As of today, Austria has introduced a national levy of 2 euros per parcel for large online sellers. The measure applies to online stores and marketplaces generating more than 100 million euros in annual sales to customers in the country. Thousands of other businesses are affected indirectly. Resistance to the levy is therefore considerable.
The Austrian levy, effective from 1 October, is separate from the EU’s 3-euro charge per product category on small consignments from outside the bloc, introduced on 1 July. From November, the EU will add a 2-euro handling fee per customs declaration line. Both European charges are intended to curb the influx of parcels from China and strengthen product safety controls.
National levy
According to the Austrian government, the national levy serves a similar purpose. However, there is a major difference compared with the charges introduced at EU level: the Austrian measure applies to purchases from all large online stores and marketplaces, including domestic ones. Large Austrian ecommerce companies have been struggling for years to compete with international giants, and cross-border buying remains a concern. The Vienna measure offers them no particular advantage.
‘Additional costs for 4,000 Austrian online stores’
Many smaller and medium-sized online businesses will also feel the effects. According to Rainer Will, director of the Austrian Retail Association, the measure affects around one in three domestic online stores. These 4,000 sellers offer their products through marketplaces that fall within the scope of the levy, meaning platforms generating more than 100 million euros in sales in Austria in the previous financial year. They will face additional indirect costs and administrative burdens, Will writes in the association’s monthly newsletter. “Half of all online orders are affected. All in all, this absurd levy will cost us almost 3,000 jobs and reduce GDP by 360 million euros annually.”
Criticism
Large players including Amazon, Otto, Refurbed and Zalando have previously voiced objections to the levy, as has Wirtschaftskammer Österreich. The Austrian Economic Chamber points to the 20 percent VAT that in most cases is added to the 2-euro levy, effectively bringing the total to 2.40 euros. Critics argue that these costs will ultimately be passed on to consumers.
