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Guide · Austria · Till

Cash register requirement for restaurants (Austria)

Venheim editorial team

Updated 8 min read

In Austria a business needs a cash register as soon as its annual turnover exceeds €15,000 AND its cash sales exceed €7,500 — card payments count as cash sales (§ 131b BAO). Every cash payment needs a receipt; since 1 October 2026 it may also be electronic (§ 132a BAO). The till needs a security device under the RKSV, with a QR code and registration via FinanzOnline.

The two thresholds — and why almost every restaurant is above them

§ 131b of the Austrian Federal Fiscal Code (BAO) ties the duty to two conditions, BOTH of which must be met: €15,000 annual turnover per business and €7,500 in cash sales a year. That sounds like leeway — but it isn't, because "cash sales" expressly includes, besides cash, debit and credit card payments, other electronic forms of payment and vouchers issued by the business. In a venue where guests pay at the counter or at the table, practically all daily sales are therefore cash sales — in normal operation the thresholds are reached within a few months.

When the till becomes mandatory

With the fourth month after the end of the VAT return period in which the thresholds were first exceeded (§ 131b(3) BAO). The months in between are for procurement — choose a till, get the signature device, register with FinanzOnline.

When the duty ends again

If the thresholds are not exceeded in a following year and it is foreseeable that this will stay so, the duty ends again (§ 131b BAO) — for a running hospitality business that is the exception, not the plan.

The "cold hands" exception: up to €45,000 since 2026

For four narrowly defined cases the law allows relief (§ 131(4) no. 1 BAO), since 1 January 2026 up to €45,000 annual turnover:

  • sales from door to door or on public roads, streets and squares, not in or in connection with enclosed premises,
  • sales directly connected with huts, such as alpine, mountain, ski and refuge huts,
  • a Buschenschank (wine tavern) open on at most 14 days in the calendar year,
  • the canteen of a non-profit association with at most 52 operating days in the calendar year.

Below that, the simplified calculation of daily takings is enough: the takings are worked back from the counted cash, and the cash register and receipt duties do not apply (§ 1 Barumsatzverordnung 2015, the Austrian cash sales ordinance). An ordinary venue does not qualify: the exception for outdoor sales expressly does not apply "in or in connection with enclosed premises".

Duty to issue receipts: five details, a duty to take it, seven years

Regardless of the cash register requirement, the duty to issue receipts applies (§ 132a BAO): whoever takes cash issues a receipt. Five minimum details belong on it —

  • a clear name of the business supplying the goods or service,
  • a sequential number that identifies the transaction uniquely,
  • the date of issue,
  • the quantity and usual trade description of the goods or service,
  • the amount of the cash payment (it may also be calculable from the details on the receipt).

Two details that surprise people day to day: the guest must accept the receipt and take it out of the premises — and the business keeps a copy for seven years. With electronic tills, the data capture log takes care of the copy automatically.

New since 1 October 2026

The receipt may be electronic

An electronic receipt that is available to the guest immediately after payment also counts as a receipt — in any case when the guest can read it on site with a device, such as their own phone (§ 132a(1) BAO). Paper remains mandatory on request: if the guest or the tax authority wants a printed receipt, the business must print it.

RKSV: what the till has to do technically

Since the Registrierkassensicherheitsverordnung (RKSV), the Austrian cash register security ordinance, the till is a tamper-proof system, not an adding machine. The checklist when buying one:

Signature or seal creation device

from a certified trust service provider (§ 15 RKSV) — it signs every cash sale.

QR code on every receipt

with till number, receipt number, date, amounts per tax rate and signature value (§ 10 RKSV).

Data capture log (DEP)

every cash sale is captured and stored, backed up at least quarterly (§ 7 RKSV).

Start receipt + FinanzOnline

first use with a zero receipt (§ 6 RKSV), registration of the till and signature device via FinanzOnline (§ 16 RKSV).

More on receipts and tills in the glossary: receipts and cash registers.

And alongside it: what the till does NOT do

The cash register meets the cash register requirement — staff scheduling, working-time records under § 26 AZG, HACCP own checks and inventory it does not. Venheim is deliberately not a cash register but the operations logbook alongside it: through the till connection it brings in the till's daily sales automatically (helloCash and ready2order directly, any other till via CSV or interface) and puts them next to the counted sales — reconciled daily, documented in the monthly tax adviser package. The till stays responsible for the duty, and the logbook for the overview.

