Exit Tax in Poland vs Austria – A Practical Comparison

What is exit tax in principle?

“Exit tax” (Wegzugsbesteuerung also called “tax on unrealised gains”) is a set of rules designed to tax latent (unrealised) capital gains when a taxpayer (or assets) leaves a jurisdiction in a way that would otherwise deprive that jurisdiction of its future taxing right on a later disposal.

In cross-border cases, this issue is particularly acute because double tax treaties (DTAs) usually allocate taxing rights on capital gains from movable property (e.g., shares, fund units) primarily to the taxpayer’s state of residence at the time of sale; therefore, after a change of residence, the former state of residence may no longer be able to tax a later sale.

Austria’s Ministry of Finance explicitly frames exit taxation as a deemed disposal triggered by “circumstances leading to loss of Austria’s right of taxation,” noting that this occurs “in particular when the taxpayer moves abroad” because DTAs generally grant taxing rights to the country of residence.
Poland’s personal income tax (PIT) rules treat an exit tax similarly to situations in which Poland “loses the right to tax” future disposal income—either because assets are moved abroad or because the taxpayer changes tax residence.

What causes an exit tax charge in Poland and Austria?

Polish PIT imposes exit tax on two core events: (i) moving an asset outside Poland while the asset remains owned by the same taxpayer, if Poland loses (in whole or in part) the right to tax a later disposal, and (ii) a change of tax residence of a Polish unlimited taxpayer, if Poland loses the right to tax the later disposal of the taxpayer’s assets as a result of moving their residence abroad.

Austria treats exit taxation as a deemed disposal where “any circumstances leading to loss of Austria’s right of taxation with regard to the gains on disposal” constitute disposal, and it highlights relocation abroad as the common case because DTAs typically shift disposal taxation to the residence state.

In Austrian administrative practice, the concept is not limited to a total “loss” of taxing rights; after legislative changes effective from 2016, the trigger can arise already when Austria’s taxing rights are restricted (“Einschränkung”), as explained in the Ministry of Finance’s EAS guidance.

Which assets are subject to exit tax in Poland and Austria?

Poland – narrower “personal assets” scope for individuals changing residence

For individuals changing tax residence where the assets are not connected with business activity, Polish PIT limits exit tax to specific categories of “personal assets” (majątek osobisty):

• partnership rights in a non-corporate partnership,
• shares/participations,
• stocks and other securities,
• derivatives, and
• units/participations in investment funds.

Austria – broad capital-asset approach under capital gains rules

Austria’s guidance on capital gains explains that “income from realised value increases” typically includes, among other items:

• corporate shares,
• debt securities (including on redemption), and
• investment fund units (and real estate fund units).

For exit taxation purposes, the same guidance states that circumstances causing Austria to lose its taxing right over disposal gains are treated as a disposal, implying that the relevant capital assets that could later be sold (and whose gains would otherwise be taxed) fall within the exit tax concept.

Eligibility conditions

For non-business “personal assets” on a change of tax residence, Polish PIT applies exit tax only if the taxpayer had a place of residence in Poland for at least 5 years in the 10-year period preceding the change of residence. Polish PIT also introduces a key quantitative threshold: the filing and payment obligation is tied to the moment when the aggregate market value of transferred assets exceeds PLN 4,000,000 (with additional filing rules if further assets are transferred after the threshold is exceeded). Additionally, for assets covered by the spouses’ statutory marital community, market value is attributed at one-half to each spouse under the statute.

In Austria exit taxation is a consequence of loss of taxing rights (often via treaty residence changes) and does not frame the charge as depending on a minimum residence period (such as “5 of the last 10 years”) or a general minimum asset value threshold.
Instead, the decisive factor is whether the relevant circumstances lead to a loss or restriction of Austria’s right to tax disposal gains—an event-based trigger rather than a time- or value-based eligibility test.

Tax base: How is the taxable amount computed?

