!!!Steuern

Taxes, money levied by the federal, provincial and municipal 
authorities under public law to meet their financial requirements, as 
distinguished from charges (rates), which are payable in return for 
specific services rendered by these territorial corporations. In many 
cases taxation is also used for control purposes (e.g. energy taxes). 
In terms of the distribution of tax revenue and the tax-raising 
powers, a distinction is made between federal taxes (which may be 
levied for exclusive use by the federal authorities or shared with the 
other territorial entities) and provincial and municipal taxes ( 
Revenue-Sharing. The provinces have the right to levy their own taxes 
alongside the federal government as long as the federal authorities do 
not levy a similar tax. However, tax legislation and its 
implementation are enjoined to respect constitutional  Fundamental 
Rights, in particular the principle of equality and the guarantee 
against interference with property rights.

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In terms of subject matter, the distinction is between taxes on income 
Income Tax,  Corporate Income Tax),  Property Taxes, transaction taxes 
(esp. turnover tax, property transfer tax, capital transfer tax, 
estate tax, insurance tax) and consumer taxes (e.g. tobacco, mineral 
oil, and beer taxes).

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Direct taxes are those taxes in respect of which the taxable person 
and the actual taxpayer are one and the same person (e.g. personal 
income tax, property tax), while the tax burden of indirect taxes is 
typically passed on from one taxable person to another (esp.  Turnover 
Tax, consumer tax).

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The jurisdiction and procedures for fixing and levying federal taxes 
are laid down in the Abgabenverwaltungorganisationsgesetz (Tax 
Administration Organisation Act) and the Bundesabgabenordnung (Federal 
Tax Regulation). The  Ministry of Finance is the supreme 
administrative authority with 7 Finanzlandesdirektionen (revenue 
directorates), which supervise the inland revenue offices and customs 
offices. Regarding princincial levies, the provinces have passed their 
own tax regulations. With respect to the implementation of the tax 
law, considerable importance attaches to the decrees passed by the 
Federal Ministry of Finance and court decisions.

!Literature
W. Doralt and H. G. Ruppe, Grundriss des 
oesterreichischen Steuerrechts, %%sup 5/%1994.


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