Tax residence in Austria for Indian residents and NRIs

Austria treats you as tax resident if you have a dwelling you can use there or stay more than six months; with a work contract for more than six months, from the first day. India counts only your days in India in the tax year from 1 April. The India–Austria Convention of 1999, amended in 2017 and modified by the MLI, decides dual residence under Art. 4(2).

Check your status: India and Austria

Free, no sign-up, about 3 minutes. Conclusion under Indian income-tax law, compared with the law of Austria and the tax treaty.

When Austria treats you as a tax resident

In Austria, as in Germany, the dwelling is decisive: a Wohnsitz makes you resident without counting days. Without a dwelling, more than six months of presence — even across the year-end — makes you resident.

The six months are counted consecutively, not within a calendar year; short trips out of Austria (holiday, business trip, trip home) only pause the count.

You have a home in Austria — this is a Wohnsitz, and under § 1 EStG 1988 you are resident in Austria and taxable on worldwide income, even if you are rarely there.
You have been in Austria for more than six months — this is a habitual abode, and you are resident in Austria retroactively from the first day.
An employment contract or work permit for more than six months — under BMF practice you are resident in Austria from the start of your stay, even if the work ended earlier.

When you are a nonresident

You have no home in Austria and your stay does not exceed six months — you are not resident in Austria. Wages for work performed in Austria are still taxed there.

Where the rules of Austria clash with Indian tax rules

Collision: an Austrian home is enough for Austria, India counts only days. For Austria a dwelling you can use at any time is a Wohnsitz even if you are rarely there (VwGH, Ra 2019/15/0145); the BFG held a person with a room and own bathroom in a shared house fully taxable in Austria although the centre of vital interests was abroad (RV/3100198/2020). India decides residence by days only: 182 days or more in India in the tax year (1 April – 31 March), or 60 days plus 365 days in the four preceding tax years; for an Indian citizen leaving India for employment abroad only the 182-day test applies, and for an Indian citizen or person of Indian origin visiting India the 60 days become 120 days (with Indian income above ₹15 lakh) or do not apply at all (s. 6 of the Income-tax Act, 2025). A home or family in India is not itself a test. Art. 4(2) of the India–Austria Convention then decides: with homes in both countries, the centre of vital interests — as a rule where you live with your family (VwGH, Ra 2019/15/0160), assessed over several years rather than one (VwGH, Ra 2023/13/0186); with a home in neither, habitual abode.
Collision: six months in Austria vs. India's April–March tax year. Austria counts more than six months of presence even if they fall in two calendar years, and you are then resident from the first day. A stay from October to April makes you Austrian-resident although you spent fewer than 183 days in Austria in each calendar year. India counts days in its tax year (1 April – 31 March): with 60 days in India in that year and 365 days in the four preceding years you remain resident in India, unless as an Indian citizen you left India for employment abroad in that year (then only 182 days count, s. 6(3)).
Collision: a contract for more than six months makes you Austrian-resident from day one. With an employment contract or work permit for more than six months, Austria treats you as resident from the start of your stay. If you were in India for 182 days or more in the same Indian tax year — for example when you move in October — you are also resident in India for the whole of that tax year, as India has no split year. Art. 4(2) of the India–Austria Convention decides treaty residence.

What else to know

How India relieves double taxation of income from Austria. If India is your state of residence, it taxes your worldwide income and deducts the Austrian tax on income that Austria may tax under the Convention — e.g. salary for work in Austria beyond the limits of Art. 15(2) — up to the Indian tax on that income (Art. 23(3)(a) of the Convention; s. 159 of the Income-tax Act, 2025). Claim it with Form No. 44 (rule 76 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026) and the Austrian wage-tax certificate (Lohnzettel) or assessment. Austria uses the calendar year and India the tax year from 1 April, so Austrian tax for one year relates to two Indian tax years. The MLI applies to this Convention (principal purpose test from Indian taxable periods beginning 1 April 2020) but does not change the tie-breaker or India's credit.
Working in Austria while not Austrian-resident: 183 days in any twelve months. A non-resident is taxed in Austria on wages for work performed in Austria (§ 98(1) no. 4 EStG 1988), unless all conditions of Art. 15(2) of the India–Austria Convention are met: no more than 183 days in Austria in any period of twelve months, an employer that is not an Austrian resident, and pay not borne by its Austrian permanent establishment or fixed base. The 183 days are counted over any rolling twelve months, not per calendar year or Indian tax year.
Second home in Austria. If your centre of vital interests has been outside Austria (for example in India) for more than five calendar years, an Austrian holiday home does not make you resident in years in which you use it on no more than 70 days and keep a log of the days.
Inbound relief for researchers (Zuzugsbegünstigung). Scientists and researchers whose move to Austria serves science and research can apply for a 30 % flat allowance on income from scientific work for five years; scientists, researchers, artists and athletes can apply to remove the extra tax burden caused by the move. The application must reach the Finanzamt Österreich within six months of moving and requires moving your centre of vital interests to Austria. The BMF sets no nationality condition. If you remain resident in India for the year of the move, India taxes the income without regard to this Austrian allowance.
Social security: India–Austria agreement, detachment up to 5 years. India's social security agreement with Austria has applied since 1 July 2015; according to EPFO an employee detached from India can stay in the Indian system for up to 5 years with a certificate of coverage from EPFO, and the agreement provides for totalisation and export of benefits. Coverage is decided under this agreement, not the tax treaty.

