From passing the test to the citizenship decision
In Austria the test comes after the application, not before it. You apply to the citizenship office of your Land government (in Vienna: MA 35), and the office invites you to the Staatsbürgerschaftsprüfung as part of the procedure. When you pass, you receive a test certificate (Prüfungszeugnis), which goes into your file. The Test Regulation (StbP-V) sets no expiry date for it.
- The office also checks the other requirements (residence, income, German, a clean record). Foreign documents often need a certified translation and an apostille or legalisation.
- Fees (Vienna, 2026, per person): €163 for the application (you pay it even if the application is refused), €60 for a Zusicherungsbescheid if you receive one, €6 for each official record of a meeting (at least 2), and €1,236–1,678 when citizenship is granted. Other Länder charge different amounts, because each Land sets its own Land fee.
Decision, Zusicherung and oath
No official processing time is published; Vienna says it depends on the investigations and on complete documents.
- If your current country does not end your nationality automatically, you first receive a Zusicherungsbescheid (assurance of citizenship). You then have 2 years to give up your previous nationality and send the original release document to the office.
- You come in person to a ceremony and speak the oath (Gelöbnis). Everyone aged 18 or over takes it. You promise loyalty to the Republic and its laws and commit to the basic values of a European democratic state.
- You receive the Verleihungsbescheid (grant decision). You become Austrian on the date stated in it.
ID card and passport
In Vienna, you can apply for your proof of citizenship and your passport at MA 35 on the day of the ceremony.
- Staatsbürgerschaftsnachweis (proof of citizenship): federal fee €21, or €13 if you apply online with ID Austria, plus a Land fee (2026).
- Reisepass (passport): €112, express €148, next-day express €326. It is valid for 10 years (shorter for children under 12) and arrives by post in about 5 working days (2026).
- Personalausweis (ID card): €91, valid for 10 years, also delivered in about 5 working days (2026).
- You apply in person at a passport office (Passbehörde). In Vienna this is any district office (Magistratisches Bezirksamt).
Your previous citizenship
Austria generally does not allow dual citizenship.
- When you naturalise, you must give up your previous nationality where this is possible and reasonable. Only the Land office decides whether it is not possible or not reasonable. Austria waives it only for grants in the special interest of the Republic.
- If, for reasons within your control, you do not leave your old nationality within 2 years after the grant, Austria takes your citizenship away (Entziehung).
- Later on: if you voluntarily take another nationality, you lose Austrian citizenship automatically. To keep it, you must get a written permit (Beibehaltung) before you apply. It is granted only for specific reasons, such as a child's welfare.
Tax and social security
Citizenship does not change your tax position. Austria taxes people who have a residence (Wohnsitz) or habitual stay here, whatever their nationality. Your social insurance, pension account and benefits stay the same. As an EU citizen you can now live and work in any EU/EEA country and Switzerland, and the EU coordination rules protect your insurance periods there.
Voting and other rights
- You can vote from age 16 and stand for the National Council (Nationalrat) from age 18.
- You can vote in European Parliament elections from Austria.
- Federal posts that require a special bond with Austria are reserved for citizens.
- Military service: male citizens are liable from their 17th birthday. They must attend the medical assessment (Stellung) and can be called up for basic service (or choose civilian service, Zivildienst) until their 35th birthday.
Effect on children
- Your minor children are not included automatically. You apply for an extension (Erstreckung) of your grant to them, usually together with your own application. Children need lawful settlement in Austria but no minimum residence period, and children under 14 take no German or citizenship test. In Vienna (2026), an extension to a minor costs about €90 for the application and about €432 at the grant.
- A spouse or registered partner can apply for an extension after 5 years of marriage and 6 years of residence.
- Children born after you become Austrian are Austrian by descent, wherever they are born. If only the father is Austrian and the parents are not married, he must acknowledge paternity before the birth or within 8 weeks after it.
Frequently asked questions
Does my test certificate run out? The regulation sets no validity period, and the certificate stays in your citizenship file.
Can my child keep two nationalities? Yes, if the child received the other nationality automatically at birth. Austrian law does not make the child choose at 18, but the other country might.
What happens if I miss the 2-year deadline after the Zusicherung? The assurance lapses and you do not become Austrian.