Closing a company
Corporations and companies that terminate their business activities must actively notify the tax office. They must surrender their business license or declare it dormant, arrange for the deletion from the commercial register, notify the social security authorities of the termination of their activity and deregister any employees.
Caution
Diese Regelungen gelten auch für alle Unternehmerinnen/Unternehmer aus EU-Mitgliedstaaten in Österreich.
A trade licence for legal entities (capital companies, associations, etc.) and registered commercial partnerships expires e.g.
- through surrender of the licence,
- loss of legal entity,
- through withdrawal of the trade licence,
- if insolvency proceedings are not opened due to the lack of sufficient assets,
- through withdrawal of the trade licence or
- unless the transfer of rights is reported within six months of entry in the Companies Register of any re-establishment.
In principle, the business authority informs the Social Insurance Institution for the Self-Employed (→ SVS) f the return or withdrawal of the license to trade. The commercial register provides information on removals and the withdrawal from a registered OG, KG (only valid for general partners) or GmbH.
The compulsory (→ oesterreich.gv.at) health, pension and accident insurance ends on the last day of the calendar month in which
- all trade licences have been returned to the Trade Licensing Authority or withdrawn,
- an application has been made to remove the company relationship (OG, KG) or the managing director (GmbH) from the commercial register,
- a director has withdrawn as a shareholder of a limited liability company.
The Social Insurance Institution for the Self-Employed must be notified of all changes that lead to the termination of the compulsory insurance within one month.
The following documents must be submitted to the SVS:
- Notification of the return or withdrawal of the licence to trade.
- An agreement on the departure of a partner (OG, KG) or managing director or the withdrawal of a shareholder (GmbH).
In urgent cases, where official notification needs to be done immediately, the agreement of the return or withdrawal of the licence to trade can also be sent to the SVS by email or post.
There are no fees and charges payable.
The insured party must always notify the SVS of all important changes, events and facts to protect themselves from the consequences of failing to do so. A breach of the notification obligation may lead to a demand for the return of payments wrongly made.
Further links
Legal bases
sections 4, 7, 18 paragraph 1 and 2 of the Gewerbliches Sozialversicherungsgesetz (GSVG)
The tax office must be informed if a business activity ceases, regardless of the reason. Notifications to the Tax Office can be made at the same time as submitting the necessary documentation. This can be done in person, by post, by fax or via FinanzOnline (→ BMF). Entrepreneurs registered with the USP can use FinanzOnline and many other online services simply by logging in to USP .
If a business closes due to insolvency, the tax office is notified by the court (→ BMJ)German text or by the insolvency administrator.
Companies and other entities entered in the companies register, as well as Austrian branch offices of foreign entities, must have themselves removed from the companies register when they cease to trade. These changes must be notified without delay.
- USP Editorial Staff
- Association of Austrian Social Insurance Institutions
