Settlement permit Austria quota 2027: how embassies book appointments (codes 2–8 November 2026)

Which Austria residence permit does the quota booking cover?

The 2027 quota booking covers only one Austria residence permit, the Niederlassungsbewilligung – ausgenommen Erwerbstätigkeit (settlement permit except gainful employment) for people who live on their own income without working in Austria. Check your route first.

The 2027 quota booking in 8 official facts

How does the two-step quota booking work?

In the two-step quota booking, you first register online for a reservation code in the first week of November, then you use that code to book a priority appointment in the first week of December. The reservation-code window for the 2027 quota is 2–8 November 2026, 09:00 CET (bmeia.gv.at, 2026), and the priority booking window is 2–9 December 2026, 13:00 CET (bmeia.gv.at, 2026). The embassy pages describe it identically (Abuja, London; re-checked 1 November 2026).

1. 1
   Pre-register for a reservation code (2–8 November 2026)

   Open the tool “Niederlassungsbewilligung ausgenommen Erwerbstätigkeit 2027”, linked on your embassy’s page, between 2 November, 09:00 CET, and 8 November, 09:00 CET. Have your passport details, phone number, home address and e-mail address ready. Your data cannot be changed afterwards.

2. 2
   Wait for the confirmation e-mail

   The code comes by e-mail from the Austrian consulate. There is one code per person, so a couple with one child needs three.

3. 3
   Book the priority appointment (2–9 December 2026)

   Between 2 December, 13:00 CET, and 9 December, 13:00 CET, enter your code with your first and last name, spelled exactly as in the pre-registration. Each person books a separate appointment. A slot is saved only once all data are entered; until then others can still take it.

4. 4
   Read the embassy’s confirmation

   It contains further information on the application procedure. The booking pages themselves list no documents.

5. 5
   Bring the complete file to the appointment

   The file holds the application form, passport, proof of income, accommodation, German A1 and health insurance, and the list is on Austria retirement visa and Austria visa documents. As a rule the first application is filed at the embassy or consulate before you enter Austria (§ 21 (1) NAG); nationals entitled to visa-free entry may instead file in Austria after lawful entry, but that gives no right to stay beyond the visa-free period (§ 21 (2) Z 5 and (6) NAG).

Which embassies have published 2027 quota dates?

As of 30 October 2026, five Austrian missions show the same 2027 dates on their quota booking pages. They are the embassies in Abuja, London, Islamabad and New Delhi and the consular section of the embassy in Washington. We read each page; none states a quota number or a page date. Other embassies may use the same system, so check the page of the embassy responsible for your place of residence. How to find it is explained on which Austrian embassy handles your application.

The Abuja embassy’s home page says that “due to a case of Ebola in Abuja, consular services for the public … are suspended” until further notice (bmeia.gv.at, seen 1 November 2026). The quota booking page still shows the dates above. More for Nigerian applicants is on Austria visa from Nigeria. The London embassy notes that UK citizens and other visa-free nationals may also file in Austria during their lawful 90-day visa-free stay, but must leave the Schengen area if there is no positive decision by then (bmeia.gv.at). Details are on moving to Austria from the UK. US citizens have their own guide, moving to Austria from the US; applicants from India and Pakistan have the Austria visa guides from India and from Pakistan.

Why does the quota make the appointment so important?

The quota appointment matters because the settlement permit except gainful employment is only granted while a quota place is available. § 44 NAG names “a quota place” as a condition, next to own regular income of twice the pension reference rates (RIS, our translation). German A1, housing and all-risk insurance are further conditions. Places are counted per province and per year, and family members of the holder need their own place (§ 46 (5) Z 2 NAG). If no quota place for the year is left when you apply or when the authority decides, the application is rejected without further proceedings; while not all places have been finally allocated, the decision is instead deferred until a place becomes free or the quota is used up (§ 12 (4) and (5) NAG).

The 2025 quota for this permit was 385 places nationwide, 130 of them for Vienna, family members included (NLV 2025, BGBl. II 309/2025, published 18 December 2025 and titled as fixing the quota “für das Jahr 2025”, for the year 2025). It is the latest settlement regulation we found on RIS as of 1 November 2026. The breakdown by province is on Niederlassungsbewilligung.

We found no quota regulation for 2026 or 2027 (RIS, checked 1 November 2026), so we print no newer number. The City of Vienna wrote in December 2025 that its places were “already reserved in the first minutes of the first working day” (wien.gv.at, our translation). The coded priority appointments in December 2026 come before everyone who books from 15 December. How the quota fits the German permit family is explained on Niederlassungsbewilligung.

