Austria student residence permit 2026: requirements, renewal, work and health insurance

Which stage are you at with your student permit?

The student permit has three stages, each with its own rules. They are the first application abroad, the renewal in Austria before expiry, and the switch after you graduate or stop studying. A spouse or children joining you is a fourth case. Pick yours below.

The Austrian residence permit for students in 10 official facts

What are the Austria student residence permit requirements?

The Austria student residence permit requirements are a place in a regular degree programme (or one of the specified preparatory or extraordinary-study cases in § 64 NAG), funds for 12 months, accommodation, all-risk health insurance that pays in Austria and the €218 fee (2026), plus the general conditions of the NAG (§ 64 NAG, OeAD). The law exempts the student permit from proof of accommodation (BMI), but OeAD still lists accommodation for at least 3 months, so bring a contract if asked. As a rule (§ 21 (1) NAG), the first application is filed in person at the Austrian embassy or consulate before you travel. § 21 (2) Z 6 NAG also lets student-permit applicants file at the residence authority in Austria after lawful entry and during a lawful stay. Visa-free nationals may do so. After entry on a visa issued for another purpose, OeAD says it “may be possible” after a case-by-case examination, and not if filing in Austria was the hidden reason for that visa (OeAD). Filing in Austria gives no right to stay beyond the visa or visa-free period (§ 21 (6) NAG). How that first step works country by country (appointments, the visa D to collect the permit, the success-rate question) is on Austria student visa, and the full printable list on Austria visa documents. The table shows what changes between the first application and each renewal.

Sources: OeAD: Residence Permit – Student; City of Vienna (MA 35): student permit renewal. Other provinces may ask for documents in a different form, so check with your residence authority. Foreign documents can need legalisation and a German translation.

How do you renew a residence permit as a student in Austria?

You renew a student residence permit in Austria in person at the residence authority before it expires, at the earliest three months before the expiry date; in Vienna any MA 35 branch accepts the application regardless of your district, with appointments online or on +43 1 4000-3535 (wien.gv.at). Each renewal adds up to 12 months and costs €218 again, so a four-year bachelor’s degree on yearly permits means one first permit and three renewals: 4 × €218 = €872 in fees (wien.gv.at, 2026 fee). While a timely renewal is pending you stay lawfully, and you get a filing confirmation; travel abroad in that period needs a Notvignette. Vienna-specific steps are on MA 35 Vienna; renewals of other permit types on residence permit renewal.

The money test comes back at every renewal. You show again €722.58 a month under 24 or €1,308.39 from 24 (OeAD, 2026 amounts; base, more if regular costs such as rent exceed €386.43, § 11 (5) NAG). Whether you must show funds every year in the same form is answered on study in Austria.

Can I work in Austria with a student visa or residence permit?

Yes, with an Austrian student residence permit you can work up to 20 hours a week, but only with an AMS employment permit that your employer applies for before you start; for holders of the Residence Permit – Student it is granted without a labour market check (OeAD). The law adds that work must not undermine study as the sole purpose of your stay (§ 64 (3) NAG), and Vienna puts it as long as “das Studium nicht beeinträchtigt wird”, meaning your studies are not impaired (wien.gv.at). A Red-White-Red Card is not possible while you study (migration.gv.at FAQ).

Want to work more than 20 hours a week? The answer is on study in Austria.

What happens after graduation or if you stop studying?

After you graduate from a degree programme or another course listed in § 64 (4) NAG (not a preparatory course) you can renew the student permit once, for 12 months, to look for a job or set up a business with a view to a Red-White-Red Card, an EU Blue Card or a researcher permit (§ 64 (4) NAG); Vienna adds “Das ist nur 1 Mal möglich”, meaning only once (wien.gv.at). It is a renewal, so you file before your permit expires, and the general conditions such as funds and insurance must still be met (§ 64 (4) NAG). If you stop studying or switch to work, file a change-of-purpose application “so schnell wie möglich”, as soon as possible; Vienna warns that a fine can be imposed if you do not report the change (wien.gv.at). Graduate routes are explained on Red-White-Red Card and Austria work visa. Your insurance must stay valid during the job-search year. On Care Austria Education, the Education group ends once study is no longer the main reason for your stay, and a switch to Care Austria Standard is then possible (AVB Part B II). Once you are employed in a job subject to compulsory health insurance, the employer’s ÖGK cover starts on your first working day (a marginal job up to €551.10 a month in 2026 gives accident insurance only). Years on a student permit count half towards permanent residence, but only if they came immediately before a settlement permit such as the Red-White-Red Card (§ 45 (2) NAG).

Austria student visa with spouse: what are the dependant requirements?