Keep it digital with Venheim

Connect the till instead of typing it up: daily sales flow into reporting automatically, the till reconciliation shows differences to counted sales, and the monthly package for your tax adviser builds itself — the prices are on the page, openly.

Till and count side by side: every difference in euros, on the day it arose.Demo data from the sample business Cafe Sunshine, app shown in German
Start free

Try Premium for 30 days, no payment details. After that your business carries on free on the Start plan; records stay readable and exportable.

The sign-up form is in German for now. Inside the app, everyone picks their own language — nine languages, English included.

Important: not legal advice

This guide covers the Austrian legal position (BAO, RKSV) — in Germany different rules apply (KassenSichV, TSE, receipt duty), which are deliberately not mixed in here. We don't give specific penalty amounts: the provisions we read do not put a figure on them, and amounts that circulate without a source don't belong in a guide. Binding information comes from the tax office, a tax adviser or the Austrian Economic Chamber.

Related

Staff schedulingWeekly roster, shift swaps and holidays — with the Austrian rules on working time built in.Inventory management for restaurantsStock, best-before batches, ordering and cost of goods — the building block behind the till reconciliation.

Frequently asked questions

When do I need a cash register in Austria?
When BOTH thresholds are exceeded: €15,000 annual turnover per business AND €7,500 in cash sales a year (§ 131b BAO). Important: "cash" here also means debit and credit cards, other electronic payments and your own vouchers — in hospitality, practically all daily sales are therefore cash sales. A café in normal operation usually exceeds both thresholds within the first few months.
When exactly does the duty start after the thresholds are exceeded?
With the fourth month after the end of the VAT return period in which the thresholds were first exceeded (§ 131b(3) BAO). If you cross the thresholds in May, say, and file monthly returns, you must work with a cash register from September — the time in between is meant for buying the till, the security device and registering with FinanzOnline.
What does the duty to issue receipts require?
Every cash payment needs a receipt with five minimum details: the name of the business, a sequential number, the date of issue, the quantity and usual trade description, and the amount (§ 132a BAO). The guest must accept the receipt and take it out of the premises; the business keeps a copy for seven years — with electronic tills, the data capture log does this.
Can the receipt be digital since October 2026?
Yes. Since 1 October 2026 an electronic receipt also counts as a receipt if it is available to the guest immediately after payment — in any case when the guest can read it on site with a device, such as their own phone (§ 132a(1) BAO). If the guest or the tax authority asks for a paper receipt, the business must print it.
Is there an exception for sales outdoors or at mountain huts?
Yes, the so-called "cold hands" rule. It applies to sales from door to door or on public roads and squares without a connection to enclosed premises, to alpine, mountain, ski and refuge huts, to a Buschenschank (a wine tavern) open on at most 14 days, and to the small canteen of a non-profit association with at most 52 operating days a year. Since 1 January 2026 the limit is €45,000 annual turnover (§ 131(4) no. 1 BAO). Below it, the simplified calculation of daily takings is enough, and the cash register and receipt duties do not apply (§ 1(4) Barumsatzverordnung 2015).
What is the RKSV and what does my till have to do?
The Austrian cash register security ordinance (RKSV) requires a signature or seal creation device from a certified trust service provider (§ 15 RKSV), a machine-readable QR code on every receipt (§ 10), a tamper-proof data capture log backed up at least quarterly (§ 7), a start receipt when the till is put into use (§ 6), and registration of the till and signature device via FinanzOnline (§ 16). Modern till systems include this — it belongs on the checklist when you buy one.
Is Venheim a cash register?
No, quite deliberately not. Venheim is the operations logbook alongside it: staff scheduling, time clock, HACCP own checks, inventory. The cash register requirement is met by the till — and Venheim brings in its daily sales through the till connection (helloCash and ready2order automatically, any other till via CSV or interface) for reporting: till sales next to counted sales, reconciled daily, documented monthly in the tax adviser package.
Which till should I choose?
That depends on the business, and we don't sell any — so only the checklist you can verify: RKSV-compliant (signature device, QR receipt, data capture log), digital receipts too, export of daily sales (API or CSV), a transparent price. Venheim has ready-made connections to helloCash and ready2order; any till with a daily export can be connected via CSV. Please always check providers' prices and terms yourself.

Sources

About Venheim

Venheim is operations software for hospitality, studios and retail — built inside a real business and used there every day. Every feature and every guide comes from that daily work and is tested against it. More about Venheim. Not legal advice — where in doubt, the authority, the chamber or a law firm has the final word.