Climate bonus, electricity cost subsidy or “School Sports Week 100s” – which bonus lands first in your account in the new year. “Today” has the overview.
The coming year is also full of bonus payments and grants for citizens. “Today” shows you how much money you’ll get and when it’ll be paid out – the fat bonus plan 2024.
Since 1 January 2023, family benefits in Austria have been valorised. Specifically, the family allowance, the multi-child supplement, the child tax credit, the childcare allowance and the school start allowance will now be adjusted annually to inflation. For the coming year 2024, families in Austria will receive 9.7 percent more as a result of valorization. That’s up to 2,200 euros more per year.
In addition, the EU’s so-called “Work-Life Balance Directive” has been implemented since November. One effect: The family time bonus – i.e. the withdrawal during the father’s month for fathers – will be doubled to around 1,450 euros per month. This is 47.82 euros per day instead of 23.91 euros as before. The credit is retroactive to 1 August. There is no offsetting with the childcare allowance.
From January, the full family bonus of 1,500 euros per year will be paid out for the first time. This year, beneficiaries received half the bonus of 750 euros in July.
To be eligible for the bonus, certain requirements must be met. The relative must at least be entitled to level 4 care allowance and one’s own average monthly income must not exceed 1,500 euros net, “unless you have given up your job for the care anyway or are insured as a caring family member or caring relative,” according to the parliament.
The electricity price brake, which has been in place for more than a year, will continue to apply until the end of 2024. This subsidizes the costs of consuming the first 2,900 kWh per year with 30 cents – and is intended to bring relief of up to 500 euros per year. It only applies to private households, but not to companies or associations. An application for this is not necessary, the amount is automatically applied to the electricity bill.
All households with more than three people receive an additional amount, the “electricity supplement subsidy“. Ordinances have been created for the amount and design, according to the Ministry of Finance on Sunday. Details will follow.
The grid cost subsidy of 200 euros is also celebrating a comeback in the new year. This is available for low-income households. Households that are exempt from the GIS – now: from the ORF household levy – on the basis of their income or as recipients of unemployment benefit, social assistance or study grants are entitled to it. In total, the subsidy amounts to 75 percent of the system usage fees to be charged by the network operator, up to a maximum of 200 euros.
The climate bonus for 2023 of up to 220 euros has already been paid out to the majority of Austrians. However, while some have already received the bonus during October, others are still waiting to be paid out, such as new arrivals or newborns. They are expected to receive the bonus in February.
For the coming year, negotiations on the climate bonus will be renewed. Since this depends on the additional revenues from CO2 pricing, it could be raised again in 2024. The CO2 tax will be increased from the current 32.5 euros to 45 euros per ton of CO2 from January. As the portal “Finanz.at” reports, this could lead to an increase in the climate bonus to up to 260 euros.
The 60-euro monthly subsidy per child is available to single earners with less than 2,000 euros gross per month, as well as recipients of social assistance, unemployment benefit, emergency assistance or compensatory allowance. Payments will be made retroactively.
As reported, the disbursement of the outstanding grants for the months of July to October began in Vienna at the beginning of December. In Styria, this will now begin in January – retroactively in the amount of 360 euros once for the entire entitlement period 2023. Added together, this results in a total subsidy of 1,080 euros for each child until the end of 2024.
Recipients of social assistance without children will receive this subsidy or will also receive it until the end of 2023. From this year onwards, social assistance will be increased by inflation anyway.
In 2024, the repair bonus of up to 200 euros can be claimed again. The mode remains the same: before you order a repair, you have to apply for a repair voucher on Reparaturbonus.at. To do this, address, contact details and an account number must be entered into an online form. You will then receive a code at the email address provided, which in turn must be entered into the online form for confirmation.
You can then redeem this repair voucher at a partner company within three weeks. All 2,000 participating partner companies in Austria can be found on the website.
For school events with a sporting focus, e.g. school ski courses, additional support can also be applied for this year. By providing proof of a social benefit, pupils receive the confirmation for the “School Sports Week 100″ within a few days. In this way, the School Sports Weeks Service Centre helps to ensure that as many children and young people as possible can take part in school winter and summer sports weeks. The application form is available online at www.sportwochen.org/lehrer/spowo-100er
In order to help their employees in the face of high inflation, companies were able to pay employees a cost-of-living bonus of up to 3,000 euros gross for net in 2022 and 2023. This tax-free employee bonus has now been extended for 2024. What has changed: The bonus must be anchored in the collective agreement or similar.
