Familienbonus Plus: who qualifies in 2026

Familienbonus Plus is one of the few instruments that reduces the actual tax amount rather than the base used to calculate it. That is precisely why it makes a tangible difference in the calculation — and precisely why so many claims are rejected on procedural grounds.

How it works

This is an Absetzbetrag: an amount deducted from the assessed income tax. Entitlement arises when Familienbeihilfe is being paid for the child. The full rate applies to children under 18; a reduced rate applies thereafter, provided the child is in education.

Parents may split the bonus equally or assign it in full to one of them. This decision should be agreed in advance: two filings showing different allocations are the most common reason for a counter-inquiry from the Finanzamt.

Typical reasons for rejection

No active Familienbeihilfe. The child is effectively resident outside Austria. Both parents have claimed the full amount. Or — most simply — the bonus has not been claimed at all: it is not applied automatically; it must be requested.

How to claim

Either through the employer — by submitting a declaration at the payroll stage, in which case the bonus is visible each month. Or through the annual return — via the child supplement, in which case the amount arrives together with the refund. The second route is more straightforward: all documents are already to hand.

If prior years were filed without the bonus, they can be claimed retrospectively — typically for the last five years. These are the quietest funds in the entire field of personal taxation: they simply sit and wait to be claimed.