Benefit in Kind 2026 (Sachbezug)

Non-cash benefits such as a company car or flat that raise the tax and SI base, as of 2026.

Definition

Sachbezug is a non-cash benefit the employer grants on top of wages, such as a company car for private use, company housing or meals. It counts as income (§ 15 (2) EStG) and towards the SI contribution base (§ 49 (1) ASVG). It is valued under the Sachbezugswerteverordnung: for a company car, in 2026, 1.50 % of the acquisition cost a month, at most €720; other benefits at the usual end price at the place of supply.

Company car benefit by year

Company car
2024
2025
2026
2027
CO2 limit (g/km, first registration)
129
126
126
126
Up to the CO2 limit, rate
1.50 %
1.50 %
1.50 %
1.50 %
Up to the CO2 limit, cap
€720
€720
€720
€720
Above the CO2 limit, rate
2.00 %
2.00 %
2.00 %
2.00 %
Above the CO2 limit, cap
€960
€960
€960
€960
Electric car, rate
0.00 %
0.00 %
0.00 %
0.375 %
Electric car, cap
€0
€0
€0
€180

The CO2 limit applies to cars first registered in that year; the limit of the registration year stays decisive. Monthly values.

Sachbezugswerteverordnung 2026: main types

Type
Base
Sachbezug value
Note
Company car, CO2 up to 126 g/km (first registered 2026, WLTP)
acquisition cost
1.50 % / month
capped at €720 / month, half at up to 500 km private
Company car, CO2 above 126 g/km
acquisition cost
2.00 % / month
capped at €960 / month, half at up to 500 km private
Electric car (0 g CO2)
acquisition cost
no Sachbezug
charging at the employer tax-free too
Company housing
usable area × reference rent
€6.09 to €10.25 / m² / month
per Bundesland, reference rents as of 31 October of the previous year
Employer parking space
in a paid parking zone
€14.53 / month
only where street parking is charged
Meal vouchers
per workday
up to €8 tax-free
above that, Sachbezug
Grocery vouchers
per workday
up to €2 tax-free
above that, Sachbezug

Values for the most common payslip cases in 2026, under the Sachbezugswerteverordnung as applicable in 2026.

Company car benefit 2026: how it is worked out

The base is the actual acquisition cost including VAT and NoVA, leasing included. A car first registered in 2026 with at most 126 g CO2/km (WLTP) costs 1.50 % of it a month, at most €720; above that 2.00 %, at most €960. The CO2 limit of the year of first registration applies, not the current one. For a car costing €40,000 that is €600 or €800 a month.

Half benefit: with private driving of at most 500 km a month on average over the year, proven, half the value applies, including half the cap (€360 or €480). With a complete logbook it can be lower still: €0.50 or €0.67 per private kilometre, where that comes to less than half of the half benefit. Commuting counts as private. A cost contribution paid to the employer reduces the benefit; fuel paid yourself does not.

Electric company car 2027

Until the end of 2026 an electric company car still carries no benefit in kind. From 2027 cars with 0 g CO2/km carry a benefit of 0.375 % of the acquisition cost, at most €180 a month, also for cars provided before. For an electric car costing €40,000 that is €150 a month, half (€75) with at most 500 km of private driving. From 2028 it rises to 0.625 %, at most €300 a month, €250 for the example car. The value also applies when the car is provided in exchange for giving up pay above the collective agreement (Sachbezugswerteverordnung as amended by BGBl. II Nr. 272/2026).

Charging an electric company car: at work and at home

Free charging at the employer is no benefit in kind, not even for an employee's own electric car. When the electric company car is charged at home, the employer may refund the cost tax-free if the charged amount is proven to belong to that car, at the BMF electricity price of 32.806 cents per kWh (2026); at public chargers against receipts. The flat rate without separate metering (€30 a month) applied only until the end of 2025. A charging point paid by the employer is tax-free up to €2,000; only the amount above is a benefit.

Why a large Sachbezug can drive cash net negative

Sachbezug increases the contribution base for SI and income tax, but isn't paid out in cash. SI and income tax are calculated on gross + Sachbezug, but only deducted from the cash gross. As long as the Sachbezug stays well below cash gross (typical company car €720/month against €4,230 or more cash gross), cash net stays positive. When Sachbezug exceeds cash gross AND the marginal tax rate is in the upper bracket, income tax on the combined base can exceed cash gross, and the displayed cash net then turns mathematically negative. In practice the employer and the annual tax return reconcile the difference, so this is primarily a cashflow concern.

Example: gross €4,230/month (Vienna, 2026)

The median full-time salary 2026 (forecast), salaried: a company car costing €40,000 with a €600 benefit lowers the net paid out by €305.95 a month. The benefit itself is not paid out; only the social insurance and wage tax on it come off the cash salary.

Frequently asked questions

1.50 % of the acquisition cost a month, at most €720, for a car first registered in 2026 with up to 126 g CO2/km; above that 2.00 %, at most €960. For a car costing €40,000, €600 or €800.
Until the end of 2026 an electric company car still carries no benefit in kind. From 2027 cars with 0 g CO2/km carry a benefit of 0.375 % of the acquisition cost, at most €180 a month, also for cars provided before. For an electric car costing €40,000 that is €150 a month, half (€75) with at most 500 km of private driving. From 2028 it rises to 0.625 %, at most €300 a month, €250 for the example car. The value also applies when the car is provided in exchange for giving up pay above the collective agreement (Sachbezugswerteverordnung as amended by BGBl. II Nr. 272/2026).
When private driving is proven to be at most 500 km a month on average over the year, for example by a logbook. Then half the value and half the cap apply, €360 or €480. Commuting counts as private.
Free charging at the employer is no benefit in kind, not even for an employee's own electric car. When the electric company car is charged at home, the employer may refund the cost tax-free if the charged amount is proven to belong to that car, at the BMF electricity price of 32.806 cents per kWh (2026); at public chargers against receipts. The flat rate without separate metering (€30 a month) applied only until the end of 2025. A charging point paid by the employer is tax-free up to €2,000; only the amount above is a benefit.
Only the levies on the benefit. At €4,230 gross and a €600 benefit the net paid out falls by €305.95 a month in 2026. The gross-to-net calculator works out your own salary with a benefit in kind.
Yes. A regular contribution to the employer is deducted from the computed benefit before the cap applies; a one-off contribution first reduces the acquisition cost. Fuel you pay yourself does not reduce the benefit.
Yes, at €14.53 a month, but only where parking on public streets there is charged, for example in a short-stay zone.

See also

Try it in the gross-to-net calculator Try it in the employer-cost calculator
  • § 15 Abs 2 EStG 1988 (RIS)
  • § 49 Abs 1 ASVG
  • Sachbezugswerteverordnung §§ 2, 4, 4a, 4c (BGBl. II Nr. 416/2001 idgF, zuletzt BGBl. II Nr. 272/2026, from 1.1.2027)
  • BMF „Lohnsteuerrichtlinien 2002“ Rz 138 ff.
  • BMF electricity price under § 4c (2) Sachbezugswerteverordnung for 2026