Procedure for EEA nationals, Swiss nationals and their third-country family members

Process

Applications for documentations can only be submitted in Austria to the locally competent Austrian settlement authority. If a third-country family member requires a visa for entry, he or she must apply for it at the Austrian representation authority abroad. You can find out which Austrian representation authority is responsible for which country on the homepage of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs  .

After entry into Austria, the issuance of a documentation must be applied for personally at the competent settlement authority. For children under 14 years of age, their legal representative must submit the application.

The Ministry of the Interior and many authorities provide application forms. An application form is not mandatory, but it does make it easier to process the application.

The documentation is issued to the person when all necessary documents have been submitted and the requirements are met.

Necessary documents

• For EEA citizens:
  • Valid identity card or passport
  • Confirmation from the employer or proof of self-employment
    OR
  • Proof of adequate health insurance (for example: European Health Insurance Card, insurance policy)
    AND
  • Proof of sufficient financial means (for example, by means of a credit balance on a savings book or a bank account)
  • For students additionally: confirmation of admission of the educational institution
• For Family members, who are EEA citizens:
  • Valid identity card or passport
  • Documentary evidence of the existence of the family relationship
  • Proof of the relative's right of residence under Union law from which the entitlement is to be derived.
    • In the case of children above the age of 21 and relatives of the EEA citizen, spouse or registered partner in the direct ascending line: proof of actual maintenance
    • For life partners: proof of the existence of a lasting relationship with the EEA citizen
    • For other relatives: documentary evidence from a competent authority of the State of origin regarding the maintenance of the EEA citizen or living in a domestic partnership or evidence of serious health reasons which make personal care by EEA citizens mandatory.
• For family members, who are third country nationals:
  • Valid identity card or passport
  • Documentary evidence of the existence of the family relationship
  • Proof of the relative's right of residence under Union law from which the entitlement is to be derived.
  • In the case of children above the age of 21 and relatives of the EEA citizen, spouse or registered partner in the direct ascending line: proof of actual maintenance
  • For life partners: proof of the existence of a lasting relationship with the EEA citizen
  • For other relatives: documentary evidence from a competent authority of the State of origin regarding the maintenance of the EEA citizen or living in a domestic partnership or evidence of serious health reasons which make personal care by EEA citizens mandatory.

Period of validity

• Registration certificate (Anmeldebescheinigung) and certificate of long-term resident status (Bescheinigungen des Daueraufenthaltes) unlimited as long as the settlement in Austria continues
• Residence card (Aufenthaltskarte): 5 years or shorter in case of a planned shorter stay.
• Permanent residence card (Daueraufenthaltskarte): 10 years

After that, a new application for a residence card or permanent residence card must be submitted.

If the documentation requirements are no longer met, there is no longer any right of residence under Union law. If the requirements are no longer met, the residence authority must be notified.

If the right of residence no longer exists because the requirements have ceased to apply and the person continues to stay in Austria, the Federal Office for Migration (Bundesamt für Fremdenwesen und Asyl) examines the case and will decide on the obligation to leave Austria.

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Last update: 1 October 2022