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Austrian Citizenship by Descent

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Contact VisaConnect's specialist Consultants, and our partner Austrian Immigration Lawyers, in 2024, by phone or complete an online Form or visit us in our offices in Brisbane, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, London, UK and Lisbon, Portugal for advice and assistance with your Austrian Citizenship by Descent application, and supporting documents for Acquisition of Austrian Nationality!

Benefits of Austrian Citizenship

The advantages and benefits of acquiring Austrian Citizenship and an Austrian Passport are:

  • Unlimited Travel in and out of Austria (Multiple Entry), with a Valid Austrian Passport
  • Freedom of Movement across the EU/EFTA area (Visa-Free travel in the EU)
  • Visa-free access to 189 countries around the world, as per the Henley Passport Index, in 2023. The Austrian Passport is currently ranked as the equal 3rd strongest Passport in the world.
  • Austria recognises Dual Nationality
  • Entitled to Live, Work and Vote in Austria on a Permanent basis, and can Live and Work in other EU Countries
  • Austrians have access to the world's best healthcare and education systems.
  • Austria's country's economy is strong and developed. The state is home to many large global corporations. The government also encourages international investment and provides various incentives for locating companies in the state.

Eligibility for Austrian Citizenship by Descent

To be eligible for Austrian Citizenship by Descent, you must meet the following requirements:

1. Children automatically become Austrian citizens, at the time of their birth, if their Mother is an Austrian citizen.

2. Children automatically become Austrian citizens, at the time of their birth, if their Parents are married, but only their Father was an Austrian citizen.

3. If the Father is an Austrian citizen and the Parents are not married, but the Mother is a citizen of another state, the child acquires Austrian citizenship by descent if their Austrian Father acknowledges paternity within eight weeks following the birth, or if his paternity has been legally established by a court.

4. If at the time of birth, the child acquires another citizenship, in addition to Austrian citizenship – for example, by descent from the other parent ('Jus Sanguinis') or by birth in a state (e.g. Australia, USA) where the territoriality principle ('ius soli') applies, then there is no loss of Austrian citizenship, but the child has two citizenships (Dual citizenship).

Acquisition of Austrian Citizenship by Descent

Children automatically become Austrian citizens, at the time of their birth, when the Mother is an Austrian citizen. Also, similarly, if the parents are married and only the Father is an Austrian citizen, then the children become Austrian citizens.

In the event that the Parents are not married and only the father of the child is an Austrian citizen, however, the mother is a national of another country, the child acquires Austrian citizenship, when within 8 weeks, the Austrian father recognizes his parenthood or he is recognised as the father, as determined by Court. In all cases where recognition of fatherhood or the determination by court is done after this timeframe, children may be awarded Austrian citizenship in a simplified procedure.

If the Parents are of different Nationalities, then the country of citizenship of the non-Austrian parent also forsees a jus sanguinis (like Austria), the child will have dual citizenship. According to Austrian law, the child does not have to decide between Austrian and the other Nationality, once the Child becomes an adult, however, the other state might require such a decision.

Citizenship of Austria by Naturalisation

To be eligible for Naturalisation as an Austrian citizen, the Appplicant must meet the following requirements:

  • Usually 10 years legal and continuous residence in Austria, and minimum of 5 years with a residence permit
  • Integrity - No judicial condemnation, No pending criminal action (both in Austria and abroad), No severe administrative offences with special degree of unlawfulness
  • Sufficiently secured maintenance
  • German language skills and basic knowledge of the Austrian democratic system and the fundamental principles, including the history of Austria, and of each province
  • Positive attitude towards the Republic of Austria and warranty that there is no danger to the public peace, order and security

Austrian Citizenship to Descendants of Nazi regime's victims

Austria's Parliament has voted to grant Citizenship to the descendants of Nazi victims, who fled the country under the Third Reich. The Citizenship Law Amendment Act 2018 came into force on 1 September 2020 (BGBl I 2019/96). Now, VisaConnect and our partner Austrian Immigration Lawyers can assist and advise you with your Austrian Citizenship application, and provide complete legal representation.

Granting Citizenship to the descendants of Nazi regime's Victims, especially Jewish descendants, is a significant innovation in Austrian citizenship law for NS victims of persecution by the NS regime and their direct descendants. The new Austrian Citizenship Law applies to all people worldwide, Jews and non-Jews, who can provide evidence that they are descendants of victims of Nazi persecution (for example: children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of those who were persecuted).

This new Citizenship Amendment will remove a long-standing injustice. Therefore, descendants of former victims of Nazi persecution will now obtain simplified access to Austrian citizenship.

