Whether it’s a Kleiner Brauner, Eisstanizel or a haircut, since the introduction of the cash register obligation, shops have had to issue a receipt even for invoices of more than a few euros. Many industries now want this to only be mandatory from 30 euros. This should reduce the large amount of bureaucratic effort.
Most of us don’t even look at the receipt after a small purchase or a visit to the pub and simply throw it away. More than 70 percent of all payments concern invoices of less than ten euros. In total, around 560,000 kilometers of receipts are printed annually for these small amounts. This would require 2,950 tons of wood or 2,000 spruce trees – not exactly ecologically responsible in itself, the business association calculates. Business people in particular suffer from the bureaucratic red tape, the study shows; 57 percent of them want the general requirement to submit receipts to be abolished and only want to write an invoice for orders above 30 euros. Since the introduction of the electronic cash register in 2016, the turnover for the tax authorities has been transparent anyway. The obligation that was established at the time to always issue an invoice would therefore be unnecessary and annoying. 56 percent of the population is also in favor of ending the paper system, says the business association. By law, consumers are actually required to keep the receipt until they leave the store – a financial check can still take place outside.
560,000 kilometers of tickets per year
The deeper background of the current initiative against the flow of paper, however, is that companies generally feel overwhelmed by too much bureaucracy. For example, large companies can now B. Save money and time with invoices via a mobile phone app, the small ones are stuck in the paper economy.
“We want to do our work in the best possible way and during the best possible period,” says Renate Scheichelbauer-Schuster, representative at the Chamber of Commerce for local trade and craft businesses.
Bureaucracy costs companies and craftsmen 4.3 billion euros
According to a new study, these industries alone have to spend more than 69 million working hours on bureaucratic tasks each year. This is equivalent to the work of 42,190 full-time employees or a total of 6.6 percent of the total workforce. In times of a shortage of skilled workers, this is no longer sustainable, says Scheichelbauer-Schuster. And the regulations are not only getting bigger, they are also getting more expensive. Internal administrative expenditure already costs 2.6 billion euros, mainly in terms of working time. In addition, there are costs for tax consultants, wage calculators etc. of another 1.7 billion euros. These total of 4.3 billion euros ‘eat up’ 3.3 percent of the total commercial turnover of almost 130 billion euros.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
