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Press Releases 2020
April 2020
April 2020
Blümel: Employee bonuses tax-exempt, full lump sum for commuters remains
Blümel: Phase II of the hardship fund to be extended
Blümel: Rapid assistance and the greatest possible goodwill are paramount
Blümel: The Commission is lacking problem awareness
Blümel: Wearing masks now compulsory – no VAT on protective masks
Blümel on Austria's 2020 Budget: More money will be provided – No deficit anticipated this year – First EUR 4 bn package of initial emergency aid – Everything necessary will be done
Corona Aids: Blümel demands temporary suspension of EU state aid law
Finance Minister
Blümel: EUR 15 billion corona assistance fund to safeguard jobs and protect Austria as a centre of economic activity
Finance Minister Blümel: Hardship fund doubled to EUR 2 billion
Finance Minister Blümel: “Times of crisis are not a legal void. Hence zero tolerance for misuse of subsidies.”
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New e-commerce regulations from 1 July 2021
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What does the increase in the Family Bonus Plus do for the family budget?
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Press Releases 2019
Press Releases 2020
January 2020
Finance Minister Blümel: 2021 to see reduction in base rate of income tax deducted at source
Biggest seizure of counterfeit luxury watches in Austria, with an equivalent original value totalling EUR 15 million
Finance Minister Blümel urges tightening of eurozone Stability and Growth Pact
Budget surplus significantly higher than expected
Finance Minister Blümel attends first ECOFIN and Eurogroup meetings
Gernot Blümel is Austria's new Finance Minister
February 2020
Finance Minister Blümel at ECOFIN and Eurogroup meeting in Brussels
Customs: 80 % increase in drug confiscations
Finance Minister Gernot Blümel meets US State Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross
March 2020
Blümel on Austria's 2020 Budget: More money will be provided
Blümel on hardship fund – to give quickly is to give double
Blümel: "Supply of cash in Austria is assured"
Blümel: We will do whatever is necessary to help
Blümel: “Will help quickly and directly”
Budget statement: We will do whatever is necessary
Corona - Blümel: “Good talks with representatives of the banking sector and the OeNB”
Extension of deadline for submitting the tax return
Finance Minister Gernot Blümel: “A balanced budget is important, but health and jobs in Austria are more important!”
April 2020
Finance Minister Blümel: EUR 15 billion corona assistance fund to safeguard jobs and protect Austria as a centre of economic activity
Blümel: Employee bonuses tax-exempt, full lump sum for commuters remains
Blümel on Austria's 2020 Budget: More money will be provided – No deficit anticipated this year – First EUR 4 bn package of initial emergency aid – Everything necessary will be done
Blümel: Phase II of the hardship fund to be extended
Blümel: Rapid assistance and the greatest possible goodwill are paramount
Blümel: The Commission is lacking problem awareness
Blümel: Wearing masks now compulsory – no VAT on protective masks
Corona Aids: Blümel demands temporary suspension of EU state aid law
Finance Minister Blümel: Hardship fund doubled to EUR 2 billion
Finance Minister Blümel: “Times of crisis are not a legal void. Hence zero tolerance for misuse of subsidies.”
Finance Minister Gernot Blümel on the agreement of the EU Finance Ministers on an aid package in the Corona crisis
Mai 2020
€1,000 per month for freelance artists
Blümel: 4.6 billion euros of tax have been deferred - three out of four of applicants are small businesses.
Blümel Comments on Budget 2020: Volatile Figures
Blümel: zero tolerance for subsidy fraud amounts to careful handling of tax money.
Corona aid: fixed costs subsidy, packages for pubs & restaurants and clubs & associations
EU Commission gives green light for fixed cost subsidy
Federal government presents €500 million package for restaurants and pubs.
Federal Government’s €1 billion municipal package
Film Industry Summit: €25 million package for Austrian film
Finance Minister Blümel: €300 million for public transport
Fixed costs subsidy: Start of the largest subsidy in the history of the Second Republic
Hardship funds: six payments instead of three, up to €3,000 comeback bonus
Money for business: Fixed cost subsidies will be available this year
Short-time working: funds increased to €12 billion
Tax office: appointments possible from 18 May
June 2020
Government consultation: €50 billion for rescue, relief and investments
Austrian Airlines: Austria package to secure Vienna as an operating centre and air transport hub and Austrian Airlines as a brand
Checks on short-time working by the Financial Police: showing as much goodwill as possible, but with as much enforcement as is necessary
Economic Stimulus Act: easing the burden, enabling investment
Finance Minister Blümel: deferral of loan repayments for private individuals and micro-enterprises extended by four months
Gastronomy and culture sector: VAT reduced to 5%
Investments for a strong comeback of Vienna’s economy
Ministerial Council launches economic stimulus act
July 2020
Austria assumes chair of EUROFISC
Blümel: Targeted controls to combat understated invoices will create fairness for domestic retailers
August 2020
Blümel: Applications open for second tranche of fixed cost grant
Blümel: Austria one of top three countries in terms of economic reconstruction
German-speaking Finance Ministers meet in Vienna
September 2020
Blümel: "Getting Austria fit for the financial future"
Blümel: "Federal Finance Ministry's Coronavirus Hotline guarantees swift and unbureaucratic assistance
Blümel: Fraudulent fruit-growers are harming Austria as a location, as well as buyers and consumers, to the tune of around EUR 10 million!
