White-Collar Crime 2023

1. Legal Framework

1.1 Classification of Criminal Offences

Under Austrian criminal law, criminal offences are classified as either felonies (Verbrechen) or misdemeanours (Vergehen). The Austrian Criminal Code (Strafgesetzbuch or StGB) defines felonies as intentional offences that are punishable by a term of imprisonment of more than three years (including life sentences). All other offences are classified as misdemeanours (Section 17, StGB).

Elements of an Offence

Austrian criminal law offences consist of external ("objective") elements and internal ("subjective") elements. A punishable offence only occurs if all objective and subjective elements are present. The individual elements, both objective and subjective, are expressly defined for each offence.