebInterface is widely used for this. For contractual partners of the federal states and municipalities there is currently no duty to submit invoices electronically.
The next change comes from the EU. With Directive (EU) 2025/516, ViDA for short, the electronic invoice becomes the standard for cross-border B2B transactions within the EU from 1 July 2030, and the recipient’s consent will then no longer be needed. These invoices must comply with the European standard EN 16931. For transactions between Austrian businesses within Austria, the directive does not require e-invoices. Member States can introduce such a duty themselves; according to the WKO, there are currently no plans to do so.
In short: A PDF by email is a valid electronic invoice if the recipient agrees. Structured e-invoices are currently mandatory in Austria only for supplies to the federal government; for cross-border B2B transactions in the EU they will follow from 1 July 2030.
Payment terms, late-payment interest and reminders
An invoice is only settled once the money has arrived. If nothing is agreed in the contract, the customer has to pay as soon as the service has been properly provided and the price is fixed. If the amount only becomes clear from the invoice, it falls due when the invoice reaches the customer. An agreed payment term ideally also appears on the invoice, so the date is clear to both parties.
Agreeing a payment period
How long a customer has to pay is up to the contracting parties. Between businesses, the Business Code sets a framework: an agreed payment period of up to 60 days is never grossly unfair (§ 459(3) UGB). Longer periods are possible as long as they are not grossly unfair to the creditor; such a clause on the payment date or payment period would be void.
If an acceptance or inspection of the service is planned before payment, it may last no more than 30 days from receipt of the goods or provision of the service (§ 457 UGB). A longer period is only allowed if expressly agreed and only if it is not grossly unfair to the creditor.
Late-payment interest and the €40 flat fee
If the customer has not paid by the due date, the business may charge late-payment interest from the day after the due date, even without a prior reminder. Unless the contract says otherwise, the statutory rate between businesses is 9.2 percentage points above the base rate (§ 456 UGB). The base rate on the first calendar day of each half-year applies. This higher rate applies only where the customer is responsible for the delay; for transactions with consumers the WKO gives 4% a year.
On top of that, between businesses there is a flat fee of €40 as compensation for recovery costs (§ 458 UGB), which covers reminder fees in particular. It is due in addition to the interest. Higher costs can be recovered under § 1333(2) ABGB if the customer is at fault for the late payment and the costs of out-of-court recovery are necessary and appropriate and in reasonable proportion to the claim.
Writing a payment reminder
A payment reminder (Mahnung) is not required for late-payment interest or for taking a claim to court. It is still useful, because it brings unpaid invoices back to mind in a friendly but clear way. The law sets no form, so a reminder could even be given orally. For evidence, the WKO still recommends a written reminder by registered letter.
The reminder should set a deadline with a fixed final date by which the payment must have reached the creditor. The invoice number, invoice date and open amount also help, so the customer can match the payment quickly.
Keeping invoices and archiving them digitally
For every invoice it issues, a business makes a duplicate or copy and keeps it for seven years (§ 11(2) UStG). The same applies accordingly to documents an invoice refers to. The deadlines around an invoice at a glance:
| Deadline | For | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| six months after the transaction | issuing an invoice to a business | § 11(1)(1) UStG |
| 15th day of the following month | invoice for certain services to businesses in other EU states | § 11(1)(2) UStG |
| up to 60 days | agreed payment period between businesses, never grossly unfair | § 459 UGB |
| no more than 30 days | acceptance or inspection of the service; longer only if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair | § 457 UGB |
| from the day after the due date | late-payment interest, without a prior reminder | WKO |
| seven years from the end of the calendar year | keeping invoices and supporting documents | § 132 BAO |
| 22 years | records relating to property under the VAT Act | WKO |
| from 1 July 2030 | e-invoice for cross-border B2B transactions in the EU | Directive (EU) 2025/516 |
Seven years from the end of the calendar year
The period does not start with the invoice date but at the end of the calendar year to which the documents relate (§ 132(1) BAO). For example, documents from the 2019 calendar year have to be kept until the end of 2026. Records have to be kept longer while they matter for pending tax proceedings. For records relating to property under the VAT Act, the period is 22 years.
