2008 integrated wage and income tax statistics

Total income

The integrated wage and income tax statistics are designed to represent total income as comprehensively as possible. Total income is comprised of the gross annual salaries from the wage tax statistics minus social insurance contributions, the income from the income tax assessment, and any accrued transfer payments. The volume of total income amounted to €151.2 billion (+5.0%); after deduction of wage and income tax, there resulted a net income of €125.4 billion (+4.4%). Specifically, total income consisted of €131.2 billion (+5.3%) of income subject to wage tax (including pensions), €11.9 billion (+1.4%) of other income, and €8.1 billion (+5.2%) of transfer payments.

Total tax

The total tax in the amount of €25.7 billion (+7.9%) (based on the single tariff of the Income Tax Act) was comprised of the wage tax retained by the pay-slip issuer (after employer assessment), i.e. the employer or pension insurance institution, and the income tax stipulated from the assessment of taxpayers subject to income tax. The tax burden – total tax in relation to total income – ranged from less than 1% in the lowest income categories to 33.3% for total incomes in excess of €70 000. On average it amounted to 17.0%.

Transfer payments

This characteristic comprises those types of transfer payments to persons eligible for benefits that were reported to the Federal Ministry of Finance. The different types of transfer payments were grouped into the main categories of “unemployment benefit”, “long-term unemployment grants”, “child care benefit” (at the time these statistics were compiled, no data on the drawing of child care benefit for the year under review 2008 had been reported to the fiscal administration, which is why it is not included in the characteristics “transfer payments” and “total income”) and “other benefits”. The long-term care allowance, which is paid out mainly by social and accident insurances, is shown in a separate main category. The transfer payments referred to here in the amount of €8.1 billion relate only to the 6 552 826 income recipients shown in this analysis for whom a pay slip and/or an income tax assessment notice was produced.

Income bands and gender

The first half of income recipients – sorted according to the level of total income – accounted for just under one fifth of income and 2.5% of taxes. Nine tenths of all persons recorded generated 66.3% of the income and contributed 44.3% to the receipts from taxes. The upper percentile accounted for 9.3% of income, and for 18.8% of the total tax output. In the year under review, 85 158 income recipients earned an income of more than €100 000; 72 941 were men, and 12 217 women.

Of the nearly 2.2 million male employees, 97.4% were in the age groups up to 59 years, and only 2.6% were over 59; the corresponding percentage among women was a mere 1.1%. Of the remaining income recipients (as a rule the self-employed), 93.0% of men were in the stated age group and 7.0% were above; the ratio among women was 92.3% to 7.7%.

Regional structure

The Austrian average of a total annual income of €24 100 was exceeded only in the federal provinces of Vienna (+9.7%), Lower Austria (+3.4%) and Vorarlberg (+1.8%). Tirol (-7.8%), Styria (-6.4%), Carinthia (-6.3%) and Burgenland (-6.2%) were the federal provinces which most fell short of the average.

Note: The brochure 2008 Integrated Wage and Income Tax Statistics (in German only), complete with all the tables, can be downloaded after completion as a PDF file, free of charge. Simply click the Publications sheet (see below).