Residence permit Austria 2026: types, requirements and how to apply

Which Austrian residence permit do you need?

The Austrian residence permit you need depends on two things, your passport and your reason for coming. The law gives each purpose its own title (§ 8 NAG). Pick the box that fits you.

Austrian residence permits in 10 official facts

§ 8 NAG lists 13 residence title types (RIS, 2026). A first temporary residence permit costs €218 and a permanent title €275 (bmeia.gv.at, fees from 1 January 2026). The authority must decide at the latest within six months, and within eight weeks for the Red-White-Red Card and the EU Blue Card (migration.gv.at, §§ 41 (3) and 42 (2) NAG, 2026).

What are the Austria residence permit types?

Austria residence permit types follow the purpose of your stay: § 8 NAG lists 13 titles, in three groups. Settlement titles are for long stays and can lead to permanent residence; temporary stay permits (Aufenthaltsbewilligung, “stay permit”) cover one purpose such as study; and the third group is the permanent “Daueraufenthalt – EU” (RIS). The City of Vienna sorts the same titles into work, education, private reasons and permanent residence (wien.gv.at). This is the full list with the main criteria; the documents of each type are on the linked pages.

Austria temporary residence permit or settlement permit? Both a settlement permit and a stay permit are issued for a limited period, so both can be called a “temporary residence permit” in English. In law they differ: time on a stay permit (Aufenthaltsbewilligung), such as the student permit, is not settlement in the legal sense; it counts half towards the five years for permanent residence, and only if it came immediately before the settlement permit (§ 45 (2) NAG; details on permanent residence). The 13th title, “Artikel 50 EUV”, is for British citizens who lived in Austria before the Brexit transition period ended, and for their family members (oesterreich.gv.at); EU citizens’ third-country family get a separate residence card (Aufenthaltskarte, see EU citizens).

What are the Austria residence permit requirements?

The Austria residence permit requirements come in two layers. The first is four general conditions, from which the law exempts particular titles; the second is what each title adds on top. The Interior Ministry lists the general ones: “Third-country nationals must have stable and regular income”, “must have health insurance that covers all risks in Austria”, “must prove a legal claim to accommodation”, and the stay must not endanger public order or security (BMI). The table sets out both layers.

Austrian residence permit requirements for students and retirees differ mainly in the income layer. Students show funds for 12 months (OeAD), while retirees show twice the reference rate (migration.gv.at). If you are an Indian citizen, a first application is, as a rule, filed in New Delhi with its own rules (the exceptions are in § 21 (2) NAG); see Austria residence permit for Indian applicants.

How to get a residence permit in Austria in six steps

How to get residency in Austria follows the same order for every non-EU route: purpose first, then documents, then a personal filing, as a rule at the Austrian embassy or consulate responsible for where you live. The law says first applications are filed “before entering” and “the decision is to be awaited abroad” (§ 21 NAG, our translation).

1. 1
   Name your purpose

   Job, job search, study, family, retirement or own means. The purpose decides the title (13 types in § 8 NAG) and its extra conditions.

2. 2
   Check the special conditions

   Your Red-White-Red Card group’s rules (employed groups: job offer and the group’s conditions, e.g. points; self-employed key workers and start-up founders: business-based rules), admission (student), sponsor (family), twice the income reference rate and a quota place (settlement without work).

3. 3
   Collect the general documents

   Passport, photo, accommodation, income, all-risk health insurance that pays in Austria, plus the documents of your type; translate what is not in German or English.

4. 4
   File in person

   As a rule, first application at the Austrian embassy or consulate for your place of residence, before entry. Listed groups may file in Austria after lawful entry (§ 21 (2) NAG); for most of them filing gives no right to stay beyond the visa or visa-free period (§ 21 (6) NAG). Red-White-Red Card applicants: ask the authority.

5. 5
   Wait for the decision

   At the latest 6 months by law; Red-White-Red Card 8 weeks; student permit 90 days (90 more if documents must be added). Embassies cannot influence the processing time (Embassy New Delhi).

