Entry Permits (Visa)

Please note: All applications from within Canada must be submitted in person.

The Austrian Embassy does have a telephone-based appointment scheduling system for visa applicants. Please call (1) 613 789-1444 to arrange your appointment. Operating hours for the Visa Information Service are Monday to Friday from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm.

Applications can only be processed once all supporting documents have been received. Please make sure you have all the required documents with you! Applications will not be accepted if supporting documents are missing!

We only accept applications from the consular jurisdiction of the Embassy (Canada). Should you reside in another country than Canada, please contact the competent Austrian Embassy responsible for your application.

If you come to Austria as a tourist, pass through Austria in transit, visit friends and/or relatives in Austria, or are on business trip And your stay is Not to exceed six (6) months, you will most likely need an entry permit (visa) to cross the border into Austria. Please remember that, in general, your valid visa does Not allow you to take up any employment while in Austria.

Due to bi- and multilateral agreements, individuals who hold a valid regular passport of one of the visa-exempt countries need Not apply for a visa to enter Austria (and the Schengen zone) for non-work related stays of up to 90 days (for a list of visa-exempt countries see the pdf file below). The possibility to enter Austria visa-free does not grant you the right to work there. In any case, the passport of visa-exempt nationals should (at least) be valid for the whole duration of your stay in Austria (and the Schengen zone).

Please note that both your nationality (= citizenship) and the passport you hold determine whether you must apply for a visa or whether you can travel freely under the Visa Waiver Program (visa-exempt countries).

• Holders of Refugee Passports and Alien Passports always NEED a visa for Austria (Note: An airport transit visa is only required if the refugee/alien passport has been issued by one of the countries listed under I) below and the applicant does not have a valid Canadian PR-Card).
• Canadian Permanent Residents (Landed Immigrants) also NEED a visa if they do not hold a regular passport of one of the visa-exempt countries.

Non-visa-exempt nationals should keep in mind that their passports are to be valid for three more months beyond the date of their leaving Austria (and the Schengen zone).

Austria is a member of the Schengen Agreement which has lead to the disappearance of internal border controls among its member states. A Schengen visa generally allows you to travel freely throughout the whole Schengen zone.

The following 24 countries are parties to the Schengen Agreement:
Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.

The Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia joined the Schengen area on 21 December 2007.

If you need a Schengen visa (= transit or travel visa) to enter Austria and you live in the Toronto or Vancouver area, you may also apply for the Schengen visa at the German Consulates General located there.

If you only change planes at the airport without leaving the transit area AND you do not hold a passport of one the countries whose citizens need an airport transit visa (see below), a transit visa is NOT required.

If you both hold a passport of one the countries listed below AND do not hold a valid Canadian Permanent Resident Card (PR Card), you must apply for an airport transit visa (Visa A) even if you merely change planes in Austria without actually leaving the transit area of the airport:

Afghanistan          Bangladesh          DR Congo          Eritrea          Ethiopia
Ghana                    Iraq                         Iran                      Liberia          Nigeria
Pakistan                Somalia                 Sri Lanka

If you plan to go to Austria as a tourist, visit friends, on a business trip for a period not to exceed 90 days or transit through and/or stay for a few days in the Schengen area, prior to travelling onwards to a country located outside the borders of the Schengen area  And your country does not participate in the Visa Waiver Program, you need a Schengen travel visa (Visa C). This visa is not a work permit.

Please note that in order to apply for a travel visa at the Austrian Embassy, your only destination or your main destination (longest duration of stay) must be Austria. In the absence of a main destination, Austria must be your first point of entry into the Schengen zone.

If you intend to stay in Austria for more than 90 but less than 180 days as a tourist, on a business trip, to visit friends or relatives, or you intend to take up short term employment (less than 6 months) AND you are neither an EU nor an EFTA citizen, you need a national Austrian visitor visa (Visa D). A visitor visa is valid for Austria only (it is not a Schengen visa), but it entitles the bearer to pass through other Schengen countries in order to get to Austria.

A visa D is not a work permit.

If you intend to take up temporary employment for less than 6 months (even if you are allowed to enter Austria without a visa and your stay does not exceed three months), you will have to provide a Sicherungsbescheinigung at the time of the application for a visa. The Sicherungsbescheinigung has to be obtained by your Austrian employer from the local Austrian labour office (AMS).

Before you fill out a visa application form, please make sure that you need not apply for a residence permit to go to Austria.

1. The Austrian Embassy will accept only complete visa applications. Original documents will be returned after the application has been processed.
2. The consular fee must be paid at the time you submit your application.
3. Visa applications will be processed as quickly as possible, but visas will not be issued for same-day travel. Exceptions are not permitted. The Embassy recommends that you apply at least three weeks before your planned date of departure.
4. If you wish to have your documents returned by mail please enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope with your application. To have your documents returned by overnight mail or courier service, please enclose respective envelope and postage. The Austrian Embassy assumes No responsibility for documents after they were mailed from the Embassy.
5. Please note that there is No legal claim on obtaining the visa you applied for. In the event that changes are made to the application after it was received, additional fees will be charged.
6. If you do Not reside in Canada (e.g. being in Canada as a tourist), you cannot apply for a visa at the Austrian Embassy in Ottawa. You must apply for the visa at the Austrian Embassy in your country of residence.

The following documents (if applicable) must be presented when applying for a visa:

1. Valid and signed passport or travel document
   (passport/travel document must be valid for at least three months beyond date of leaving Schengen zone)
2. two visa application forms, completed and signed
3. two recent identical passport photos (colour), front view
4. travel itinerary (showing dates of travel) for complete journey and airline reservation
5. proof of travel insurance or health/accident insurance providing worldwide coverage; minimum medical coverage at least CAD 50,000.00. Insurance company must have partner company in Austria or another EU member state
6. original Permanent Resident Card (PR Card) or long-term Canadian visa (except visitor visa) in passport 
7. visas of countries you intend to visit after your stay in Austria
8. if applicant is under the age of 18: written consent of parents or guardians
9. one set of fotocopies of All supporting documents

In addition to the above mentioned documents the following items must be submitted:

If you are traveling to Austria as a tourist:

1. Confirmed hotel-reservation or confirmation of tour
2. Recent bank-statement, stamped and signed by your bank
3. Confirmation of employment and recent statement of income of the last 3 months

If you are traveling on business:

1. Original letter from your company stating reason for your stay in Austria
2. (The following additional document may be required: Original letter of invitation (Verpflichtungserklärung), duly signed by a representative of the Austrian company, for example, manager, ececutive officer,...)

If you are visiting friends or family:

1. Applicant's recent bank-statement, stamped and signed by the bank
2. Applicant's letter of continued employment and recent statement of income of the last 3 months
   
   (The following additional document may be required: Elektronische Verpflichtungserklärung (EVE) - the inviting party has to personally contact the office of the responsible police station in Austria to register and sign the relevant details)

If you intend to work temporarily for less than 6 months:

• Sicherungsbescheinigung (to be obtained by your Austrian employer from the local Austrian labour office (AMS)

If you are going to Austria as a pupil or student (attending school or college/university):

1. Original letter of admission from the school or university in Austria
2. Letter of confirmation from the Canadian university/college etc.
3. Police clearance record (not older than three months)
4. Birth certificate
5. Financial means (approximately CAD 1,000.00 for each month staying in Austria)
6. Proof of accomodation in Austria

FURTHER DOCUMENTATION MAY BE REQUIRED ON A CASE-TO-CASE BASIS!

PLEASE NOTE: Since the information on our website is constantly updated, please refrain from calling to re-confirm the listed requirements by telephone. We value your cooperation.