Benchmarks refer to the comparison of performances, products, and processes. A specific standard of comparison is used for this purpose.

A Betriebsprüfung is a tax office audit of a company’s accounting records.

Bilanzierung is another term for balancing accounts.

Budgeting refers to a business planning process.

Cointracking is related to cryptocurrency and is used to track your own portfolio, analyze trading activities, and prepare a tax report for the tax authorities.

Controlling is an important part of internal cost accounting, involving planning, information provision, analysis, control, and management.

A debtor is a customer who has received a service or product and now owes money. This customer has not yet paid for the service and is therefore referred to as a debtor (debtor = person who owes money).

Equity refers to the capital that the owner has independently contributed. It also counts as capital for financing.

EU-OSS stands for One-Stop-Shop of the European Union. It is an electronic portal through which companies can declare and pay the VAT due on certain sales within the EU.

Expats are people who live in a foreign country or culture without acquiring citizenship.

A logbook is a detailed record of trips made with a company vehicle. In Austria, it is used to document the proportion of private and business use, which is important for the tax treatment of vehicle expenses.

The company register is a publicly accessible registry where certain information about companies is recorded. Some companies, such as limited liability companies (GmbHs), are required to register there, while others—like sole proprietorships (e.U.)—can do so voluntarily. The entries do not provide direct insights into the financial situation of a company but offer important legal information, such as ownership details.

The Articles of Association are the founding documents of a limited liability company (GmbH) or a partnership.

GmbH is the abbreviation for “Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung” (limited liability company). It is a corporation that is also considered a commercial company under the Commercial Code (HGB).

The GPLA audit reviews all wage-dependent contributions. It takes place only every 5 years.

The Firmenbuch (company register) is managed by the so-called Commercial Court. In Vienna, there is a dedicated Commercial Court (HG), whereas in other federal states, the Regional Courts (LG) perform this task. The responsible court as well as the company’s assigned Firmenbuch number (FN), which is issued upon registration, must be indicated on the company’s letterhead and on all invoices and correspondence. This number serves as the unique identifier of the company.

Inflation means the loss of value or an increase in prices.

Interim management, also called “management on demand,” involves self-employed interim managers working for a defined period, usually in entrepreneurial responsibility, in a company’s leadership position on the first or second management level.

For tax purposes, it is generally required to prepare an annual financial statement at the end of a calendar year, either in the form of a balance sheet or a revenue-expenditure statement. This statement determines the profit or loss of the year, which serves as the basis for income taxation. Companies registered in the commercial register have the option to choose a different fiscal year. However, this must not exceed 12 months.

A corporation is a legal entity under private law. Thus, the company as a whole appears as a legal personality, not the individual acting person.

A creditor supplies goods or services to other businesses. The creditor holds the status of a lender. For their service, they have the right to receive payment of the agreed purchase price from the recipient of the service. The counterpart to the creditor in accounting is the debtor. The debtor is referred to as the party owing payment for a service.

Loan issuance means that a lender provides money to a borrower.

A cryptocurrency is a digital means of payment that exists exclusively on the internet. It is not a regular currency, is independent of central banks or institutions, and operates on many computers worldwide.

Payroll accounting involves preparing employment contracts, registering and deregistering employees, processing wage payments, and creating the monthly payroll statements.

A Letter of Intent is a declaration of intent between a seller and a buyer. It outlines what exactly is planned. It is a non-binding agreement between the two parties.

A legacy refers to specific items or assets that are bequeathed to a particular person.

The dunning process, or accounts receivable management, is a professional procedure used by creditors to reclaim money owed by debtors. It serves to reinforce payment reminders and explicitly notify the customer about the outstanding amount.

Trotz des Begriffs „Steuer“ ist die Negativsteuer für den Steuerpflichtigen von Vorteil. Sie führt nämlich dazu, dass ihm Einkommensteuer erstattet wird, obwohl er diese in Wirklichkeit gar nicht gezahlt hat. Dies kann entweder durch die Rückerstattung von Absetzbeträgen geschehen, die aufgrund niedriger Einkünfte normalerweise keine oder nur eine geringe Auswirkung hätten, oder durch die teilweise Rückzahlung von bereits gezahlten Sozialversicherungsbeiträgen im Rahmen der Einkommensteuerveranlagung.

