Banking and finance
What Austrian banks ask of a new arrival, how the private-banking market is organised, and which account data flows abroad automatically.
In short
- Opening an account is straightforward for residents — but expect thorough know-your-customer checks, including evidence of where your wealth comes from.
- Prepare a source-of-wealth file before the move: sale agreements, audited accounts, tax returns. The same file serves banks, property purchases and permits.
- Deposits are protected by statute up to EUR 100,000 per depositor per bank (as of 2026).
- Investment income in an Austrian custody account is taxed at source by the bank — for most investors, no further filing for that income.
- Account data flows automatically to your other countries of tax residence under the CRS; US persons are reported under FATCA.
Opening an account
Every Austrian bank will ask for the same core set: a passport, proof of an Austrian address — normally the Meldezettel, the registration described among the first-weeks tasks — your tax identification numbers for every country in which you are tax resident, and a self-certification of tax residence for CRS purposes. Add to that questions about occupation, the expected use of the account and the origin of incoming funds. For a salaried arrival the process takes days; for a person whose wealth has history, it takes as long as the documentation does.
Accounts can often be opened before the move, particularly with private banks used to onboarding international clients, though the scrutiny applied to non-residents is higher and some retail banks simply decline them. Politically exposed persons face enhanced due diligence everywhere — that is EU law, not Austrian caution. Once residence is established and the paperwork is in order, Austrian banking is unremarkable in the best sense: stable institutions, euro accounts, full online banking in English at the larger houses.
Source of funds and source of wealth
Anti-money-laundering law requires Austrian banks to understand not only the transaction in front of them but the client's wealth as a whole. For a high-net-worth arrival, the difference between a smooth onboarding and a stalled one is almost always the quality of the file. What persuades a compliance department, in rough order of usefulness:
- share purchase agreements and completion statements from a business sale;
- audited financial statements of companies you own or owned, with dividend histories;
- personal tax returns from your previous country of residence, ideally several years;
- probate documents, inheritance certificates or gift deeds for inherited wealth;
- property sale contracts and land-register extracts;
- long-running custody statements showing a portfolio's growth over time.
Assemble this file once, before the move, and keep it current. The same evidence will be asked for by the trustee handling a property purchase, and financial substance must in any event be demonstrated for the independent-means residence permit. Producing it under time pressure is the avoidable version of the exercise.
The private-banking landscape
Vienna supports a genuine private-banking market: several independent houses with centuries of history between them, subsidiaries of Liechtenstein institutions, and the dedicated private divisions of the major banking groups. Minimum relationship sizes and service models differ; all of the following are established names (as of 2026).
| Institution | Profile |
|---|---|
| Bank Gutmann | Independent, partner- and family-owned; Austria's largest independent wealth manager |
| Schoellerbank | Traditional private bank within the UniCredit Bank Austria group |
| Kathrein Privatbank | Private bank of the Raiffeisen group; long experience with Austrian private foundations |
| LGT Bank Österreich | Austrian arm of LGT, the private bank of Liechtenstein's princely family |
| Bankhaus Carl Spängler | Founded 1828 in Salzburg; Austria's oldest private bank |
| LLB Österreich | Austrian arm of Liechtensteinische Landesbank; absorbed Zürcher Kantonalbank Österreich in 2025, in Vienna and Salzburg |
| Major-bank private units | Erste, Raiffeisen and UniCredit Bank Austria each run dedicated private-banking divisions |
Clients holding or considering an Austrian private foundation will find several of these houses fluent in the structure — a topic covered in depth on the Austrian private foundation page.
Banking privacy and its real limits
Austrian banking secrecy is old, constitutionally entrenched and still real as against private third parties: a bank may not discuss your affairs with anyone without cause. As against tax authorities, however, its practical scope has narrowed to almost nothing, and arriving clients should plan on that basis. Four mechanisms matter:
- Automatic exchange (CRS). Austria exchanges account data — holder, balances, investment income — every year with the tax authorities of the account holder's other residence countries.
- FATCA. Under a Model 2 agreement, Austrian banks report accounts of US persons towards the US authorities; the practical consequences for Americans are set out on the page for US citizens moving to Austria.
- Exchange on request. Treaty partners — and the many states party to the multilateral convention on mutual administrative assistance in tax matters, which Austria has ratified — can request information that banking secrecy would otherwise cover.
- Domestic registers. A central account register records who holds which accounts, securities deposits and safe-deposit boxes (not balances), accessible to the authorities under statutory conditions. A separate duty on banks to report capital outflows of EUR 50,000 or more from private accounts to the Ministry of Finance applied only until December 2022 and has since lapsed.
None of this should trouble anyone whose affairs are in order — but it means Austria is not, and does not try to be, a place to hold undeclared money.
Deposit safety follows the EU framework: EUR 100,000 per depositor per bank, with temporarily higher cover — up to EUR 500,000 for twelve months — for certain balances such as the proceeds of a private property sale (as of 2026). Securities in custody are not the bank's assets at all; they are segregated and returned if the bank fails.
Investing through an Austrian bank
There is a quiet administrative luxury in holding your portfolio with an Austrian bank: the bank withholds the flat tax — 25% on bank interest, 27.5% on dividends, bond interest and capital gains — and for most investors that withholding is final, with nothing further to declare for that income. Hold the same portfolio abroad and every position must be self-assessed in the annual return instead. The rates, the valuable step-up to market value on arrival and the treatment of funds are explained on the page about investment income and capital gains; the one point to carry from here is that fund investors should prefer reporting funds, since non-reporting funds are taxed on a punitive deemed basis.
Questions on this page
Can I open an Austrian bank account before I move?
Often yes, particularly with the private banks, though documentation requirements are heavier for non-residents. Once you hold a registration certificate and an Austrian address, the process is routine.
Why does the bank ask where my money comes from?
Anti-money-laundering law obliges every Austrian bank to verify the source of a client's funds and wealth before accepting them. It is a legal duty, not curiosity, and a well-prepared file shortens onboarding considerably.
Are my Austrian accounts reported to foreign tax authorities?
Under the Common Reporting Standard, account data including balances is exchanged annually with your other countries of tax residence. Accounts of US persons are reported under the FATCA agreement.
Is my money protected if the bank fails?
Statutory deposit insurance covers EUR 100,000 per depositor per bank, and temporarily up to EUR 500,000 for certain balances such as recent property-sale proceeds. Securities in custody are segregated and returned to you.
Do I still file a tax return for my investments?
If your portfolio sits with an Austrian bank, the withholding tax the bank deducts is generally final and no filing is needed for that income. Foreign-held accounts must be self-assessed in your annual return.
Considering a move to Austria?
Tell us where you stand — the country you are leaving, the shape of your family and your assets, and when you plan to move. We advise on the legal and tax consequences of relocating to Austria and coordinate with advisers in the country of departure.
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