To curb wage and social dumping, the financial police are set to inspect at least 1,300 companies this year. In 2025, the focus will be on road transport, particularly small delivery vehicles and courier services, the Ministry of Finance announced in a press release on Monday. Last year, 1,236 companies were checked for wage and social dumping violations.

During these inspections, it was found that eight percent of all cross-border posted or assigned workers were affected by underpayment. As part of the Office for Combating Fraud, the financial police filed 446 penalty applications for “failure to keep or provide wage records” and requested fines totaling €4.4 million.

Focus also on tourism and construction

“The annual inspection plan introduced in 2018 helps ensure targeted enforcement, secures proper pay for Austrian workers, and promotes fair competition among businesses,” said Finance Minister Markus Marterbauer (SPÖ). “While the Office for Combating Fraud monitors all sectors, specific focus areas are defined each year.”

In addition to road transport, increased inspections will again be carried out in the hotel, gastronomy, tourism, construction, and ancillary construction industries, as well as the security and event sectors.

Working hours must be reported to social security from 2026

As of January 2026, employers will be required to report the agreed number of working hours when registering employees with social security, according to the ministry. This new requirement, anchored in the recently passed budget accompanying law, aims to further combat wage dumping.

Chamber of Labour President Renate Anderl welcomed the change on Monday as a success and an improvement for employees: “Because those who work must know how much they work — and what they earn from it.” ÖGB Federal Managing Director Helene Schuberth added, “This is an important step toward more fairness and transparency in the labor market.”