Austria: Parcel levy on distance sales effective October 1, 2026

Austria on July 29, 2026, adopted the Parcel Tax Act (Paketsteuergesetz, "PakStG") as part of the Budget Accompanying Act 2027-2028. The tax becomes effective on October 1, 2026, and applies to deliveries for which the tax becomes chargeable after September 30, 2026 (i.e., payments accepted on or after October 1, 2026). In addition, the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) published a short overview and FAQs on the measure.

Background

The parcel tax is a national special tax—not a customs duty—intended partly to counter-finance the reduction of the VAT rate on selected food items and to address the environmental and locational effects of e-commerce growth. It should not be confused with the temporary EU flat customs duty of €3.00 per item for small consignments (goods value under €150.00) introduced July 1, 2026, or the contemplated €2.00 customs processing fee for small consignments expected from November 1, 2026.

Scope

The tax applies to the delivery of a parcel in Austria in the context of a distance-selling transaction to a consumer. The location of the goods at the time of order is not relevant, so domestic, intra-EU, and import (third country) distance sales delivered to Austria are all in scope. The value of the goods is not a determining factor. A "parcel" is a postal item within the meaning of Section 3(10) of the Postal Services Act (PMG); the tax is due even when a private parcel service (rather than the national postal operator) is used.

Excluded from scope are business-to-business (B2B) sales, letter mail, food/grocery deliveries, and click-and-collect or in-store contracts with subsequent delivery.

Taxpayer

The tax applies only when the trader's distance-sales in Austria exceeded €100 million (net sales threshold, excluding VAT) in the preceding financial year. The legislation makes no distinction based on where the seller is established—domestic, intra-EU, and non-EU sellers are treated equally, with no exemption for the absence of a physical presence in Austria. When goods are sold through an online marketplace, a deemed-seller rule applies and the platform becomes liable for the tax on the facilitated supplies once the threshold is met.

Rate, calculation, and compliance

• Rate: €2.00 per delivered parcel, or, at the taxpayer's binding election for the reporting period, €2.00 per order (regardless of the number of parcels).
• Chargeability: The tax arises when payment for the distance sale is accepted—not on delivery. Customer returns do not reverse the liability. The only correction available is when the parcel never reaches the customer.
• Filing: Self-assessed and declared quarterly via FinanzOnline, with payment due the last day of the month following the calendar quarter.
• Fiscal representative: Sellers with no seat, place of management, or fixed permanent establishment in the EU/EEA must appoint an Austrian fiscal representative (who is not jointly and severally liable).

KPMG observation

The parcel tax adds a standalone compliance obligation that is distinct from VAT and the new EU-wide customs duty / customs processing fee. Affected businesses must not assume their existing VAT footprint (or lack of one) determines their exposure. Several practical points warrant attention:

• Platform scope remains uncertain. It is not yet clear whether the deemed-seller rule tracks the VAT deemed-seller provisions (Article 14a of the VAT Directive)—i.e., limited to facilitated supplies by non-EU sellers—or whether the marketplace is the tax debtor for all transactions it facilitates. This distinction materially affects platforms' exposure and data requirements, and further guidance from the BMF would be welcome.
• Import distance sales appear caught, without a de minimis. Because the rules apply regardless of where the goods are located at the time of order and irrespective of goods value, direct-import distance sales to Austrian consumers need to fall within scope, and neither the law nor the FAQs draw a distinction between consignments below and above €150.00. Businesses relying on import one-stop shop (IOSS) or low-value simplifications for VAT must not assume a parallel relief exists here.
• Election between per-parcel and per-order is strategically important. The choice is binding for the whole reporting period, so businesses should model their order-to-parcel ratios (e.g., split shipments, multi-item baskets) before the first filing to avoid a sub-optimal method.
• Cash-flow and timing mismatches. Because liability arises when payment is accepted—not on delivery or dispatch—payments received in one quarter for goods shipped later still fall in the earlier period, and returns do not unwind the liability. Systems will need to capture payment-acceptance dates rather than dispatch dates.

For more information, contact a KPMG tax professional:

Philippe Stephanny | philippestephanny@kpmg.com

Alfred Muehlberger | amuehlberger@kpmg.at

Fabian Fellner | ffellner@kpmg.at