Under Polish PIT, “income from unrealised gains” is generally the excess of the asset’s market value (determined on the day of transfer or the day before the change of residence) over its tax value (wartość podatkowa). The tax base is the sum of unrealised gains computed for each relevant asset (and special rules apply for transfers of an enterprise or organised part of an enterprise). Polish PIT defines “tax value” in functional terms as the amount that would be treated as a deductible cost upon a hypothetical sale, provided it has not previously been deducted, while also noting that in some cases, tax value is not determined (e.g., where costs are not recognised for disposal under separate rules).

Austria’s exit taxation treats the event as a disposal and sets “notional sale proceeds” at the fair market value at the time of departure. The disposal gain is defined as the difference between sale proceeds and acquisition cost (and redemption of a security is treated like a sale), which in the exit context translates into FMV at exit minus acquisition cost.

Tax rates

Polish PIT sets the exit tax rate at:

• 19% of the tax base where the asset’s tax value is determined, or
• 3% of the tax base where tax value is not determined.

Austria taxes most capital income under a “special tax rate” system, with the general rate being 27.5% for most capital income categories, and 25% for certain bank interest items.
Austria’s exit taxation is described as a deemed disposal within the capital gains framework; therefore, in typical individual portfolio cases the applicable rate will usually be the capital income special rate (commonly 27.5%).

Payment timing

Austria’s Ministry of Finance states that a deferral of taxation until actual sale (“non-imposition”) can be requested in the tax return if an individual moves to an EU/EEA state, with the exit gain being recognised but the tax not being imposed until the real disposal.
The same guidance also notes that for other restrictions of taxing rights vis-à-vis EU/EEA states (e.g., certain transfers), a request can be made to pay the liability in instalments. So, Austria offers a structured, statutory path to align payment with liquidity (i.e., pay on actual sale) when the move is within the EU/EEA (subject to conditions and proper filing). When an Austrian tax resident individual moves to a non‑EU / non‑EEA country, Austria’s “exit tax” on capital assets generally becomes payable without the EU/EEA deferral. In practice, this means the unrealised gain is taxed as if one had sold the asset on the day of her leave, and the tax is normally assessed and due in Austria for the departure year.

Polish PIT’s core statute provides that taxpayers must file the relevant declaration and pay the tax by the 7th day of the month following the month in which the total market value of transferred assets exceeded PLN 4,000,000 (and further declarations for subsequent transfers).
However, Poland has introduced temporary payment-deferral regulations for individuals (PIT) by extending the payment deadline—currently (under the amended regulation) generally to 31 December 2027, with specific rules if the taxpayer “loses” the asset earlier (then payment may be due by the 7th day of the next month after such loss, depending on the timing).

Similar policy goal, but major design differences (and different planning levers)

Both Poland and Austria pursue the same overarching policy objective: to protect the tax base by taxing unrealised gains when the state’s future taxing right on a disposal is lost (often due to treaty residence rules). Yet the mechanics differ materially. Poland (PIT) uses eligibility filters for individuals changing residence (the 5-in-10 years residence condition for personal assets and the PLN 4,000,000 market value threshold), while Austria’s model is not built on such general time/value thresholds. Poland provides two rates (19% / 3%) depending on whether tax value is established, whereas Austria’s exit taxation generally follows its capital income special rate architecture (commonly 27.5% in typical portfolio cases. On payment timing, Austria provides a comparatively clear statutory deferral-to-sale (non-imposition) for EU/EEA moves (upon request), while temporary postponement regulations currently shape Poland’s PIT payment timing and otherwise relies on the general relief framework (deferral/instalments) available on application. Because of these design differences, the risk profile and “mitigation toolkit” can diverge: planning levers that may work in one jurisdiction (e.g., leveraging EU/EEA deferral rules in Austria) may not translate directly into the other (where thresholds, residence-period conditions, and temporary payment rules can dominate the analysis).

Would you like to learn more about tax law in different jurisdictions? Check out our other articles.

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