Key points at a glance
- Bodenleger (floor layer) is a craft under § 94 no. 7 GewO. Without a proof of competence or a qualified managing director under trade law, you may not lay even laminate or click vinyl commercially.
- The Bodenleger-Verordnung (floor layer regulation, Federal Law Gazette II no. 33/2003) names the master craftsman exam and routes via an apprenticeship plus several years of work as a self-employed person, business manager or in a senior position.
- Screed is not a separate trade in § 94. In practice, screed businesses usually work with a floor layer licence restricted to screed laying or as master builders. Clarify the wording before you register.
- According to case law, parquet laying businesses fall under the BUAG. If you employ workers, you then register with the BUAK (construction workers' holiday and severance fund).
- Contractually, the contract standard ÖNORM B 2236 (floor coverings and wooden floors) helps, and ÖNORM B 2232 for screed.
This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change: check the details with your economic chamber or chamber of crafts, your trade guild or your tax adviser.
Floor laying: regulated, not free
A common misconception: if you "only" lay floors, you don't need a licence. The Gewerbeordnung (Trade Act) expressly lists Bodenleger as a craft in § 94 no. 7. The Wirtschaftskammer (Economic Chamber) assigns it to the construction ancillary trades. For you this means: without a proof of competence you cannot register a floor laying trade, and you may not lay floors as a subcontractor for a developer either.
Which documents prove competence is set out in the Bodenleger-Verordnung:
| Route | Content |
|---|---|
| Master craftsman exam | Floor layer master exam, exam regulations of the federal guild of construction ancillary trades since 1 Sept 2022 |
| Apprenticeship plus supervision | Apprenticeship certificate as floor layer (or in a related two-year apprenticeship), followed by at least five years of trade-specific work in a senior position |
| Apprenticeship plus self-employment | Apprenticeship certificate, followed by at least three years as a self-employed person or business manager, e.g. in another EU country |
| Long-standing self-employment | at least six consecutive years as a self-employed person or business manager |
| Individual proof of competence | § 19 GewO, on application to the trade authority, also restricted to certain activities |
Parquet, screed and the limits of the trade
Unlike in Germany, there is no separate parquet laying trade in Austria. Parquet, floorboards, laminate, resilient and textile coverings belong to the floor layer, as does sanding and sealing wooden floors. Screed is less clear-cut: § 94 GewO has no screed trade. In practice, screed businesses operate with a floor layer licence restricted to screed laying, or they work under a master builder licence. If you want to offer screed, ask your Landesinnung (regional guild) and the trade authority about the exact wording before you register.
- Wooden floors and coverings: the floor layer's core territory. The contract standard is ÖNORM B 2236 (floor coverings and wooden floors).
- Screed: its own contract standard, ÖNORM B 2232. If you only test, level or fill screed, you stay within the floor laying trade.
- Tiles: belong to the tile and slab layer, a separate regulated craft.
- Stairs: covering steps is floor laying work; building a wooden staircase is joinery work.
BUAK and employees
The Bauarbeiter-Urlaubs- und Abfertigungsgesetz (BUAG, Construction Workers Holiday and Severance Pay Act) is not linked to your trade licence but to the type of business. Case law has placed parquet laying businesses under the BUAG. For businesses that only lay prefinished parquet there have been different rulings, and if you mainly lay carpet or vinyl you may be classified differently again. Clarify this with the Landesinnung or directly with the BUAK before your first hire, because back payments for several years are expensive. Regardless of this, from your first employee you need a workplace risk assessment, for example for strain on knees and back, dust from sanding and solvents in adhesives.
Tools: what to start with
| Equipment | What for | Approx. cost |
|---|---|---|
| CM meter or moisture meter | Checking whether the screed is ready for covering | €600 to €1,200 |
| Floor grinder for substrates | Grinding screed, removing adhesive residue | €2,000 to €5,000 |
| Parquet sander and edge sander | Sanding wooden floors | €6,000 to €12,000 together |
| Industrial vacuum of the right dust class | Dust when sanding | €800 to €2,000 |
| Paddle mixer, trowels, notched blades | Levelling compounds and adhesives | €500 to €1,000 |
| Mitre saw, plunge saw, undercut saw | Cutting and door frames | €1,500 to €3,000 |
Many floor layers hire the parquet sander from a specialist dealer at first, until there are enough renovation jobs. On the other hand, invest early in good knee pads, a decent vacuum and a meter for residual moisture: a floor laid on screed that is too damp is the classic complaint.
Pricing: two typical jobs
Two examples show why a single price per square metre is not enough. The figures are assumptions for illustration; calculate with your own values:
| Item | A: gluing 60 m² of wide plank flooring | B: sanding and oiling 45 m² of old parquet |
|---|---|---|
| Substrate | Priming, partial filling: 8 h | Small repairs, filling gaps: 4 h |
| Main work | Gluing: 20 h | Three sanding passes plus edges: 14 h |
| Surface, skirting | Skirting boards 45 running metres: 6 h | Two coats of oil, intermediate sanding: 6 h |
| Working time | 34 h | 24 h |
| Labour at €58 per hour | €1,972 | €1,392 |
| Consumables, machines, abrasives | Adhesive, primer: about €540 | Abrasives, oil, machine: about €420 |
| Total per m² | about €42 | about €40 |
The renovation looks similar per m², but carries higher machine costs and more risk, for example from old adhesives or wear layers that are too thin. Look at the floor before quoting and write assumptions such as "wear layer sufficient for three sanding passes" expressly into the quote. That protects you if something other than expected turns up under the carpet.
How to get it right
- Measure residual moisture and document the result
- Price new installations and renovations separately
- Clarify the BUAK question before your first hire
- Use photos of finished floors for your references, with consent
Better not
- Offering "just click vinyl" without a trade licence
- Offering screed without having clarified the scope of your licence
- Laying on damp screed because the furniture has already been ordered
- Forgetting skirting boards and transition profiles in the quote
Your floors, well presented
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A free draft of your future business website.
Registration and start
You register the trade online via GISA or at the Bezirkshauptmannschaft (district authority) or Magistrat (city council). After that you belong to the Landesinnung der Bauhilfsgewerbe, are insured with the SVS and report the opening to the tax office. The small business rule (up to €55,000 annual turnover, as of November 2026) suits floor layers who mainly sell labour; if you supply materials, you lose the input VAT deduction with it. The general steps are in Starting a business in Austria, what belongs on your website in Mandatory details in Austria. With the business card generator your first cards for the specialist dealers are designed in no time.
Sources
- RIS – Gewerbeordnung 1994, § 94 (regulated trades)
- RIS – Bodenleger-Verordnung (BGBl. II Nr. 33/2003)
- RIS – Gewerbeordnung 1994, § 19 (individual proof of competence)
- RIS – ABGB, § 1168a (duty to warn)
- WKO – self-employment in the floor laying trade
- WKO – BUAG: scope
- WKO – fees for master and qualifying exams
- WKO – list of standards for joiners and wood designers (incl. ÖNORM B 2232, B 2236)
- USP – small businesses
- GISA – Gewerbeinformationssystem Austria
