Austria taxes anyone with a home (Wohnsitz) or habitual abode in Austria on their worldwide income, so keeping your flat in Vienna keeps you fully liable after you move to Dubai. The 2003 Austria to UAE tax treaty can still make you a UAE resident: its UAE limb has no nationality test, and the tie-breaker looks at permanent home and center of vital interests. If the UAE wins, your UAE salary is taxable only in the UAE. If Austria wins, it taxes the salary with credit only for UAE tax actually paid, which is zero. Moving your treaty residence to the UAE also triggers exit tax on shares, funds and crypto at 27.5%. Deferral and installments are available only on moves within the EU and EEA.
This guide is for Austrian citizens and Austrian residents who live and work in the UAE. It covers when unlimited tax liability ends, the second-home rule, the treaty tie-breaker, exit tax, what Austria taxes after you leave, and the order to deal with it all.
The UAE side is simple. The UAE does not tax employment income, as our guide to what a tax-free salary really means explains, so every question here is about Austria.
When Unlimited Tax Liability Ends
Section 1(2) of the Income Tax Act 1988 (EStG 1988) makes individuals with a home or habitual abode in Austria liable to tax on all their Austrian and foreign income. Everyone else is liable only on the Austrian income listed in section 98. Citizenship plays no part.
Section 26 of the Federal Fiscal Code (BAO) defines both terms:
- Home (Wohnsitz): you have one wherever you hold a dwelling in circumstances suggesting you will keep and use it. Ownership is not required; a rented flat or one made available to you counts.
- Habitual abode (gewöhnlicher Aufenthalt): where you stay in circumstances showing you are not there only temporarily. Where unlimited liability depends on habitual abode, it always arises once a stay in Austria lasts more than six months, and it then covers the first six months too.
| What you do when you move to the UAE | Austrian position |
|---|---|
| Give up every Austrian dwelling (sell it, end the lease, or let it so that it is no longer available to you) | Unlimited liability ends. From then on Austria taxes only Austrian income under section 98. |
| Keep a dwelling available to you in Austria | Unlimited liability continues. The treaty tie-breaker decides which country is your treaty residence (see below). |
| Keep a dwelling, after your center of vital interests has been abroad for more than five calendar years | The dwelling counts as a home only in years when you use it on more than 70 days, and only if you keep a log of the days (second-home regulation) |
The second-home regulation
The Regulation on domestic second homes (BGBl. II Nr. 528/2003) softens the home test for long-term emigrants. Section 1 says that where a taxpayer’s center of vital interests has been abroad for more than five calendar years, an Austrian dwelling creates a home only in years when it is used, alone or together with other Austrian dwellings, on more than 70 days. Section 1(2) applies the rule only if you keep a record showing the days of use.
Section 3 closes a gap: using the Austrian home of a spouse or partner who is fully liable in Austria, and from whom you are not permanently separated, creates a home for you too. If your partner stays in Austria, the 70-day rule does not help you.
The Austria to UAE Treaty
Austria and the UAE signed their double tax agreement in Abu Dhabi on 22 September 2003. It was published as BGBl. III Nr. 88/2004 and later amended by BGBl. III Nr. 211/2022. Article 4(1) defines who is resident:
- Austria: a person liable to tax in Austria by reason of domicile, residence, place of management or similar criterion. It excludes anyone liable only on Austrian-source income.
- The UAE: an individual who is resident under UAE law by reason of domicile, permanent residence or similar criterion. There is no nationality condition and no liable-to-tax condition, so an Austrian expatriate can be a UAE treaty resident.
If you are resident in both countries, Article 4(2) decides. Treaty residence goes to the country where you have a permanent home available. If you have one in both, it goes to the country of your center of vital interests (closer personal and economic relations), then your habitual abode, then your nationality.
What the tie-breaker result means for your salary
| Treaty residence | UAE salary | Other effects |
|---|---|---|
| UAE (for example, family and main home in Dubai, Vienna flat used occasionally) | Taxable only in the UAE under Article 15(1), because you are a UAE resident working in the UAE | Austria may still count the exempt income when setting the rate on your other Austrian income (Article 24(3)). Exit tax applies (see below). |
| Austria (for example, spouse and children stay in Austria) | Austria may tax it. Article 24(2) gives credit only for UAE tax actually paid, and the UAE levies none on salaries, so the full Austrian tax applies. | Austria keeps taxing your worldwide investment income |
This is the main difference from some other treaties. Austria uses the credit method with the UAE, not the exemption method. An Austrian who loses the tie-breaker gets no relief for a tax-free salary.
To claim UAE treaty residence you will need evidence, usually a UAE tax residency certificate; see our UAE tax residency certificate guide. Article 23 requires an official certificate from your country of residence with any Austrian refund claim.
Exit Tax on Shares, Funds and Crypto
Section 27(6)(1) of the Income Tax Act treats as a sale any circumstance that restricts Austria’s right to tax a capital asset, a derivative or a cryptocurrency. Under Article 13(4) of the treaty, gains on shares and other movable property are taxable only in the seller’s country of residence. So becoming a UAE treaty resident restricts Austria’s right, and the unrealized gain is taxed as if you had sold.
- The rate is 27.5%, the special rate for capital income in section 27a(1)(2). Bank deposits are taxed at 25%.
- On a move to an EU or EEA state, section 27(6)(1)(a) lets you apply to have the tax assessed but not collected until you actually sell.
