Residence permit
If you intend to stay in Austria for a period exceeding 6 months you must apply for a residence permit and not for an entry permit (visa). If you want to work in Austria, you will additionally have to apply for a working permit. Residence permits are issued by the authorities in Austria and are solely issued for stays exceeding six months.
Please note:
You must file your application for a residence permit to the Austrian Embassy before you actually leave for Austria. In general, you are not allowed to go to Austria as long as your application has not been approved.
Fees
A fee (approx. € 80 in RAND in cash) is payable at the time of application. The residence permit, once issued, has to be collected from the issuing authority in Austria. To collect the issued residence permit from the issuing authority in Austria you will (in most cases) need a visa to travel to Austria. Therefore, an additional visa fee (approx. € 100 in RAND in cash) has to be paid (certain exceptions apply).See exchange rate).
In addition, (almost) all non-EU or non-EFTA citizens who both apply for a residence permit and plan to stay in Austria for more than 24 months must sign an Integration Agreement.
Further Information, application forms and the legal framework may be found on the homepage of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Interior:
http://www.bmi.gv.at/cms/BMI_Niederlassung
Application procedure:
- If the applicant is a minor, the application must be signed by both parents or legal guardians.
Criteria based Immigration to Austria
Red-White-Red Card
Austria is introducing a new criteria based immigration scheme: the Red-White-Red Card (RWR Card). The RWR Card model aims at a more flexible immigration of qualified third-country work force and their families who wish to settle permanently in Austria according to personal and labour market criteria.
The most important requirements are qualification, work experience, age, language skills, offer of employment according to the qualification and minimum remuneration.
The new regulations come into force on Ist of July 2011. Applications under the new scheme may be submitted starting from that date (with the exception of skilled workers, see below).
The RWR Card is available for persons who meet the requirements in two different versions:
- RWR Card: entitles to residence and employment only with a certain employer
- RWR Card plus: entitles to residence and unlimited labour market access
The RWR Card will be available the following groups of applicants:
- Very highly qualified workers
- Skilled workers in shortage occupations
- Other key workers
- Graduates of universities and colleges of higher education in Austria
The RWR Card plus will be available the following groups of applicants:
5. Family members of applicant groups 1 to 4 and holders of an EU Blue Card
6. Family members of foreign citizens permanently settled in Austria
Applicants for a European Union Blue Card
With the EU Blue Card regulations, Austria transforms the provisions of the European Blue Card Directive (Council Directive 2009/50/EC) into national law. This directive harmonizes the conditions of entry, residence and labour market access of highly qualified third country citizens and their families within the EU.
Requirements for an EU Blue Card:
- completed university course of three years minimum duration
- binding employment offer with 150% of the average yearly gross salary for a full-time employee (in 2011: annual gross salary of at least 52 417.50 €, that is about 3 745 € gross per month)
- no equally qualified unemployed person registered with the Austrian Public Employment Service (Arbeitsmarktservice, AMS) can be recruited by the potential employer (mandatory labour market test).
The EU Blue Card is issued for a period of two years.
Holders of an EU Blue Card may apply for a RWR Card plus with unlimited labour market access if they have been employed for at least 21 months during the previous 24 months according to their qualification.
Family members can apply for a RWR Card plus with unlimited labour market access.