How dual residence is resolved

If both countries treat you as a resident, Art. 4(2) of the treaty applies: Convention between the Republic of India and the Republic of Austria for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income, signed at Vienna on 8 November 1999, as amended by the Protocol signed at New Delhi on 6 February 2017. The tests are applied in order — permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, nationality, and finally mutual agreement between the tax authorities.

Terms you will come across in Austria

Wohnsitz: a dwelling kept and available for use — makes you resident
gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt: habitual abode — more than six months of presence
unbeschränkte Steuerpflicht: unlimited tax liability on worldwide income
Zweitwohnsitzverordnung: second-home rule: no residence with 70 days' use or less if your centre of vital interests has been abroad for over five years
Zuzugsbegünstigung: tax relief for researchers and scientists moving to Austria
Finanzamt Österreich: the federal tax office

Questions

Which treaty applies between India and Austria?

The Convention signed at Vienna on 8 November 1999, in force since 5 September 2001, as amended by the Protocol signed on 6 February 2017. The MLI also applies, but it does not change the tie-breaker in Art. 4(2).

How are the 183 days counted for salary?

Over any period of twelve months (Art. 15(2)(a)), not per calendar year or Indian tax year. The employer must also not be Austrian and the pay must not be borne by an Austrian permanent establishment.

How does India relieve Austrian tax?

As an Indian resident you get a deduction equal to the Austrian tax on income Austria may tax, capped at the Indian tax on that income (Art. 23(3)(a)); claim it with Form No. 44.

