Websites for accounting and payroll offices

Austria: three professions, three licences

The Bilanzbuchhaltungsgesetz 2014 (BiBuG, Accountancy Professions Act) recognises three professions. Bilanzbuchhalter:innen (certified accountants) may, among other things, keep the ongoing books including payroll, file VAT pre-returns and prepare annual financial statements up to the size of a small corporation. Buchhalter:innen (bookkeepers) keep the books without payroll and without balance sheets, and Personalverrechner:innen (payroll accountants) handle wage and salary accounting.

What none of the three professions may do: prepare annual tax returns or represent clients in appeal proceedings. One exception: Bilanzbuchhalter may draft an employee’s tax assessment return (Arbeitnehmerveranlagung) and submit it as a messenger (§ 2 Abs. 1 Z 3 BiBuG). Anyone offering services outside their own licence commits an administrative offence that can be fined up to €20,000 (§ 61 BiBuG). Your website therefore only lists what you are allowed to do, and for annual financial statements adds a note on the limit under § 2 BiBuG.

Germany: state clearly what § 6 StBerG allows

In Germany, bookkeeping is not a chamber profession of its own. Under § 6 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 StBerG in the version in force since 1 September 2026, self-employed bookkeepers may set up charts of accounts, book ongoing business transactions, handle ongoing payroll and prepare payroll tax returns, provided they have the required professional experience. VAT pre-returns, cash-basis profit statements (Einnahmen-Überschuss-Rechnungen) and annual financial statements remain reserved for tax advisers.

The courts are strict about how this is presented. Terms such as “Finanzbuchhaltung” (financial accounting) or “Buchführungsbüro” (bookkeeping office) can be misleading if the limited scope is not made unmistakably clear, and according to the BGH (Federal Court of Justice), a mere reference to § 6 StBerG is not enough. Your website therefore lists the activities explicitly. You may use the title “Buchhalter:in” and, if acquired, “Geprüfte:r Bilanzbuchhalter:in”.

What clients want to know before the first meeting

Whether start-up, restaurant, trade business or online shop: anyone looking for an accounting office wants to know how receipts get to you, by when you need them and what comes back at the end of the month. The website explains the process, from uploading receipts via app or portal, through monthly bookkeeping, to the reports.

For payroll, the questions are different: by when does a new employee need to be registered, which documents are required, what happens when someone leaves? An FAQ on your website answers the most common ones before anyone calls.

Many offices work with BMD or RZL in Austria and with DATEV or Agenda in Germany. The website links to the portal your clients use to upload receipts and explains in a few sentences how access is set up.

Showing your cooperation with a tax adviser

Many accounting offices work closely with a tax advisory firm that takes care of annual returns and, in Germany, the financial statements too. Explaining this cooperation on the website builds trust: clients see that the process is coordinated, even though two firms are involved.

What matters is that the boundary stays visible. The website describes which work lies with you and which the tax adviser handles. This also protects you against cease-and-desist letters (Abmahnungen), which in Germany are frequently issued by Steuerberaterkammern.

Advertising: free, but not without limits

In Austria, there are no special advertising restrictions for the accountancy professions, and the UWG applies. Because of the duty of confidentiality under § 39 BiBuG, however, you only name clients with their consent. In Germany, § 8 StBerG also requires bookkeepers to provide factual information, but you may actively advertise for individual bookkeeping engagements.

Reviews and client testimonials are possible in both countries if they are genuine and you state whether and how their authenticity is checked. Industry focuses such as “bookkeeping for restaurants” are permitted, as long as they are accurate and you can substantiate them on request.