Blümel outraged at comments by Commission representative Selmayr
Finance Minister Gernot Blümel receives Eurogroup President Paschal Donohoe
October 2020
Blümel on the 2021 budget: Getting through the crisis together
Blümel/Schramböck/Köstinger: EUR 25 million for Schönbrunn Zoo
Blümel: Turnover compensation to provide unbureaucratic assistance to affected sectors
Customs seizes 500,000 pieces of fake "Marlboro”
Finance Ministry/customs: Biggest drug seizure in years – 140 kg cannabis found in "empty" articulated truck. Customs officers discover false floor
Over 5,000 controls undertaken by Financial Police in the fight against social security fraud
Protecting jobs: More money for short-time work, bridging finance secured
December 2020
Blümel/Köstinger: Seamless system of relief instruments to be available by tomorrow
Blümel extends turnover compensation: businesses subject to closure will receive 50%
Brexit: Finance Ministry boosting information resources and customs capacity
Customs: Raid on illegal cigarette factory in Vienna
Police and customs seize cannabis valued at EUR 1.3 million
November 2020
Blümel: Applications open today for extension to turnover compensation and fixed cost subsidy phase II
Blümel presents turnover compensation – what we need now is unbureaucratic assistance for affected companies
Blümel: Proposed initiative for legislative winter package extends existing support
Blümel: Providing rapid assistance to all businesses affected by lockdown
Suspected money laundering – customs officers confiscate over DKK 2.5 million
Press Releases 2021
January 2021
Blümel: 2021 to bring biggest reform in the Tax Administration--better service for individuals and businesses
Blümel: 'Turnover loss bonus' - up to 30% of turnover, capped at EUR 60,000 per month
Customs officers stop animal traffickers: 74 endangered chameleons found in suitcase with black market value at around EUR 37,000
EU expands State Aid Framework
Financial Police conduct investigations at Amazon partners
Financial Police take stock of a successful year in 2020
Linz customs officers uncover illegal cigarette production in Lower Austrian district of Bruck an der Leitha
March 2021
Blümel: Austria's membership of EFRAG strengthens our interests at international level
Blümel: EUR 1.3 billion already paid out to municipalities
Blümel: Planning phase begins for 'Graz Center of Physics'– Federal government investing EUR 354 million
Blümel: Turnover loss bonus increased for March
Customs and police again rescue 9 trafficked puppies
Finance Minister Blümel presents 2020 Product Piracy Report
Finance Ministry/Customs: Over 1 tonne of drugs withdrawn from circulation in 2020
Raab/Blümel: "Through FABIAN, we are making family allowance as straightforward as possible"
Tax refunds running into millions obtained by fraud – leading to 5-year jail sentence
April 2021
261 kg cannabis resin worth EUR 2.5 m seized by Customs in Kufstein
Blümel: Successful meeting with Daniel Risch, Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Liechtenstein
ECOAustria Study: Austria ranks top in Europe for COVID-19 support
IMF figures show Austria ranks second in the EU in terms of support provided as part of the country's COVID-19 response
Looking back on a successful year for the Finance Ministry's Coronavirus Hotline – 361 000 queries resolved
Ministry of Finance/Customs: £46,000 carried across half Europe hidden under a mattress in a van
May 2021
Austria's plan for the EU Recovery Fund
Blümel: "No let-up in the dedication of our customs officers even during the pandemic!"
Finance Ministry/Customs: High numbers of live animals trafficked in Q1 2021
Fitch keeps Austria's AA+ credit rating and ensures stable outlook
Notional interest on equity - the key to greater crisis resilience
New BMF app - a European showcase project: one step ahead of the cigarette smugglers
New President of the Austrian Fiscal Advisory Council, Christoph Badelt, pays inaugural visit to Finance Minister Gernot Blümel
Vienna Airport: Customs check on passenger carrying EUR 97 510 in cash confiscated to pay outstanding tax debt
June 2021
Blümel and Kocher present control plan
Blümel: "Customs investigation into international cigarette mafia reaches final conclusion" – Illegal production machine destroyed
Blümel: Explosion in numbers of dummy companies in Vienna
Blümel: Helping businesses repay deferred taxes
Blümel: “Heavy blow dealt to illegal gambling”
Blümel: “The tenacity of the Financial Police is paying off. We will not back down even if a global minimum tax rate is implemented.”
