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Numerous things will change again from 1 January 2025, with some innovations coming in the course of the year. Here are the most important points:
Higher energy bills
The new year will bring higher gas and electricity bills. The main reasons for this are higher grid costs and the fact that from January, the levies, which were reduced to a minimum during the energy crisis, will once again apply in full. The expiry of the electricity price cap on 31 December 2024 may also lead to higher costs. Household energy bills will rise by several hundred euros a year, depending on the federal state and energy consumption.
Tax relief
The small business threshold will be increased to 55,000 euros. The first four rate limits will be adjusted from January 1st as part of the automatic inflation adjustment.
As a result, the marginal tax rate will be zero percent for the first 13,308 euros, 20 percent for income above this amount up to 21,617 euros, 30 percent up to 35,836 euros and 40 percent up to 69,166 euros. Up to 103,072 euros, the marginal tax rate is 48 percent, above 50 percent.
More mileage allowance
The mileage allowance will be increased to 50 cents per kilometer from the beginning of the year, and passengers can claim a contribution of 15 cents in the future. In addition, the current upper limit for the mileage allowance for bicycles will be doubled from 1,500 kilometres to 3,000 kilometres per year, and the lower limit for pedestrians will be halved to one kilometre.
Care allowance to be routinely increased
The care allowance will once again be routinely increased at the turn of the year – by the so-called “adjustment factor”, as it has been since 2020. For 2024, this means an increase of 4.6 percent – in line with pensions and other family and social benefits. The bonus for family caregivers will also be adjusted, amounting to 130.80 euros per month from 2025 instead of 125 euros.
Deposit on cans and plastic bottles is coming
From 2025, Austria will have a one-way deposit system. Anyone who buys plastic bottles or aluminium cans will pay a 25-cent deposit. If you return the empty bottles and cans, you will also get your money back. This is to ensure that the packaging is recycled and does not end up in the environment. The deposit system applies to all disposable drink bottles and aluminium cans from 0.1 to three litres. There are exceptions for milk and milk drinks for hygienic reasons.
Additional income limits for students automatically higher
For the first time, the additional income limit for students will be adjusted to inflation at the beginning of the year – in future. They will be able to earn 17,212 euros per year without losing their entitlement to family allowance. From 2025, this annual valorization will happen automatically. The other family benefits will also be increased by 4.6 percent. The gradual adjustment of the retirement age for women will continue.
New primary school teacher training and ÖH election
From fall 2025, primary school teachers will receive more practical training again. Among other things, more preparation for working with parents, dealing with violence and more practical experience have been announced. The new curricula are currently being drawn up. The biennial elections to the Austrian Students’ Union (ÖH) are also due in May.
First Matura with a new “final paper”
Students graduating from an AHS in 2025 can submit the result of a research, creative or artistic process as a “final paper” instead of a preliminary scientific paper (VWA) for the first time. Because the new model was introduced quickly, only 400 young people opted for it in the first year. New protective measures will also protect young teachers from burning out from the fall.
New rules for the seizure of data carriers
In justice, 2025 will primarily bring changes to criminal law. The most prominent changes concern the regulations on seizing data carriers such as cell phones and laptops. With some exceptions, these items will have to be seized in the future, and unlike in the past, a court order will be required. There are also new requirements for analyzing the data contained in them. In addition, the rights of suspects will be extended.
Disabilities: More accessibility and support
2025 will bring a number of changes for people with disabilities. From the middle of the year, better accessibility must be ensured for various electronic products and services. From the beginning of the year, larger companies will be obliged to install an “accessibility officer.” In addition, the first pilot project, “Wages instead of pocket money,” is to be launched.
Expensive dentistry and deductibles
The coming year will increase patients’ financial burdens when visiting the dentist. Prescription fees and cost shares for medical aids will also increase with inflation. The additional funds approved last year for hospitals, the expansion of primary care units, the vaccination program, and new digital health services could have a positive impact. For the first time, there will be specialists in general and family medicine.
