On 25 February 2023, Austria’s Whistleblower Protection Act (Act) entered into force. The Act transposes the EU Whistleblowing Directive (Directive 2019/1937/EU; ‘Directive’) into Austria’s national law, setting forth a slightly extended material scope against the minimum requirements of the Directive.
This is the first in a series of blogposts exploring both legal and practical whistleblowing issues to be considered by companies operating in Austria and provides for a short summary of the key provisions of the Act.
Personal scope
The Act aims to encourage lawful conduct in areas of particular public interest by providing for easy and predictable procedures for reporting related breaches. Therefore, it sets out rules for the protection of whistleblowers, and persons close to them (e.g. facilitators, colleagues, relatives), same as the Directive.
The Act remains loyal to the Directive and only applies to whistleblowers who acquire information on a relevant breach in a work-related context. It does not apply to ordinary complaints by customers or citizen bystanders.
The Act requires enterprises to operate an internal whistleblowing system in compliance with certain minimum standard requirements if the company:
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