What must be ready before your quota appointment?

Before your quota appointment, your file must show own regular income, German A1, housing and all-risk health insurance; if no quota place is left when you file or when the authority decides, the application is rejected (§ 12 (4) NAG). The base own income for a single applicant is €2,616.78 a month and for a couple (spouses or registered partners living together) €4,128.24 (migration.gv.at, 2026), before the €386.43 rule below. The table below lists the core conditions in 2026.

Regular costs such as rent, loan instalments, garnishments and maintenance paid to people outside the household reduce the income that counts; up to €386.43 a month of these costs together (2026; the value of the freie Station under § 292 (3) ASVG) is disregarded once, and only the part above it raises the income you need (§ 11 (5) NAG). The full requirement list is on Austria retirement visa. We found no published 2027 income amounts yet.

Which health insurance does a quota applicant need?

A quota applicant needs health insurance that covers all risks and pays in Austria (§ 11 (2) Z 3 NAG); the Interior Ministry says a travel policy is not sufficient for a residence title (bmi.gv.at). ÖGK self-insurance costs €565.25 a month (ÖGK, 2026), but it needs residence in Austria (for non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals, a valid residence permit) and has a 6-month waiting period unless waived, so it does not work for a first application (see ÖGK self-insurance vs private cover). The federal rule is explained on health insurance for a residence permit.

One private option for people 50 and over is Care Austria (sold by Care Concept AG and insured by HanseMerkur Versicherungsgruppe (Advigon Versicherung AG)). Its unlimited Standard tariff costs €222 a month for ages 50–64 and €510 for ages 65–74 in 2026, each with a 1-year minimum term (AVB § 3). The first price follows the calendar year in which cover starts, and age is that year minus the year of birth; the next band applies from 1 January of the year you turn 50 or 65 (AVB premium table). The two prices rise to €268 and €617 from 1 January 2028 per the policy terms (AVB § 5). It can be cancelled at the earliest after one year, then only to 31 December with one month’s notice (AVB § 3). The decision on the permit stays with the authority. Ask Care Concept in writing about pre-existing conditions before you apply; prices for all ages are on Austria health insurance cost.

Worked example of a retired couple from Lagos booking for 2027

Illustrative example: Grace, 66 (born 1960), and Emeka, 63 (born 1963), retired teachers, want to join their daughter, who lives in Vienna on a Red-White-Red Card. As parents of a non-EU resident they cannot use family reunification, so they need the quota permit. On 2 November 2026 at 09:00 in Lagos they each pre-register (two codes, two confirmation e-mails) with their names exactly as in their passports. On 2 December at 13:00 CET they book two appointments. Because the Abuja embassy has suspended public consular services, they watch its home page for updates.

Their file holds pension statements showing at least €4,128.24 a month together (2026 couple base amount; their Vienna rent and other regular costs above €386.43 a month raise it), A1 German certificates, a Vienna flat and insurance. Care Austria unlimited would cost €510 a month for Grace (65–74 band) and €222 for Emeka (50–64). Together that is €732 a month at 2026 prices and €8,784 for the first 12 months (1-year minimum term; more if cover does not start on 1 January, AVB § 3). Cover from 1 January 2028 costs more, €617 a month for Grace and the same €617 for Emeka, who moves into the 65–74 band in 2028 because the policy counts age as calendar year minus birth year (AVB premium table; price steps AVB § 5). They set the start date to their planned entry. If they had missed December, their appointment would have come after all coded bookings from 15 December, with Vienna’s places at risk of being taken.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Quota 2027 booking pages (bmeia.gv.at, read 30 October 2026; London and Abuja re-checked 1 November 2026) for Abuja, London, Islamabad, New Delhi and Washington
• Embassy Abuja home page, with the suspension notice (seen 1 November 2026)
• § 12 NAG, § 44 NAG, § 46 NAG, § 47 NAG, § 11 NAG (RIS)
• Settlement regulation 2025 (NLV 2025), BGBl. II 309/2025, with the quota table
• City of Vienna statement, December 2025, on quota places reserved in minutes
• migration.gv.at: other forms of settlement, for the 2026 income amounts and German A1
• Interior Ministry: health insurance for residence permits
• Care Austria policy terms (AVB) (insurer document, read 30 October 2026)

The editorial standards explain how we work; see also about this site and contact. This dated page shows the windows as of 1 November 2026, and we refresh it yearly. General information, not legal advice; the embassy and the province decide. Referral links may earn us a commission from Care Concept AG at no extra cost to you (affiliate disclosure).