Austria's Private Foundations Act: mandatory beneficiary reporting and fines up to €20,000 per breach
The consolidated text of Austria's Private Foundations Act (Privatstiftungsgesetz – PSG, updated 3 July 2026) makes explicit several key obligations: foundation boards must electronically report all determined beneficiaries to the tax authority without delay, and failure to do so carries a fine of up to €20,000 per undisclosed beneficiary. Board eligibility and governance rules have also been tightened.
What changed
The foundation board (Stiftungsvorstand) must immediately notify the Finanzamt für Großbetriebe (large-taxpayer tax office) electronically whenever a person is determined to be a beneficiary (§ 5). Omitting or incompletely making this report is an administrative offence punishable by a fine of up to €20,000 per undisclosed beneficiary (§ 42). The minimum foundation endowment is confirmed at €70,000.
Who is affected
All Austrian private foundations (Privatstiftungen), their management boards, supervisory boards (Aufsichtsrat), beneficiaries, and founders (Stifter). Persons who are life partners or relatives of beneficiaries, or who represent their interests in foundation organs, are specifically affected by updated eligibility rules.
What to look out for
Two board members now only need to reside in any EU or EEA country, not necessarily Austria. Life partners (Lebensgefährte) of beneficiaries are now also barred from board membership alongside spouses and relatives. When an additional foundation organ votes to remove a board member for non-statutory reasons, a three-quarters majority is required and beneficiaries plus their proxies may not collectively hold the deciding majority in that vote.