Tipped under fire: A struggle for just regulations in Austria!

Tipped under fire: A struggle for just regulations in Austria!

Laimgrubengasse 10, 1060 Wien, Österreich - The debate about drinking money in Austria achieves new dimensions! Walter Veit, President of the Austrian Hotel Association, leaves no doubt: "Fingers away from the tip of our employees! This is intended as a thank you for good service and not to stuff the financial holes in social security," said Veit. The appeal comes, since social security is currently collecting contributions on drinking money that are above a "local" level. Veit criticizes: The ultimate calculation is based on gross content and is completely absurd. Drinking money of around 10 percent of the invoice is normal in Austria, and the collection of social security contributions to these payments goes too far, he believes.

But how is tip treated for tax? Experts explain that voluntary tips are fundamentally tax -free as long as they are given directly to the employees by the customer. However, if the tip gets into a common pot, it is considered a wages, which means that it becomes taxable. It is all the more important for the employees that it is clearly differentiated between voluntary tips and taxable payments. In this sense, Veit warns against the possible next steps of social security: "If you no longer get by drinking money, you could soon ask for social security contributions on pocket money!" href = "https://www.ots.at/presseausendung/ots_20250321_ots0069/oehv-an-oegk-finger-raus-der-trinkgeldkassa"> Oots.at reports .

Tax deductibility of drinking money