Business Registration

A trade licence is obtained through informal registration with the responsible trade authority if all requirements have been met and documented. For trades with legal force reservation, it is necessary to wait for the legal force of the notification of reliability. It is therefore advisable for the applicant to waive their right to appeal immediately.

Any allowances, approvals or equivalences applied for at the latest at the time of business registration must be taken into consideration within the three-month deadline for execution, effective upon receipt of the business registration. Certain trades must also document liability insurance/liability coverage (e.g. construction industry, real estate trustees, insurance brokers, investment consultants).

The competent Chamber of Commerce (district or regional office) will advise you about applicable permits and will issue a NeuFöG confirmation for start-ups or company transfers. As an additional service, your business registration can be transmitted electronically to the competent trade authority from there.

Competent authority for business registrations

The competent trade authority is the district administrative authority of the business’s location, namely, depending on the location, the office of the district commissioner, the municipal authority of the city or, in Vienna, the municipal district office.

Trade licence (from 1.5.2018)

The trade licence combines all trade licences. There is no need for action for existing business owners.

Costs

Business registration is free of charge.

Business registration for sole proprietors

The business registration must contain the exact designation of the business and the intended location. Furthermore, the sole proprietor must submit the following documents:

• Valid passport or birth certificate, proof of citizenship or residence permit required for the pursuit of a commercial activity in the case of third country citizens
• Marriage certificate (only if the current last name deviates from the name given at birth)
• In principle, sole proprietorships require a business location in Austria in order to register a business, but do not require a domestic residence in the country (exception: market stall holders, travelling salespersons). This business location may be in the EEA.
• Whether a rented or owned flat counts as a business location depends on factors such as the respective use designation (e.g. under building law, spatial planning policy) and the rental or property ownership agreement.
  

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  Attention: A criminal record certificate does not need to be submitted. Only a person who is not a resident in Austria or has been a resident in Austria for less than 5 years is required to submit a criminal record certificate issued by his home country or country of previous residence.

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• If the corresponding master data have already been entered in GISA (Trade Information System Austria), the applicant does not need to submit the documents again. 

Documents for a certificate of competence

For regulated trades and partial trades, documents regarding the fulfilment of the prescribed certificate of competence applicable in each case (e.g. master craftsman’s certificate, entrepreneur examination, university graduation diploma, school and/or employment certificate) must be enclosed with the business registration application.

In the event that the applicant does not render the certificate of competence himself, either notification must be made about the appointment of a managing director under trade law or the assessment of individual qualification must be applied for. 

Business registration of companies or other legal entities

The business registration of a company or firm (LC, PuLC, ULC, PrLC) requires the submission of an excerpt from the Commercial Registry (not older than 6 months). Obtaining the excerpt from the Commercial Registry can be left to the trade authority, to which the incurred costs must be refunded. Other legal entities not entered in the Commercial Registry, e.g. cooperatives, must render evidence of their existence accordingly (e.g. associations– entry in the register of associations). 

Appointment of a Managing Director under trade law

When a business is registered by a legal entity or partnership, notification about the appointment of a suitable managing director under trade law must be made with the following documents:

• Personal documents (cf. sole proprietor); if required, certificate of competence
• In the case of an employee: confirmation of registration with a district health insurance office if the employment covers at least half of usual weekly working hours
• Written granting of authority by the proprietor and written consent of the managing director under trade law regarding his appointment and the granting of authority. 

Registration procedure

The registration can be submitted to the trade authority together with all documents in person, by normal mail, by fax or by electronic data transmission (e.g. by e-mail or Internet) or in any other technical manner, such as via the Economic Chamber.

Upon receipt of all application documents, the commercial activity can be started as soon as all prerequisites have been met.

Attention: For trades with legal force reservation, it is necessary to wait for the legal force of the notification! In the case of an application to establish individual qualification, it is also necessary to wait for the legal force of the assessment notification! It is therefore advisable for the applicant to waive their right to appeal immediately.

Within three months, the authority – albeit only if all legal requirements have been met – must enter the applicant in GISA and notify them of the entry by means of transmitting to them the original excerpt from GISA .

Stand: 01.01.2024