Descendants of Nazi persecution - Eligibility for Citizenship

To be eligible for Austrian Citizenship as a Descendant of victims of Nazi persecution, the Austrian Lawyers on behalf of the Applicant must submit a written application to the Austrian Government and provide evidence of the following, with unobjectionable documents or certified documents:

The applicant is in direct descending line, the descendant of a person who went overseas before 15 May 1955:

  • because they had reason to fear or suffered persecution by organs of the NSDAP or the authorities of the Third Reich, or
  • because they were exposed to persecution or feared such persecution because of their advocacy of the democratic Republic of Austria

Application for an Austrian Citizenship Certificate

To apply for an Austrian Citizenship Certificate, contact VisaConnect's Consultants and our Austrian Immigration Lawyers for advice and assistance. Note that the Applicant must submit the following 'Apostilled or Authenticated' documents to their nearest Austrian Embassy or Consulate, with a Certified German translation, by an Austrian certified translator:

  • Application form completed and signed - 'Antrag auf Ausstellung eines österreichischen Staatsbürgerschaftsnachweises'
  • Completed and Signed Form - 'Personenstandserklärung Erwachsene'
  • ID Document, such as Passport, ID Card or Birth Certificate
  • Proof of other Citizenship(s) (original and copy)
  • Evidence of current place of Residence according to local standards (not older than 4 weeks: Utility bill, Driver’s licence etc)
  • Evidence that the Applicant has not acquired a foreign nationality (not older than 2 months)
  • Previous Austrian Citizenship Certificate - 'Certificate of Grant of Austrian Citizenship' ("Bescheid über die Verleihung der Staatsbürgerschaft"), if applicable
  • De-registration from the Austrian Registration Office - 'Abmeldebestätigung des Meldeamtes', if applicable
  • Marriage Certificate
  • Certificate of Divorce
  • Marriage Certificate of parents
  • Certificate of Citizenship of Austrian parent(s)
  • Proof of Residence status of the Austrian parent(s)

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

What documents need to be translated into German?

Documents that are not in German or English, must be submitted with a German translation by a sworn and judicially certified translator. An additional authentication of this translation is not required.

Which documents confirm a Persecution by National Socialism? Is oral information sufficient?

The National Socialist regime persecuted persons on political grounds, on grounds of origin/parentage, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability or on the charges of so-called asocial behaviour, or forced them to leave the country as “victims of typical National Socialist injustice” to escape such persecution.

Due to the individual circumstances of each case, there is no standard answer on the relevance of any documents submitted. Usually, it will be sufficient to document the ancestor's affiliation to one of the persecuted victim groups, i.e. by means of a birth certificate stating the religion.

In most circumstances, no additional evidence needs to be submitted if the persecuted ancestor had already re-acquired Austrian citizenship in accordance with § 58c of the Austrian Citizenship Act or has held a so-called Victim’s ID card (“Opferausweis”) issued by the Republic of Austria, as all evidence has already been provided.

In addition, if payments of the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism (“Nationalfonds der Republik Österreich für die Opfer des Nationalsozialismus”) or the General Settlement Fund for Victims of National Socialism (“Allgemeiner Entschädigungsfonds für die Opfer des Nationalsozialismus”) were awarded to your family members, then further proof of persecution of your ancestor should generally not be required.

Can I have Dual Citizenship, as well as Austrian Citizenship?

The general rule is that in Austria, a person who voluntarily acquires foreign citizenship, automatically loses their Austrian citizenship. In order not to lose Austrian citizenship, permission to retain it must be requested in writing before acquiring the foreign citizenship and be approved by written decision.

Therefore, Austrian Citizenship can be retained by way of exception if:

  • It is in the interest of the Republic of Austria, or
  • It is justified on the basis of extenuating circumstances in the applicant’s private and family life and Austrian citizenship was acquired at birth, or
  • It is in the best interest of the child, in the case of minors

What are the services provided by the Austrian Citizenship and Immigration Lawyers?

  • Application for Austrian citizenship - completion of Forms, supporting documents preparartion
  • Acquiring Austrian citizenship by descent
  • Granting of Austrian citizenship in special cases, e.g. if it is in the special interest of the Republic of Austria to confer citizenship
  • Application for Dual citizenship
  • Reviewing prerequisites, and preparation of the required application and documents
  • Procedural law and potential legal remedies

What is the Austrian Government application fee?

As at 2024, filing a declaration in accordance to § 58c para. 1a of the Austrian Citizenship Act has been exempted from all federal fees by law.

Once I have Austrian Citizenship, how do I obtain an Austrian Passport?

To apply for a passport, you must personally visit the Austrian representation (embassy, ​​consulate general but also many honorary consulates, provided they are authorized to act as a passport issuing authority). You must bring a photo ID to prove your identity. After your fingerprints have been taken, the passport will be produced in Austria and sent to the Austrian representation abroad within a few weeks. You can pick up your passport there or have it sent to you on request.

The cost of a regular adult passport is currently €76 Euros.

Office Address and Telephone - VisaConnect UK

Contact VisaConnect's Consultants at our London, UK office below:

VisaConnect Immigration Consultants UK
124 City Road
London
EC1V 2NX
UK

Telephone: (+44) 207 193 2327