6. 6
   Enter, register, collect the card

   Visa D to enter if you need one, register your address within 3 days, collect the card (Vienna hands student-permit cards over in person), keep your insurance running.

Austria residence permit checklist. Subject to the rules and exemptions for your title, check before you book that you have (1) the right title for your purpose, (2) a passport valid beyond the planned stay, (3) a photo 45 x 35 mm not older than six months, (4) proof of income or funds if required, (5) accommodation if required, (6) all-risk health insurance with its certificate, (7) civil-status papers translated into German or English, (8) the type-specific documents and (9) the €218 fee (2026). The printable version with every line is on Austria visa documents checklist.

Where do you file, and how do you book an Austria residence permit appointment?

You file the Austria residence permit application in person, either abroad at the embassy or consulate for your place of residence or, if you belong to a § 21 (2) group, in Austria at the residence authority of your future address (oesterreich.gv.at). For applicants under § 21 (2) Z 1, Z 4–6 or Z 7a–9, filing in Austria gives no right to stay beyond the visa or visa-free period (§ 21 (6) NAG). RWR applicants should ask the authority. In Vienna that authority is MA 35; elsewhere the district authority or the city magistrate. For an employed Red-White-Red Card your prospective employer may also file in Austria for you (migration.gv.at FAQ).

For a residence permit Austria appointment in Vienna, the English questionnaire on wien.gv.at ends with the MA 35 page “where you can book an appointment to file your application” (wien.gv.at questionnaire). By law the authority decides within six months at the latest (migration.gv.at), within eight weeks for the Red-White-Red Card (§ 41 (3) NAG) and within 90 days (90 more if documents must be added) for the student permit (OeAD). MA 35 reported an average of 52 days for third-country cases in 2025, first applications and renewals combined (City of Vienna performance report). We found no official figure for current appointment waiting times. Practical help with MA 35 in English is on MA 35 Vienna, and renewals are explained on residence permit renewal. The Austria residence permit application form itself is free on the Interior Ministry’s forms page, in English for most purposes (bmi.gv.at).

The Austria residence permit card. Every title is issued as a card that shows your name, date of birth, photo, the issuing authority and the validity, and the law says these cards “count as identity documents” (§ 8 (2) NAG, our translation). For the student permit, Vienna hands the card over in person (wien.gv.at).

Is there an Austria residence permit by investment?

In our reading of the list of titles in § 8 NAG, none is called an investor permit, so we found no Austria residence permit by investment in the sense of a “golden visa”. Investment counts inside two Red-White-Red Card groups (migration.gv.at, checked 2026). Self-employed key workers show a macroeconomic benefit, for example “investment capital to Austria amounting to € 100.000 minimum” (migration.gv.at), and start-up founders need capital of at least €30,000 with an equity share of at least 50 % (migration.gv.at). People who want to live on their own money, without working, use the settlement permit – except gainful employment, which needs, among other conditions, a quota place, twice the income reference rate and German A1 (migration.gv.at). Vienna reported that these quota places were reserved “in the first minutes of the first working day” in recent years (Land Wien, December 2025). We did not find the 2026 quota numbers. We found no digital nomad permit in the list either (Austria digital nomad visa?).

Do EU citizens need a residence permit in Austria?

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no residence permit in Austria. Under the residence permit Austria rules for EU citizens, they register a stay of more than three months, and “this request must be made within four months of arriving in Austria” (oesterreich.gv.at). If they do not work, they must have “sufficient resources and comprehensive sickness insurance cover for themselves and their family members”. Their qualifying non-EU family members (spouse or registered partner, children under 21 or maintained, maintained parents; § 52 (1) Z 1–3 NAG) receive a residence card (Aufenthaltskarte) for five years or the shorter planned stay; other relatives may instead need a § 56 permit with a Haftungserklärung. The card is applied for in Austria within four months of entry (fee €91 in 2026, €39 under 16). Parents of EU citizens are covered on parents of EU citizens. This site covers health insurance for NAG permits, so EU citizens are outside its scope.

Which health insurance does an Austrian residence permit need?

