Landwirtschaftskammer Vorarlberg (LK Vorarlberg)

The joint statutory representative body of farmers and farm workers in Vorarlberg, based in Bregenz. It advises on livestock, crops, forestry, farm management and legal and tax matters, and runs training with the LFI. It is part of the Austrian chamber system (LKÖ).

Membership by law (conditional), § 5: you are a member if you run a farm or forest holding in Vorarlberg on your own account and its last assessed value (Einheitswert) is at least €1,500, or if you earn most of your living from it. Operators of holdings with an assessed value between €150 and €1,500 are also members (aligned with the BSVG accident-insurance threshold). Spouses, family members and cooperatives are also covered; the test is the assessed value, not the area.

Chamber contribution charged as a surcharge on the agricultural land-tax base amount (Grundsteuermessbetrag), by law at most 1,200%; in Vorarlberg it is collected not by the tax office but by the municipalities, together with land tax. Cooperatives pay a per-mille share of sales. Ask the chamber or your municipality for the current rate.

Fee basis: land-value based (collected with tax)

• Technical advice (crops, livestock, forestry, organic)
• Help with aid applications (Mehrfachantrag)
• Legal, tax and social-insurance advice
• Farm management and diversification advice (direct sales, farm tourism)
• Training: Ländliches Fortbildungsinstitut (LFI)

• RIS – Landwirtschaftskammergesetz (Vorarlberg) § 5
• RIS – LWKG Vorarlberg, geltende Fassung (§ 27 Beiträge)
• BMF – Beiträge von land- und forstwirtschaftlichen Betrieben
• vbg.lko.at