- For all other cases, including the UAE, section 27(6)(1)(d) refers to section 6(6)(c) and (d). Those allow installments only for transfers involving an EU or EEA state. A move to the UAE gets neither the deferral nor the installments.
Because the trigger is a restriction of Austria’s taxing right, exit tax can arise even if you keep your Vienna flat, when the tie-breaker makes you a UAE treaty resident.
What Austria Taxes After You Leave
| Income | Treaty position for a UAE resident |
|---|---|
| Dividends from Austrian companies | Austria may tax, but no more than 10% of the gross dividend (Article 10(1)(b)). Austrian withholding is 27.5%, so you reclaim the difference with a UAE residence certificate. |
| Gains on Austrian shares sold after you leave | Taxable only in the UAE (Article 13(4)), which is why exit tax is charged on departure |
| Rent from, or gains on, Austrian real estate | Austria may tax (Articles 6 and 13(1)) |
| Pensions for past private-sector employment | Article 19 says they are taxable only in your country of residence. Government-service pensions are dealt with separately in Article 20. |
| Salary for days worked in Austria | Taxable only in the UAE if you are in Austria 183 days or fewer in the tax year, your employer is not Austrian resident and has no Austrian permanent establishment bearing the pay (Article 15(2)) |
The Order to Do This In
- Decide what happens to your Austrian home. Giving up every dwelling available to you ends unlimited liability outright. Keeping one leaves the result to the tie-breaker.
- Move your center of vital interests with you. If your spouse or children stay in Austria, Austria is likely to win the tie-breaker and tax your UAE salary in full.
- Value your shares, funds and crypto before the move. Exit tax at 27.5% is due without deferral on a move to the UAE.
- Get a UAE tax residency certificate once you qualify, for the tie-breaker and for dividend refunds.
- If you keep a dwelling long term, keep a log of the days you use it. After more than five calendar years abroad, staying at or below 70 days a year means it no longer counts as a home.
- Count your workdays in Austria if you visit for work. Our guide to the UAE entry and exit report shows how to prove your travel dates.
UAE banks report Austrian account holders under CRS; see how UAE banks report accounts under CRS. For a neighbor with no treaty at all, compare our guide for Germans in the UAE. For a treaty that exempts UAE salary instead of crediting it, see Hungarians in the UAE.
What We Could Not Verify
- How the Ministry of Finance counts the five calendar years in the second-home regulation for someone who has just moved. Check the Income Tax Guidelines (EStR 2000) or ask your tax office before relying on the 70-day rule.
- Whether Austria treats state (ASVG) pensions as falling under Article 19. The article has no separate rule for social security pensions, but we found no ruling applying it to a UAE resident.
- The content of the 2022 amendment (BGBl. III Nr. 211/2022). It changed Articles 4, 10 and 24 from 1 March 2023, but the consolidated text we read did not identify the source of each change.
- Social insurance. Whether you can or should keep voluntary Austrian pension insurance while working in the UAE is governed by social security law and is not covered here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I stay Austrian tax resident if I keep my flat in Austria?
You remain liable to unlimited tax in Austria as long as you hold a dwelling there in circumstances suggesting you will keep and use it. Whether Austria or the UAE is your residence for treaty purposes is then decided by the tie-breaker in Article 4(2) of the treaty.
Is there a tax treaty between Austria and the UAE?
Yes. It was signed in Abu Dhabi on 22 September 2003 and published as BGBl. III Nr. 88/2004. Its UAE residence limb covers individuals resident under UAE law by reason of domicile, permanent residence or similar criterion, with no nationality condition.
Is my UAE salary taxed in Austria?
Not if you are non-resident, or a UAE resident under the treaty tie-breaker. If Austria wins the tie-breaker, it taxes the salary and gives credit only for UAE tax actually paid, so the full Austrian tax applies.
What is the 70-day rule?
Under the second-home regulation, once your center of vital interests has been abroad for more than five calendar years, an Austrian dwelling counts as a home only in years when you use it on more than 70 days. You must keep a record of the days.
Is there exit tax when I move from Austria to Dubai?
Yes, if the move restricts Austria’s right to tax your capital assets. Unrealized gains on shares, funds, derivatives and crypto are taxed at 27.5%. Deferral and installments are available only on moves to EU or EEA states, not to the UAE.
How much Austrian tax is withheld on Austrian dividends after I move?
Austrian withholding is 27.5%, but the treaty caps Austria’s tax at 10% of the gross dividend for a UAE resident beneficial owner. You reclaim the difference with an official certificate of UAE residence.
Is my Austrian company pension taxed in Austria after I move?
Article 19 of the treaty makes pensions for past private-sector employment taxable only in your country of residence. Government-service pensions are dealt with separately in Article 20.
Official Sources
- Income Tax Act 1988 (EStG 1988), sections 1, 6, 27 and 27a, consolidated version (German)
- Federal Fiscal Code (BAO), section 26 (German)
- Regulation on domestic second homes, BGBl. II Nr. 528/2003 (German)
- Double tax agreement between Austria and the United Arab Emirates, BGBl. III Nr. 88/2004 (German)
- Federal Ministry of Finance, list of double tax agreements (German)
Information current as of October 2026. Verify with official authorities before proceeding.
This guide is for informational purposes only and is not tax advice. Austrian and UAE regulations are subject to change. Always verify current requirements with the relevant official authority, or a licensed tax adviser, before proceeding with any filing or transaction.