Every Austrian national residence title needs health insurance that “covers all risks” and pays in Austria (§ 11 (2) 3 NAG), and for such a title the Interior Ministry says that presenting travel health insurance “is in any case not sufficient” (bmi.gv.at, our translation). The one exception migration.gv.at states is the Red-White-Red Card application, where travel cover “well above € 30,000” that includes rescue and return costs is accepted at the time of application (migration.gv.at FAQ, checked 2026); for a first student permit, OeAD describes attaching a written statement that ÖGK student insurance will be taken out after entry, with travel cover only until then (see the table; ask your residence authority). Employment subject to compulsory health insurance gives ÖGK cover from the first working day, so private cover is needed only for a gap. A marginal job at or below €551.10 a month in 2026 does not by itself provide statutory health cover. ÖGK self-insurance costs €565.25 a month in 2026, has a six-month waiting period unless it is waived and, for non-EU/EEA/Swiss citizens, needs a valid permit first (ÖGK self-insurance). The full rule, the certificate and the MA 35 list are on health insurance for a residence permit (prices by age are on Austria health insurance cost).

Care Concept AG is on Vienna's MA 35 list: unlimited Care Austria tariffs need no extra declaration, 364-day ones do (checked 30 October 2026) (wien.gv.at). Whether another residence authority accepts a given policy is not confirmed to us, so ask yours. Care Austria comes from Care Concept AG as seller, with HanseMerkur Versicherungsgruppe (Advigon Versicherung AG) as insurer. Unlimited contracts can be cancelled ordinarily only after one year, and then only to 31 December with 1 month’s notice (AVB § 3). Care Austria ends when Daueraufenthalt EU or another unlimited residence permit is granted, or when you leave Austria for good (AVB § 6); for the Daueraufenthalt EU application itself, the City of Vienna asks for another insurance (wien.gv.at). All insurance routes are compared on health insurance in Austria for foreigners.

How a Red-White-Red Card holder’s wife, 51, gets insured for her permit

Illustrative example: Tomás, 44, a welder from Colombia, gets a Red-White-Red Card as a skilled worker and starts work in Linz. His employer registers him with the ÖGK before his first day, so his own insurance question ends there. His wife Lucía, 51, applies, as a rule, for the Red-White-Red Card plus at the embassy before she enters; as a visa-free Colombian she may also file in Austria after lawful entry (§ 21 (2) NAG), but filing does not let her stay beyond her visa-free period (§ 21 (6) NAG). She cannot be co-insured on his ÖGK until she lives in Austria, so her file needs a policy that pays in Austria and covers all risks. Her travel insurance is not enough for the Red-White-Red Card plus, which is a national residence title. She also needs a German A1 certificate before she files.

They choose Care Austria Standard for the 50–64 band at €222 a month (2026). Because of the one-year minimum term (AVB § 3), they budget at least €2,664 for the first year, even if Lucía moves onto Tomás’s ÖGK co-insurance earlier. If the contract still runs on 1 January 2028, the price rises to €268 per the policy terms. Her card costs €218 (2026). Their budget for rent and food is on cost of living in Austria.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• § 8 NAG (types), § 11 NAG (conditions, insurance), § 21 NAG (where to file), § 45 NAG (Daueraufenthalt – EU), on RIS; §§ 8, 21 and 45 in the versions in force since 7 August 2026, § 11 since 7 March 2023
• oesterreich.gv.at: general information on residence (validity), settlement permit application (in person, translations), EU citizens, renewal
• Interior Ministry (BMI): general requirements, health insurance (German) and application forms
• migration.gv.at: permanent immigration, other forms of settlement, Red-White-Red Card plus, self-employed key workers, start-up founders, FAQ
• City of Vienna: residence permits for third-country nationals and English questionnaire; OeAD: student permit; bmeia.gv.at: permit fees from 1 January 2026
• Care Austria policy terms (AVB) and tariff page (insurer documents, read 30 October 2026)

How we work is set out in our editorial standards and on about this site; questions go through our contact page. This page is general information, not legal or immigration advice; the residence authority decides. Referral links may earn us a commission from Care Concept AG at no extra cost to you (affiliate disclosure).