Launched during the Corona pandemic in 2020, people registered as unemployed at the AMS who take part in training courses received further funding in addition to the AMS money. Depending on the duration of the training, training participants receive different amounts of bonuses – between 75 euros (level 1) and 374 euros (level 3) per month. You can find out more HERE.
➤ Newly decided (and in force since 1 January) is a new parent-family supplement in the federal capital. Single parents and couples with children affected by poverty are to benefit in particular. A reduction made necessary by a Constitutional Court ruling would have resulted in a loss of 105.36 euros per month for around 13,000 households. With 10,000 couples with children, this is a good way to compensate for the monthly loss. The new family allowance amounts to a total of 94.82 euros for them. For single parents, there is an additional 47.41 euros per month.
➤ Already a hit in 2023, the Vienna repair voucher (has nothing to do with the repair bonus Austria) is to be continued this year. As “Today” learned, it is expected to continue in May. The city of Vienna will pay up to 100 euros if you have broken items repaired. Bicycles, teddy bears or wardrobe – the bonus can be used for various products. The funding is intended to avoid waste and also save resources.
➤ Passed in the state parliament shortly before Christmas, the new heating cost subsidy for the 2023/2024 heating season in the amount of 150 euros can already be applied for (until the end of March 2024). In some cases, an additional 75 euros is possible (special funding). Welfare recipients receive the bonus automatically. Please note: The bonus is based on the compensatory allowance.
➤ The province of Lower Austria is providing 4 million euros for pubs in Lower Austria. From 1 January, they can apply for funding. But: Kebab and sausage stands go away empty-handed. Only establishments with traditional cuisine are supported. There are special stages for Italian or Asian restaurants – read more HERE.
➤ The Oö. Childcare bonus is awarded to parents or one parent who live with their child or children in the same household and do not use the kindergarten, which is free of charge until 1 p.m. The funding of 960 euros can be applied for from the 3rd birthday (37th month of life) of a child up to the beginning of the compulsory kindergarten year. The payment is made in two instalments – and can be applied for online HERE.
➤ Families in Upper Austria receive 200 euros per child as back-to-school support. This payment is limited to a maximum of 800 euros – i.e. four children. An application is not necessary for this or the deadline for this has already expired. The amount will be transferred in two instalments of 100 euros per child. The payment of the second tranche of up to 400 euros is to be made automatically from the second school semester (February 2024).
➤ With the help of the heat price cap, subsidies of up to 2,000 euros are also possible this year. When calculating the amount of funding, the net household income and the heating costs (heating costs) of the household are taken into account. Burgenland households with a maximum net annual household income of 63,000 euros can apply.
The bonus can now be applied for online at www.burgenland.at/wpd, but applications can be submitted all year round.
➤ From a distance of 20 km and an income of less than 3,426 euros gross per month (+ 10 % for spouse, + 10 % for each child for whom family allowance is received), commuters from Burgenland can apply for an eco-bonus. The annual subsidy amounts to 44.10 euros for the distance to work of at least 20 km, 61.50 euros from 50 km, 91.90 euros from 100 km + 0.60 euros per additional kilometer driven.
The bonus can only be applied for retrospectively for a calendar year and no later than 30 April of the following year at the Office of the Burgenland Provincial Government. You can find more information HERE.
➤ With around 570,000 Salzburgers, it was paid out 12,000 times last year. Now, from 1 January, the heating cost subsidy can be applied for again. In contrast to other federal states, strict requirements apply to this one – but at 600 euros, it is also much more generous than elsewhere. However, following a further increase in income limits, the number of recipients is likely to rise further this year. You can find out which limits apply HERE.
The deadline for applying for the heating cost subsidy is 30 September 2024. Good to know: Since experience has shown that many applications are to be expected, the processing time can take up to two months.
➤ In Carinthia, too, it is still possible to apply for a heating cost subsidy from the main municipality of residence until 29 March 2024. The large heating subsidy plus energy bonus is now 280 euros, with the small heating subsidy plus energy bonus, beneficiaries receive 210 euros.
Income thresholds have been raised further. For the large heating subsidy for single persons to 1,160 euros net, for two-person households to 1,680 euros net. For the small heating subsidy for single persons at 1,360 euros net, for two-person households at 1,880 euros net. For each additional person living in the same household, a supplement of 310 euros is taken into account in the income limits (applies to both the small and large grants). All information can be found on the homepage of the country on www.ktn.gv.at.