Customs officials catch smuggler in the green channel
EU customs regulations: 22-euro exemption threshold scrapped from the beginning of July
Financial help for badly affected businesses extended
Potentially record-breaking illicit earnings stash uncovered by Tax Fraud Investigation Unit: more than 3.5 m euros had been hoarded
Stopped by Customs: jeweller wanted to bring 4.5 kilos of gold jewellery into the country illegally
July 2021
Blümel: Corona help for the economy is working: 90 per cent of businesses do not need the special Covid-19 instalment payment facility
Blümel: Seeking to ensure tax transparency and to combat the transfer of profits
Minister Blümel welcomes agreement on global tax reform
August 2021
Applications open for two categories of coronavirus assistance
Austria to issue Green Bonds for the first time in 2022
Blümel: "We will return to a sound fiscal policy"
Blümel: Austrian economy and Austrian businesses in a positive mood - instalment payment model proving its worth
Blümel: Austrian economy is picking up speed, now ranks second in the EU
Blümel: Economic recovery is setting government budget on a positive course
Blümel: In 2020, Tax Fraud Investigation Unit recovered EUR 172 million in the fight against fraud
Blümel/Schwarz: New Productivity Council to be established in Austria
Blümel offers his congratulations to the new Chair of the ÖBAG, Edith Hlawati
Finance Ministry/Customs: Passenger attempts to export EUR 46 000 for Cairo apartment purchase
In a week of targeted action, Finance Ministry and Interior Ministry intercept 180 welfare offenders at border controls
Ministry of Finance/Customs: 12 years of the Trade in Species Act – 818 seizures of endangered species at Vienna Airport
Smoked out: airport customs force seizes 7.6 tonnes of counterfeit shisha tobacco
September 2021
Blümel: 5 million to help the recovery in Eastern Europe
Blümel: Continuing positive trend - economy now bigger than pre-crisis level
Blümel: Positive trends in the employment market, tax income and the budget
Blümel presents national financial education strategy: 'My money, my life, my decision – I'm sure'
Customs officers conduct 173 000 successful operations and controls in first half of 2021
EU recovery fund: Austria receives EUR 450 million pre-financing from EU
'Coalition of responsibility' backing Stability and Growth Pact
October 2021
Blümel: 2022 Budget stands for recovery, stability and sustainability
Blümel: “We’re reducing tax for everyone who goes to work and is industrious”
November 2021
Application deadline extended for fixed cost subsidy 800 000 and loss compensation I
Blümel: “We’re reducing tax for everyone who goes to work and is industrious”
Blümel: Economic upturn clearly evident in federal budget
Blümel presents first sitrep on Tax Authority Austria
Blümel: Millionth COFAG application for Corona aid processed
Eco-social tax reform creates a framework for the taxation of cryptocurrencies
Blümel: Trusted forms of assistance for the domestic economy and jobs
Ministry of Finance responds to changed world of work: Tax benefits for home office
Blümel: "Reactivation and extension of coronavirus assistance to protect the economy and workers"
December 2021
Finance Minister Brunner: "We are continuing to help impacted sectors of the economy"
The Budget in Charts and Figures
Blümel hands over office to Brunner at the Finance Ministry
Blümel/Köstinger: Rapid assistance vital to support businesses and workers
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner invites top economic researchers to exchange of ideas
Press Releases 2022
February 2022
Customs officers in Upper Austria seize more than 60 pieces of ivory jewellery and art
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner meets UK counterpart Rishi Sunak: green finance, digital tax, COVID recovery and economic support also on the agenda
Financial Police raid poppy processing factory: 13 undocumented workers deported
Graz woman fined after half a million fermented plums smuggled into Austria
March 2022
Austrian customs prevents the illegal sale of four rare parrots – red-fronted macaws (Ara rubrogenys) and military macaws (Ara militaris)
Brunner: Austria supports Ukraine aid program of the World Bank with 10 million euros
Tax justice ensured online too: no fewer than 7.5 million reports filed by online platforms since 1 January 2020
Customs: over 300,000 counterfeit products confiscated in 2021
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner gives green light for €150 energy costs voucher
Brunner: Austria's AA+ rating confirmed: Outlook improved to "positive"
The relief package in action – calculate your savings now at bmf.gv.at/entlastungsrechner
April 2022
Austria, IMF renew agreement on Joint Vienna Institute
Finance Minister Brunner: "Customs offices protect the economy and citizens at the gateway to the rest of the world"
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner says 150-euro energy costs voucher will now go to 4 million households
May 2022
Brunner/Tursky: Three goals for taking greater advantage of digitalisation for Austria
Finance Minister Brunner elected Chairman of the Board of Governors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
June 2022
Section head Waiglein re-elected in a key position at EU level
September 2022
Brunner/Tursky: ID Austria wins gold at the international eGovernment competition
Government decides to abolish cold progression (bracket creep)
Notable customs seizures in the first half of 2022: Among these ivory, parrots and luxury watches