# Rechnung — mandatory elements under § 11 UStG Basis: § 11 UStG 1994, consolidated version as at 2026-08-05 (RIS). A `Rechnung` is any document with which an Unternehmer settles a supply, whatever it is called in commercial usage (§ 11 Abs 2). The elements exist so the recipient can deduct input VAT under § 12 UStG; a defective invoice costs the recipient the deduction, not the issuer the sale. ## When an invoice must be issued | Situation | Duty | Deadline | |---|---|---| | Supply to another Unternehmer for their business, or to a juristische Person that is not an Unternehmer | Mandatory, § 11 Abs 1 Z 1 | within 6 months of the supply | | Taxable Werklieferung or Werkleistung on a property, to a non-business customer | Mandatory, § 11 Abs 1 Z 1 | within 6 months | | Supply to a private consumer, otherwise | Optional (right, not duty), § 11 Abs 1 Z 1 | — | | Service in another member state where the recipient owes the tax under Art 196 MwStSystRL | Mandatory, § 11 Abs 1 Z 2 | by the **15th day of the month following** the month of supply | | Einfuhr-Versandhandel under § 3 Abs 8a in the § 25b cases | Mandatory, § 11 Abs 1 Z 2a | — | | Advance payment received before the supply | Rules apply analogously, § 11 Abs 1 Z 4 | final invoice must deduct the invoiced part-payments and their VAT | ## The mandatory element list — § 11 Abs 1 Z 3 | # | Element | Provision | |---|---|---| | a | Name and address of the supplying Unternehmer | lit a | | b | Name and address of the recipient | lit b | | b+ | **Recipient's UID, if the invoice total exceeds 10 000 €**, the supplier has a domestic Wohnsitz/Sitz, gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt or Betriebsstätte, and the supply is to another Unternehmer for their business | lit b, second sentence | | c | Quantity and commercially usual description of the goods, or type and extent of the service | lit c | | d | Date of supply, or the period over which the service extends. For periodically settled supplies the settlement period suffices if it does not exceed one calendar month | lit d | | e | The Entgelt (net consideration, § 4) and the applicable tax rate; where exempt, a reference to the exemption | lit e | | f | The tax amount attributable to that Entgelt. Non-EUR invoices must additionally show the tax amount in EUR using a conversion method per § 20 Abs 6, or state the method used | lit f | | g | Date of issue | lit g | | h | A sequential number with one or more number series, assigned once to identify the invoice | lit h | | i | The supplier's own UID, where the supplier makes domestic supplies carrying a right to input VAT deduction | lit i | `Abs 3`: for the name and address entries any designation suffices that permits unambiguous identification of the parties. ## Reverse charge — § 11 Abs 1a Where the recipient owes the tax under § 19 Abs 1 second sentence, Abs 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d or 1e: - the **recipient's UID** must appear, and - the invoice must **refer to the recipient's tax liability**, and - the rule on separate tax disclosure does **not** apply — no VAT amount is shown. For a domestic-rules invoice for a § 3a Abs 6 service where the recipient owes the tax under § 19 Abs 1 second sentence, the issuing deadline is the 15th of the following month. ## Kleinbetragsrechnung — § 11 Abs 6 Applies where the **invoice total does not exceed 400 €**, or the invoice is issued by an Unternehmer using the Kleinunternehmer exemption in § 6 Abs 1 Z 27 (then regardless of amount). Besides the date of issue only these are needed: 1. name and address of the supplying Unternehmer 2. quantity and commercially usual description / type and extent of the service 3. date of supply or the period 4. **Entgelt and tax amount in one sum** 5. the tax rate Excluded: where Abs 1 requires an invoice for supplies carried out in the rest of the Community, and in the § 19 Abs 1 second sentence and § 19 Abs 1c cases where invoicing follows Austrian rules. There, simplified invoicing