SPÖ plan: your child tax credit to 1,000 euros yearly
Low income families in Austria could get more tax money back for their children from 2027. It depends on an SPÖ plan that the coalition partners ÖVP and Neos have not accepted. For now this is only a draft.
The plan concerns the Kindermehrbetrag. It is paid to parents whose income tax is too low to benefit fully from the Familienbonus Plus, which is worth up to 2,000 euros per child under 18 each year. Today the Kindermehrbetrag is 700 euros per child per year. Under proposals attached to the social assistance reform draft and reported by the APA news agency, it would rise to 1,000 euros per child per year from 2027. That is 300 euros more per child.
The SPÖ-led finance ministry wants to pay for this by applying the 55 percent top income tax rate from 500,000 euros of income instead of 1 million, and by making that rate permanent. At the moment it is set to end in 2029. ÖVP general secretary Markus Gstöttner rejected the idea, saying "the last thing we need in Austria now are new taxes." Neos also said no to higher taxes. The finance ministry says there are "several options" for funding it.
Political talks on the wider social assistance reform began on Tuesday. The government wants the new rules to start on 1 January 2027, and the child tax credit is now part of that negotiation.
What this means for you: nothing changes yet. The current Kindermehrbetrag of 700 euros per child still applies, and it is credited through your annual tax assessment (Arbeitnehmerveranlagung). If you earn little and have children, make sure you file that assessment, because otherwise you may not receive the money you are already entitled to. Watch for the final deal before relying on the higher amount.