To date, the Austrian legislator has passed five extensive omnibus acts containing various emergency measures in connection with the COVID-19 crisis. Additionally, the Austrian federal government has enacted certain regulations based on statutory law, and a number of government agencies have issued guidance on some questions of the application of law in light of the pandemic. The changes are massive, and all areas of the law are affected. The following are the most important tax related measures:

• A statutory interruption of deadlines regarding appeals in tax matters and in criminal tax matters has been introduced. Deadlines which that commenced on or after 16 March 2020 and deadlines which were still open on 16 March 2020, have been deferred and will start anew on 1 May 2020. The tax authority can, however, pronounce that a specific deadline will not be interrupted. In those cases, the government must set a new reasonable deadline.
• Oral hearings in tax matters and in criminal tax matters are to be carried out only if absolutely necessary. Where carried out, the hearings must be conducted using suitable digital means of communication.
• Certain subsidies from public bodies which are granted to taxpayers in connection with the COVID-19 crisis have been exempted from income tax.
• Bonuses which are granted by employers to their employees in the year 2020 in connection with the COVID-19 crisis have been exempted from income tax up to an amount of €3,000. To be exempt, the bonuses must be granted over and above normal payments. This is a one-time benefit. Once a €3,000 bonus payment has been received, subsequent bonuses are fully taxed.
• An amendment has been introduced allowing taxpayers maintain entitlement to a commuting allowance during periods of temporary short-term work, work at home, or absence from work due to the COVID-19 crisis.
• An exemption from stamp duty has been introduced covering certain transactions and certain filings carried out in connection with the COVID-19 crisis.
• A reimbursement has been introduced for alcohol tax levied where the alcohol is used to manufacture disinfectants.
• The reform of the organizational structure of the Austrian tax administration has been postponed until 1 January 2021. It was scheduled to enter into force on 1 July 2020.
• The Austrian Ministry of Finance has published guidance pursuant to which the tax authorities will allow a reduction of income tax and corporate income tax prepayments for the year 2020 upon the plausible request of a taxpayer affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Should the final tax payable be greater than the prepayments, no interest will be charged. In addition, a tax office may grant an interest-free deferral of taxes payable or the interest-free payment of tax installments until 30 September 2020. Finally, the due date for income tax returns and corporate income tax returns for 2019 has been deferred until 31 August 2020, with a possibility of further extensions. In the absence of the extension, tax returns would generally be due by 30 June 2020.
• The Austrian tax authorities have entered into a mutual agreement with German counterparts regarding certain provisions applicable to employees. For purposes of Article 15, paragraph (1) of the double tax treaty, days spent by a taxpayer working at home due to COVID-19 measures will be deemed to count as days spent working in the other contracting state, if the taxpayer would have gone there to work without the measures being in place. Moreover, for purposes of the frontier worker rule contained in Article 15, paragraph (6), days spent by a taxpayer working at home due to COVID-19 measures are not counted as days of non-return, provided those days would not have been spent working at home in ordinary circumstances.
• Finally, pursuant to a bill being currently discussed in the Austrian Parliament, supplies of protective masks carried out after 13 April 2020 and before 1 August 2020, will be exempted from value added tax.