is not available. Note the consequence for software: a Kleinbetragsrechnung shows a **gross figure and a rate**, not a net/VAT split, and carries **no invoice number** and **no recipient**. Many templates add these anyway, which is harmless — but a template that omits the rate is defective. ## What a defective invoice costs - The **recipient** loses the Vorsteuerabzug under § 12 Abs 1 Z 1 lit a UStG, which requires tax separately shown "in einer Rechnung (§ 11)". A missing mandatory element is the classic reason a deduction is denied on audit. - The **issuer** who shows a tax amount not owed on the supply **owes it on the strength of the document** until the invoice is corrected towards the recipient (§ 11 Abs 12). On correction, § 16 Abs 1 applies analogously. - Anyone who shows a tax amount separately without making a supply, or without being an Unternehmer, **owes that amount** (§ 11 Abs 14). ## Copies and retention § 11 Abs 2: a copy or duplicate must be made and kept for **seven years**; the same applies to documents referred to in the invoice. § 132 Abs 2 BAO applies to those copies. For electronic invoices, **authenticity of origin, integrity of content and legibility must be assured for seven years**. An electronic invoice counts as an invoice only if the recipient agrees to that form. ## Template — standard invoice (German, as issued) ```text [[Firma laut Firmenbuch]] [[Straße Nr.]], [[PLZ Ort]], Österreich UID-Nummer: [[ATU________]] Firmenbuchnummer: [[FN ______]], Firmenbuchgericht: [[Landesgericht …]] RECHNUNG Rechnungsnummer: [[2026-000123]] Rechnungsdatum: [[TT.MM.JJJJ]] Leistungsdatum: [[TT.MM.JJJJ]] (oder: Leistungszeitraum [[TT.MM.JJJJ – TT.MM.JJJJ]]) Rechnungsempfänger: [[Name / Firma]] [[Straße Nr.]] [[PLZ Ort]], [[Land]] UID-Nummer: [[ATU________]] (Pflicht ab Gesamtbetrag über 10.000 €, § 11 Abs 1 Z 3 lit b UStG) Pos. Menge Bezeichnung Einzelpreis netto Betrag netto USt-Satz 1 [[2]] [[handelsübliche Bezeichnung]] [[1.000,00 €]] [[2.000,00 €]] 20 % 2 [[1]] [[handelsübliche Bezeichnung]] [[100,00 €]] [[100,00 €]] 10 % Summe netto 20 % [[2.000,00 €]] Umsatzsteuer 20 % [[400,00 €]] Summe netto 10 % [[100,00 €]] Umsatzsteuer 10 % [[10,00 €]] ------------------------------------------------ Gesamtbetrag netto [[2.100,00 €]] Umsatzsteuer gesamt [[410,00 €]] Rechnungsbetrag brutto [[2.510,00 €]] Zahlbar bis [[TT.MM.JJJJ]] auf [[IBAN]], [[BIC]], Verwendungszweck [[Rechnungsnummer]]. ``` ## Template — Kleinbetragsrechnung up to 400 € ```text [[Firma]], [[Straße Nr.]], [[PLZ Ort]] Datum: [[TT.MM.JJJJ]] Leistungsdatum: [[TT.MM.JJJJ]] [[Menge]] [[handelsübliche Bezeichnung]] Gesamtbetrag inkl. USt: [[240,00 €]] Steuersatz: 20 % ``` ## Template — reverse charge to an EU business customer ```text ... (alle Angaben nach § 11 Abs 1 Z 3, ohne gesonderten Steuerausweis) ... UID-Nummer des Leistungsempfängers: [[DE________]] Steuerschuldnerschaft des Leistungsempfängers (Reverse Charge). Die Umsatzsteuer wird vom Leistungsempfänger geschuldet. ``` ## Checkpoints - [ ] All eleven elements of § 11 Abs 1 Z 3 present on the standard template - [ ] Recipient UID field appears and is enforced once the invoice total exceeds 10 000 € - [ ] Own UID printed whenever the business makes deduction-carrying domestic supplies - [ ] Supply date or period is a separate field from the issue date - [ ] Kleinbetragsrechnung path triggers at 400 € gross and shows sum plus rate, not a net/VAT split - [ ] Kleinbetragsrechnung path is disabled for intra-EU supplies and for reverse-charge invoices under Austrian rules - [ ] Reverse-charge template shows recipient UID and the liability reference, and no VAT amount - [ ] Foreign-currency invoices additionally show the tax amount in EUR or the conversion method - [ ] Six-month issuing deadline enforced; 15th-of-following-month deadline enforced for intra-EU reverse-charge services - [ ] Invoice copies retained seven years with integrity and legibility assured - [ ] All `[[…]]` placeholders resolved or reported as open