Sources

Legislation and official guidance

§ 1(2)–(3) EStG 1988 — Persons with a domicile (Wohnsitz) or habitual abode in Austria have unlimited tax liability (worldwide income); others are taxed only on Austrian-source income (§ 98).
§ 26 BAO — A Wohnsitz is a dwelling kept under circumstances indicating an intention to retain and use it. Habitual abode means presence that is not merely temporary; more than six months in Austria always creates it, including for the first six months.
BMF: Persönliche Steuerpflicht (2026) — For a Wohnsitz the dwelling must be used at least repeatedly; after six months of presence, unlimited liability applies retroactively.
LStR 2002 para. 3 (version of 04.12.2024) — A Wohnsitz means the ability to use a dwelling for oneself at any time; registration is only an indication; a sleeping place shared with others and provided by the employer does not create a Wohnsitz.
LStR 2002 para. 4 — With a work permit or employment contract for more than six months, a habitual abode and unlimited liability exist from the first day; this continues even if the work ends earlier.
LStR 2002 para. 5 (version of 15.12.2023) — More than six months of presence gives unlimited liability from the first day, even across the year-end; short trips abroad (holiday, business trips, trips home) suspend the count and are not included, but do not reset it.
§ 98(1) no. 4 EStG 1988 — A non-resident is taxed on employment income for work performed or used (verwertet) in Austria.
Income-tax Act, 2025, s. 6(1)–(2) — Residential status is determined for each tax year. An individual is resident in India in a tax year if in India for 182 days or more in that year, or for 60 days or more in that year and 365 days or more in the four years preceding it.
Art. 4(2) India–Austria Convention (1999) — A dual-resident individual is deemed resident only of the State where he has a permanent home available; if in both, where his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests); if that cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home available in either State, where he has an habitual abode; if in both or neither, the State of nationality; otherwise the competent authorities endeavour to settle the question by mutual agreement. Not modified by the MLI.
Income-tax Act, 2025, s. 6(3), (6) — The 60-day test does not apply to an Indian citizen who leaves India in the tax year as a member of the crew of an Indian ship or for employment outside India; only the 182-day test applies. Days of crew on a voyage are counted as prescribed.
Art. 23(3) India–Austria Convention (1999) — India allows as a deduction from the tax on the income of a resident of India an amount equal to the income-tax paid in Austria on income which may be taxed in Austria under the Convention, capped at the Indian tax attributable to that income; income exempt in India may be taken into account for the rate.
Income-tax Act, 2025, s. 159 — The Central Government may enter into agreements for relief from double taxation and avoidance of double taxation; where an agreement applies, the Act applies only to the extent more beneficial to the assessee (s. 159(4)). A non-resident may claim treaty relief only with a certificate of residence from the other country's government and the prescribed documents and information (s. 159(8)).
Income-tax Rules, 2026, rule 76; Forms No. 44 and 45 — A resident gets credit for foreign tax in the tax year in which the income is taxed in India; credit is the lower of the Indian tax on that income and the foreign tax, per source and per country; not against interest, fees or penalties; disputed foreign tax only after settlement (Form No. 45, within 6 months of the month of settlement). Form No. 44 with a certificate of income and tax and proof of payment, within 12 months from the end of the tax year if the return was filed on time; accountant verification if foreign tax is ₹1,00,000 or more. Conversion at the TT buying rate.
Synthesised text of the India–Austria Convention and the MLI (BMF) — MLI signed 7.6.2017; in force for Austria 1.7.2018 and for India 1.10.2019. Applied to the Convention: Arts. 5 (Option A, modifying Austria's Art. 23(2)(a)), 6, 7 (principal purpose test), 10 and 13. For India other taxes are affected for taxable periods beginning on or after 1.4.2020, for Austria from 1.1.2021. Art. 4(2) and Art. 15 are not modified.
Art. 15(2) India–Austria Convention (1999) — Remuneration for employment exercised in the other State is taxable only in the State of residence if the recipient is present in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any period of twelve months, the employer is not a resident of the other State, and the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or fixed base of the employer there.
Zweitwohnsitzverordnung (BGBl. II No. 528/2003) — If the centre of vital interests has been abroad for more than five calendar years, an Austrian dwelling is a Wohnsitz only in years in which it is used on more than 70 days; a log of days must be kept.
§ 103 EStG 1988; BMF: Zuzugsbegünstigung — Scientists and researchers moving to Austria in the interest of science and research may apply for a flat allowance of 30 % of income from scientific work for five years (§ 103(1a)); scientists, researchers, artists and athletes may apply for removal of the additional tax burden caused by the move. Application to the Finanzamt Österreich within six months of moving (it may be filed before). The move requires shifting the centre of vital interests to an Austrian residence. The BMF page sets no nationality condition.
EPFO — Brochure on International Workers (17.08.2022), table of operating social security agreements — India's operating social security agreements with date of effect, detachment period, totalisation and export of benefits: Germany — 01.10.2009, detachment 4 years; Switzerland — 29.01.2011 (no detachment period stated in the table); Austria — 01.07.2015, detachment 5 years; all three with totalisation and export of benefits. Neither the United States nor Ukraine is among the 20 agreements listed.
Art. 23 India–Austria Convention (1999, as amended 2017); MLI Art. 5 Option A — Austria: income which may be taxed in India is exempt, subject to sub-paras. (b) and (c) (para. 2(a)); for income under Arts. 10(2), 11(2), 12(2), 13(4)–(5) and 22(3) Austria deducts the Indian tax, capped at the Austrian tax on that income (para. 2(b)); exempt income may be taken into account for the rate (para. 2(c)). Para. 2(a) is modified by Art. 5 (Option A) of the MLI: no exemption where India applies the Convention to exempt the income or limit its rate. India: deduction equal to the Austrian income tax paid, capped at the Indian tax attributable to that income (para. 3(a)); exempt income may be taken into account for the rate (para. 3(b)).
Art. 4(2)(a) India–Austria Convention — An individual resident of both States is deemed resident of the State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has one in both States, of the State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests).
Art. 4(2)(b) India–Austria Convention — If the State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home available to him in either State, he is deemed resident of the State in which he has an habitual abode.
Art. 4(2)(c)–(d) India–Austria Convention — If he has an habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, he is deemed resident of the State of which he is a national; if he is a national of both States or of neither, the competent authorities endeavour to settle the question by mutual agreement.

Case law

Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Austria), Ra 2019/15/0145, 05/03/2020 — A Wohnsitz is the legal and factual ability to use a habitable dwelling at any time; how often it is actually used does not matter and no minimum number of nights is required (a BFG decision that required one was set aside).
Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Austria), Ra 2015/15/0066, 27/11/2017 — For a Wohnsitz under § 26 BAO actual control over the dwelling is decisive; police registration (ZMR) and whether rent is paid are not decisive. A VAT case (export exemption for a foreign buyer), but the Wohnsitz test is the same.
Bundesfinanzgericht (Austria), RV/3100198/2020, 09/06/2022 — A room with its own bathroom in a shared house is a dwelling: unlimited tax liability in Austria, although the centre of vital interests was in the United States.

Updated 04/11/2026. The result is for information only and is not tax or legal advice. Tax authorities and courts may interpret the rules differently, including because of circumstances not covered here, and the law changes. Consult a qualified adviser before making decisions.

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