The number one topic of excitement in the healthcare sector is the EU-wide ban on mercury-containing amalgam for dental fillings, which comes into force on 1 January 2025. The almost 2,800 dentists with health insurance contracts will no longer be able to offer a reasonably adequate replacement that is fully covered by health insurance. The Austrian Dental Association (ZÄK) rejects Alkasit, which is being promoted by the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK), as an alternative, demands higher-paid contracts and only wants to accept dental cements that are inferior in terms of material as a health insurance benefit.
Therefore, better-filling material than dental cement will have to be paid for privately from the beginning of the year, except for Vorarlberg, where a separate billing agreement applies. Everywhere
Real estate loans are becoming more affordable again
For prospective housebuilders, strict lending criteria and high interest rates have made financing more difficult. There are signs that the situation will ease in the coming year. This is because the strict lending rules imposed on banks by the so-called KIM Regulation will expire in mid-2025. The end of the KIM Regulation will also coincide with falling interest rates, which should generally make loans more affordable again.
Real-time transfers are coming across Europe
In February 2024, the EU member states agreed that instant transfers—bank transfers that take less than ten seconds—should become standard in the future. This will come into effect in 2025. From 9 January, banks across Europe will be obliged to receive real-time transfers in euros, and from 9 October, institutions will also have to enable their customers to send such transfers.
Smartphones to be more durable and repairable in future
The coming year will also bring some changes to the design of cell phones and charging cables. On 20 June, an EU-wide regulation will come into force to make smartphones more durable and repairable. In addition, the end of 2024 will put an end to cable clutter: from then on, all smartphones, digital cameras, headphones, tablets and video game consoles must have standardized charging ports.
Working from home becomes teleworking
From 1 January 2025, new regulations will apply to working away from the office. Working from home will then legally fall under the broader term “teleworking”. The change will allow employees to perform their work within their own four walls, with family members, or in coffee shops, for example. Different regulations apply to accident insurance coverage depending on the location.
Heating replacement and PV continue to be subsidized
The current subsidies for the replacement of heating systems, the thermal refurbishment of residential buildings, and the VAT exemption for photovoltaic systems for private individuals will continue in the coming year 2025. Premiums for purchasing private e-vehicles and charging infrastructure will continue until 31 May 2025.
Driving will become more expensive
2025 will be more expensive for drivers. The price of the highway toll sticker will be increased, as will the CO2 tax, which will affect the price of petrol. A never-ending railroad story is ending: after 24 years of construction, the Koralm Railway will open next year.
Municipalities tighten the screw on fees
In Vienna, for example, municipal services will become more expensive in 2025. Next year, the federal capital will increase the rates for water supply, wastewater, waste disposal and parking tickets. The increase is in line with the current Valorization Act. This provides a mid-year review of whether the consumer price index (CPI) has risen by three percent or more since the last increase. This was the case this summer.
Social and family benefits will increase by 4.6 percent
Social and family benefits will increase by 4.6 percent in 2025, which corresponds to the average inflation from August 2023 to July 2024. This automatic inflation adjustment will affect the family allowance, the child deduction, and the multiple-child supplement, as well as the childcare allowance and the family time bonus. Sickness, rehabilitation and reintegration allowances, retraining allowances, study grants, and school grants will also be adjusted.
Higher pensions
Senior citizens can look forward to a 4.6 percent increase in their pension in 2025. The increase will only be less for those with a 6,060 euros or more pension. They will receive a fixed amount of 276.76 euros. The equalization supplement reference rate for minimum pensions will be increased to EUR 1,273.99 per month. Aliquoting is also suspended. This means that anyone who retires in 2024 will receive the full increase regardless of when.
Income increases of around four percent
Wages, salaries and pensions will be adjusted again next year; last year’s inflation was the benchmark. As a result, income increases in most major sectors will be around four percent.
- source: oe24.at/picture: canva.com
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