VIENNA (Reuters) – Austria’s governing coalition clinched a tax overhaul deal on Sunday that combines a new carbon pricing scheme with tax cuts for individuals and companies, officials said.
The accord between Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s conservatives and the ecological Greens includes a new system to tax carbon output not already covered by the European emissions trading scheme.
It set a price of 30 euros per tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2) from 2022, rising to 55 euros in 2025.
Corporate tax rates will gradually fall to 23% from 25% now, while income tax rates for people in two income brackets also drop. Family “bonus” allowances rise to 2,000 euros per child from mid-2022 from 1,500.
The cuts will provide around 18 billion euros ($20.9 billion) in tax relief by 2025, officials said.
($1 = 0.8625 euros)
(Reporting by Michael Shields; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
