Hotels in Austria call for a VAT cut
Since the start of the year, all guesthouses and hotels in Germany have been subject to the reduced VAT rate of 7%, which has caused quite a stir, especially in Austria. Across the Alps, operators of ski hotels in Tyrol, the Salzburg region or Carinthia fear not only competitive disadvantages compared with their counterparts in Germany, but also in France, Italy and Switzerland. Ski holidays in Austria, currently still the cheapest in the Alps, could fall significantly behind Germany, France, Italy and Switzerland if VAT remains at its current rate of 10%, according to concerns in the Alpine republic.
Hotel VAT in Austria
At 10%, VAT in Austria is indeed the highest among the Alpine countries by international comparison. Hotels in Austria are therefore calling for VAT to be halved to just 5% so they can compete with the rates in Germany and Italy (7% each), France (5.5%) and Switzerland (3.6%). However, this demand from the hotel industry has found little favor with Reinhold Mitterlehner, Austria’s Minister for Economic Affairs. The politician has clearly come out in favor of the current rate and categorically ruled out a cut in the near future.
Die Hotels in Ă–sterreich machen sich fĂĽr eine niedrigere Mehrwertsteuer in ihrer Branche stark - bisher noch ohne Erfolg.
Date: 30/09/2026
Above-average quality for ski holidays
Nevertheless, hotels in Austria do have a consolation. First, Austria’s ski resorts offer above-average quality for ski holidays, so many tourists will continue to benefit from the excellent value for money. Second, a look at hotels in Germany shows that the VAT cut is actually being passed on to guests by only 7.4% of businesses. The vast majority of hospitality operators say they would rather invest in renovations and new purchases instead. Â