Scanning paper invoices and archiving them electronically
Paper does not have to stay in a binder. Documents may be kept on data carriers if their complete, orderly, identical and true-to-original reproduction is assured at all times until the end of the period (§ 132(2) BAO). Anyone who wants to scan invoices and keep them only digitally needs a system that ensures exactly that.
For the electronic archiving of invoices, the WKO speaks of audit-proof archiving. Scanned PDF files on a USB stick, a hard drive or a server are not enough for this, because each file can be changed, deleted or reordered. Outgoing invoices created with an IT system do not have to be printed again.
Keeping e-invoices together with the proof
For electronic invoices, authenticity, integrity and legibility must be assured for the full seven years, and by both the issuing and the receiving business. Both also keep the proof of authenticity and integrity as part of the invoice. A true-to-original reproduction is not needed, and a paper printout is allowed as long as these conditions are met.
Checking incoming invoices
For the customer, a lot depends on the invoice: only a proper invoice entitles a business to deduct input VAT, with exceptions for reverse charge and intra-Community acquisitions. The USP lists a few points to check before an invoice is paid and booked:
Correcting the received invoice yourself does not help, because one-sided corrections by the recipient have no legal effect. If something is missing or an amount is wrong, the customer asks the issuer for a corrected invoice, and has an enforceable claim to it.
Managing invoices with the Vivid business account
With the Vivid business account you write invoices in the account itself and see there whether they have been paid. Invoicing comes with every plan, with no cap on the number of invoices. For everyday invoicing, that means:
Two plans come without a monthly base fee: Free Start for companies and Standard for the self-employed. Even on plans without a monthly base fee, individual services can incur fees. These include additional cards, cash withdrawals above certain allowances or premium features from higher plans.
Vivid in brief: with the online business account for the self-employed and companies in Austria, invoices and payments run through the same account. Invoicing and payment status are included in every plan.
From invoice to incoming payment
With the Vivid business account you see for every invoice whether the money has arrived. Opening it takes place online.
Frequently asked questions
What types of invoice are there?
Besides the normal invoice, down payment, interim and final invoices are common. Add the standing invoice in letting, the small-amount invoice up to €400 and the self-billing credit note. For tax purposes, any document that bills a service counts as an invoice, whatever it is called.
How do I correct a wrong invoice?
Only the issuer can correct it. This works with a correction note that refers to the original invoice, or with a new invoice that refers to the old one. The correction takes effect only once the customer has demonstrably received it.
What is the difference between a self-billing credit note and a cancellation invoice?
A self-billing credit note (Gutschrift) is issued by the customer when it bills a service it has received. Cancellation invoice is a term from practice for correcting one’s own invoice. For tax purposes it is, depending on the case, a correction by the issuer, for example where details are wrong. Where the deal is reversed, it is a change in the price under § 16 UStG.
When is an invoice due?
If nothing is agreed, as soon as the service has been provided and the price is fixed. If the amount only becomes clear from the invoice, it falls due when the invoice reaches the customer. An agreed payment term moves the date.
How high is late-payment interest between businesses?
Unless the contract says otherwise, the statutory rate is 9.2 percentage points above the base rate that applies for each half-year, where the customer is responsible for the delay. A flat fee of €40 for recovery costs comes on top.
Is e-invoicing mandatory in Austria?
For supplies and services to federal government offices since 2014. For cross-border B2B transactions in the EU it becomes the standard from 1 July 2030. For transactions between Austrian businesses within Austria, the EU directive does not require it.
When does the retention period for invoices start?
At the end of the calendar year to which the invoices relate, and then it runs for seven years. Invoices from 2019 therefore have to be kept until the end of 2026.
May I keep paper invoices only in digital form?
Yes, if their complete, orderly, identical and true-to-original reproduction is assured at all times until the end of the period (§ 132(2) BAO). The WKO recommends audit-proof archiving for this rather than a simple PDF folder.
This article is for general information and is not legal or tax advice. The rules mentioned come from the VAT Act 1994, the Federal Fiscal Code, the Business Code and the ABGB, and from the explanations of the business service portal of the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Austrian Economic Chamber; for your own case, a tax adviser is the right contact. Payment services are provided by Vivid Money S.A., 21 rue Glesener, Luxembourg, L-1631, Luxembourg, an Electronic Money Institution authorized and regulated by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier, Luxembourg, under the register number W00000015.
