A personnel trainer from Austria is at the center of a discovered wage and tax fraud in the millions. After a routine examination by the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) in 2023, massive irregularities were found, which led to the involvement of the Office for Combating Fraud and the accommodation of comprehensive investigations by the tax investigation.
“Tax and tax fraud is not a cavalier offense. Those who cheat not only harm the state, but all honest taxpayers. Nobody can steal away from tax obligations,” says finance minister Markus Marterbauer.
The focus of the investigation was a fraudulent system that aimed in particular on foreign workers. They had to sign blank cassidets before taking up service. As part of the payroll, alleged advances (“aconto payments”) were then deducted, which were actually never paid out. Two judgments already existed confirmed this procedure.
Wages were supposedly posted as operating expenses by the recruitment company, but not fully paid out to the employees. The officially reported gross wage corresponded to the amount provided for the collective agreement, but in fact a significantly lower net wage was paid to the employees. The difference was presumably landed by fictitious bars and the previously signed blank players in the personal sphere of influence of the management.
In addition, no pay slips were given to the employees, which prevented the actual wage bill and also veiled the fraud.
The tax damage determined amounts to around 2.2 million euros. The investigation results were reported to the responsible judicial authority. There is now deciding on the accumulation of the indictment in this financial criminal proceedings.
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