The disclosure obligation refers to the requirement for companies to make their annual financial statements and reports publicly accessible when certain size thresholds (such as revenue or balance sheet total) are exceeded. This regulation mainly applies to corporations and aims to ensure transparency and build trust.

In tax law, progression means that when the tax base increases (for example, due to an increase in income for individuals), the tax rate applied to the additional income also rises. Contrary to a common misconception, this does not lead to an increase in the tax rate on the entire previous income—only the portion of income that exceeds a certain threshold is subject to the higher tax rate. What does happen, however, is that the average tax rate (i.e., the total tax burden relative to the income) increases overall.

Although the term withholding tax is usually significant in international tax law—where it determines which country has the right to tax certain income—there is also such a tax in Austria, paid by almost every taxpayer. This is the capital gains tax (Kapitalertragsteuer, KeSt), which, for example, is directly withheld by the bank on interest from savings accounts or bank deposits and paid to the tax office. Similar to international withholding tax, under certain conditions, the domestic KeSt can be credited against the annual income tax.

Travel expenses are costs incurred during a trip. Travel costs include transportation expenses as well as meals.

Relocation service is a service offering mainly aimed at people who move abroad temporarily or permanently for professional or personal reasons. Relocation providers support both the affected individuals and their families as well as their employers throughout the entire moving process.

A return (yield) is the income generated by an investment within one year (expressed as a percentage). It relates to the invested capital. The percentage indicates how much money was earned from an investment—this could be a stock or any other capital investment.

Reporting refers to the systematic preparation of reports based on relevant company data and information. The primary goal of reporting is to support management and decision-making processes across different business areas.

The reverse charge procedure is applied for purchases by businesses within the EU who identify themselves as recognized entrepreneurs using a valid VAT identification number. The aim of this procedure is to simplify tax collection and prevent tax fraud. Here, VAT is only recorded as acquisition tax fictitiously and is booked exclusively on the tax accounts of the involved businesses. The system is planned to be expanded EU-wide in the long term to apply to all transactions. This aims to prevent both unjustified input tax refunds and the non-payment of due VAT to the tax authorities.

Social security protects employees from illness, accidents, unemployment, and also provides support during retirement.

A tax assessment notice is an official statement from the tax office indicating the amount of tax to be paid.

For business trips, so-called per diems are available in the form of daily and overnight allowances. Travel activities incurred even before the official company foundation can also be claimed for tax purposes. Therefore, it is important to document every trip in detail from the time the intention to start the company arises (e.g., date, location, people involved, and purpose of the trip) and to have verifiable reasons for the trip, such as business inspections. When business trips are made abroad, higher rates apply. For trips within Austria that exceed a certain distance from the business location and a certain duration, an hourly rate can be applied, but only for a limited number of hours per day. In addition to the daily allowance, flat-rate overnight costs can be claimed if no hotel invoices are available.

The VAT advance return, which is usually prepared monthly, compares the value-added tax due with the input tax amounts.

When business expenses exceed income, a negative income can result, especially if there are no other earnings. Generally, it is not possible to pay “less than no tax” — except in cases of negative tax. However, to utilize the loss for tax purposes, it can be carried forward to future years and offset against future income, leading to tax savings.

In Austria, advertising expenses are all costs incurred in connection with professional activity that can be deducted for tax purposes. These include, for example, travel costs, work materials, or training expenses. Advertising expenses reduce the taxable income.

The fiscal year (also called financial year) refers to the period in which a company fulfills its tax obligations. In Austria, the fiscal year can coincide with the calendar year but does not have to. It is also possible to use a different fiscal year.

In Austria, the electronic submission of tax returns and data is done via the FinanzOnline platform, which also uses an XML interface. This enables fast and error-free transmission of tax data, especially for companies and tax consultants.

Yield refers to the return and is a term that describes the ratio between the earnings of an investment and its current value or cost.

The compound interest effect occurs when the interest earned on an investment is reinvested and itself earns interest, causing the money to grow automatically. The capital thus increases by itself through the accumulated interest.

In Austrian tax law, the cash basis principle is applied. Income is taxed when it actually flows to the taxpayer, usually in the year of receipt of payment—regardless of when the income was earned. This is especially relevant for income tax.