A student’s spouse, registered partner or unmarried minor child applies for a separate “Residence Permit – Family Community”, and spouses and registered partners must be at least 21 when they apply (OeAD). Their permit runs only as long as your student permit (§ 69 (1) NAG). The Austria student dependent visa requirements then rest on you. You show the couple’s funds of €2,064.12 a month in 2026, plus €201.88 per child, for 12 months (base; more if regular costs such as rent exceed €386.43, § 11 (5) NAG). You also need accommodation for everyone, and each family member needs all-risk health insurance. If you hold ÖGK student self-insurance, the ÖGK student page allows co-insurance of spouses, registered partners and children once they live in Austria. We found no statement on that page about extra cost, so ask the ÖGK. We found no official page on quota or German rules for this family permit, so check family reunification in Austria before you plan. Parents are not family members on a student permit and need a permit of their own; see can I bring my parents to Austria?

For the first price, age is the calendar year in which cover starts minus the year of birth; after that, the unlimited Standard tariff moves to the next band from 1 January of the year the family member turns 50 or 65. The minimum term is 1 year (AVB § 3). A spouse aged 12–35 can use Care Austria Education only if they study in Austria and study is the main reason for their stay (AVB Part B II); otherwise the Standard tariff applies.

Which health insurance works for the student permit and its renewal?

The student permit and every renewal need health insurance that pays in Austria and covers all risks. The law (§ 11 (2) 3 NAG) requires it for every permit (RIS), and at renewal Vienna names ÖGK self-insurance or an accepted private policy as examples (wien.gv.at). For the first application you are not yet resident, so ÖGK student self-insurance at €78.84 a month (2026) can only start after you arrive and enrol. OeAD says a written statement that you will take it out after entry can be attached to the application form; travel insurance then covers only the time until you take it out, and you later show the ÖGK confirmation to the residence authority (OeAD). Vienna’s page asks for proof of insurance and does not mention such a statement, so ask your residence authority first; private all-risk cover from entry is the other route. For a private policy OeAD asks for benefits that essentially match the statutory cover, with no waiting periods, cost caps or excluded risks, direct payment for treatment in Austria, and an explicit written statement from the insurer in addition to the policy (OeAD). Care Austria’s terms contain waiting periods and limits for pre-existing conditions (AVB §§ 7, 9), and a general declaration in which the insurer waives those that conflict with ÖGK-level cover in Austria (AVB § 15), so outside Vienna’s MA 35 list ask your residence authority, and ask Care Concept AG for that statement, before you rely on it. The two routes are compared on ÖGK student insurance vs private and student health insurance in Austria.

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). Care Austria is sold by Care Concept AG; the insurer is HanseMerkur Versicherungsgruppe (Advigon Versicherung AG). Cover cannot start before entry into Austria; apply before the trip or within one year after entering Austria, later only with proof of continuous prior cover (AVB § 2); unlimited contracts can be cancelled ordinarily only to 31 December, and at the earliest after one full year (AVB). If you turn 36 during the contract, your cover continues; you only leave the Education discount group and move to the Standard tariff, €155 a month under 50 in 2026 (AVB § 1). Ask Care Concept AG about any pre-existing conditions before you apply.

Worked example: second-year renewal with a spouse

Illustrative example: Daniel, 27, studies for a master’s degree in Vienna; his wife Grace, 25, wants to join him. His permit expires on 30 September. In July he files his renewal at an MA 35 branch: enrolment confirmation, 22 ECTS from last year, the KSV1870 self-disclosure, rent contract, funds and insurance, and pays €218 (2026 fee). Grace applies for a Residence Permit – Family Community from abroad and pays her own fee.

Because they apply as a couple, Daniel shows €2,064.12 a month for 12 months, which comes to €24,769.44. That is the base; if regular costs such as rent exceed €386.43, the amount rises (§ 11 (5) NAG). For insurance, Daniel keeps Care Austria Education unlimited at €56 a month; Grace needs her own policy, for example Care Austria Standard unlimited at €155 a month (2026 price, rises from 2028 per the policy terms). Together that is €211 a month, so at least €2,532 for the first 12 months; the contracts can be cancelled at the earliest to 31 December after one full year (AVB § 3). If Daniel later takes a job of up to 20 hours that is subject to compulsory health insurance (ÖGK cover; a marginal job up to €551.10 a month in 2026 gives accident insurance only), he first checks whether that cover meets the permit rules. Only then does he cancel Care Austria, which is possible only to 31 December, with one month’s notice, and at the earliest after one full contract year.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• § 64 NAG “Studenten”, § 21 NAG and § 11 NAG (RIS, checked 30 October 2026)
• OeAD: Residence Permit – Student, on validity, renewal, study success, work, family, funds and the fee
• City of Vienna (MA 35): student permit renewal, for the deadline, documents, fee, work, purpose change and the Notvignette
• migration.gv.at FAQ on students and the Red-White-Red Card
• Interior Ministry (BMI): general requirements (all-risk insurance; travel insurance not sufficient by itself)
• Care Austria policy terms (AVB) and tariff page, the insurer’s own documents (read 30 October 2026)

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