BUAK registration for companies in Austria - mandatory holiday fund for the construction industry

BUAK (Bauarbeiter-Urlaubs- und Abfertigungskasse) is the mandatory Austrian holiday fund for the construction industry. Every company carrying out construction work in Austria, including a Polish company posting employees, must register in the BUAK system and pay contributions of about 12-15% of the employee gross salary. We help with company registration, employee registration and handling the eBUAK system.

Company registration with BUAK

Employee registration and eBUAK handling

Support for posting companies

Fixed upfront fee, no commission

What is BUAK?

BUAK is an institution operating under the BUAG act, whose task is to manage the holiday system in the Austrian construction industry. The fund is responsible for collecting contributions and paying out benefits related to:

- annual leave
- holiday supplement (Urlaubszuschuss)
- winter benefits
- industry severance payments (Abfertigung)
- bad-weather compensation (Schlechtwettergeld)

The system was created to stabilise the seasonal labour market in construction and to safeguard workers' rights regardless of company turnover.

Why is registration mandatory?

The obligation applies to companies carrying out construction work in accordance with § 2 BUAG, including structural, installation, façade, assembly and finishing works.

Registration covers:

- companies based in Austria
- foreign companies carrying out contracts in Austria
- Polish companies posting workers

In the case of posting, the obligation arises from the first day of work in Austria. The ZKO3 notification does not replace registration with BUAK.

A lack of registration may result in an inspection on the construction site, the charging of contribution arrears and administrative penalties of up to EUR 10,000.

What contributions does the company pay?

Companies covered by the BUAK system pay monthly contributions, which on average amount to about 12 to 15% of the employee's gross remuneration. In practice, this works out to about EUR 60 to 65 per working day, depending on the employment category.

The contributions finance employees' future holiday and industry benefits.

What does the registration procedure look like?

Registration involves submitting company documents, registering the construction activity and obtaining an identification number (BKZ). After the number is assigned, the company gains access to the eBUAK system, in which the following are handled:

- employee registrations
- monthly declarations
- contribution settlements
- data updates

The first settlements usually appear within 1 to 2 months of registration.

Obligations after registration

After being entered into the system, the company must register new employees on time, submit monthly declarations and pay contributions by the set deadlines.

BUAK carries out inspections on construction sites, verifying registrations and compliance with the rules on minimum wage rates (LSD-BG).

Benefits of the BUAK system

The system ensures financial neutrality for employers and protection of workers' rights.

For companies, this means reimbursement of the full cost of the paid leave (Entgelt) together with a supplement of about 30% covering social contributions and administrative costs. This eliminates the risk of incurring losses due to seasonal employment and worker turnover.

The system also introduces uniform competition rules: all companies in the industry pay contributions according to the same rules, which limits wage dumping.

For workers, this means a guarantee of 25 to 30 days of paid leave, the portability of rights between companies and the payment of benefits directly by BUAK, even after a change of employer.

What does the service include?

As part of the BUAK support, we provide:

- analysis of the registration obligation
- preparation and submission of documents
- registration in the eBUAK system
- support with the first declarations
- help in the event of an inspection

The service is provided on a fixed-fee model agreed in advance, with no percentage commissions.

If you carry out construction work in Austria or post workers for construction contracts, we will analyse your situation and check whether you are subject to the BUAK registration obligation. Based on the type of activity, the number of employees and the form of service provision, we will determine the scope of required notifications and prepare a list of necessary documents.

You can contact us by phone or e-mail. On business days we provide information on the next steps and the scope of support.

ul. Żywiecka 155a
43-300 Bielsko-Biała

+48 515 096 602
biuro@fenixtax.pl