Making access to citizenship more inclusive – practical report from Vienna
Only a flexible and inclusive citizenship law can meet the requirements of modern societies. However, Austria is a long way from achieving this: in an international comparison, only two countries are more restrictive than Austria: Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This article discusses the challenges and reforms in Vienna. It focuses on the role of the Counselling Center for Migrants, which, together with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (MA 35), aims to facilitate access to citizenship and promote the social participation of migrants.
Status quo and current debate in Austria
A country’s naturalization policy is an essential element of integration policy, especially for countries that are characterized by immigration and settlement demographics. Austria is one of these countries. Nevertheless, Austria is one of the most restrictive countries in Europe when it comes to citizenship. Together with Bulgaria, it receives only 13 out of 100 possible points in the MIPEX ranking, which compares 56 countries worldwide in terms of accessibility to citizenship. Citizenship law is a hotly debated constant in the political debate. The SPÖ recently made a new push and called for the income thresholds to be lowered and the high fees to be abolished. It also wants to make citizenship easier for children born in Austria and is calling for conditional ius soli – the place of birth principle. For the first time , the ÖVP is also prepared to support the easing of income limits, but is calling for more intensive checks by the State Security Service to ensure the integration of applicants. The NEOS advocate the introduction of general dual citizenship. The Greens are also calling for the process to be made easier in order to simplify access to citizenship.
Young people are affected by stigmatization and identity problems
Access to citizenship not only enables immigrants to participate in society and politics, but also helps them to identify more strongly with the state. For many people, citizenship is more than just a legal affiliation – it embodies a sense of connection and is part of their identity. Children and young people who were born in Austria or have lived here since early childhood are often regarded by the law as “foreigners” – a designation that not only persists until they reach adulthood, but also lasts beyond this point. This leads to unequal treatment: rights are restricted, democratic participation is blocked and integration and feelings of belonging are significantly inhibited. These young people often experience a double alienation – both within Austria and internationally. Without Austrian citizenship, their opportunities to move freely within the EU or globally are severely limited. As citizenship secures not only national but also international rights and freedoms, they are denied unrestricted access to the global community. This not only affects their personal and professional development, but also their chances of leading a self-determined life.
Bureaucratic hurdles in citizenship law
Austrian citizenship law is clearly socially selective and puts people with low incomes at a particular disadvantage. This affects people in certain professions, women with caring responsibilities and single parents, who often suffer from structural disadvantages anyway. In addition, all applicants must fulfill numerous requirements at the same time in order to obtain Austrian citizenship. These conditions make it difficult for many to fulfill the necessary requirements. The calculation of the required income basis, which depends on the personal life situation of the applicant and is very complicated, is sometimes the biggest hurdle in the citizenship process. Proof of income for the last six months prior to the application must always be provided. In addition, the 30 highest salaries from the last six years must be taken into account to determine the person’s means of subsistence. However, many applicants find it difficult to determine the best-paid 30 months. Income from abroad is often difficult to track and requires a great deal of time. Depending on the situation, it may also be necessary to check whether there is a statutory maintenance claim. There are also calculations for the minimum subsistence level, which must be compared with certain guidelines. Even children born in Austria must prove through their parents that they meet the income requirements in order to have any chance of obtaining Austrian citizenship. There is only relief for stateless persons between the ages of 18 and 21 who were born in Austria. Stateless persons are persons who do not have a nationality under the law of any state, i.e. no state considers these persons to be its citizens. If young people live with family members who are dependent on minimum benefits, this also has an impact on their own procedure: They therefore do not meet the income requirements for naturalization, even if these young people are gainfully employed and can prove a good income over 36 months. And children born out of wedlock to a father with Austrian citizenship and a mother without Austrian citizenship are still treated differently than if the mother has Austrian citizenship and the father does not. The former only acquire Austrian citizenship at birth if the father acknowledges paternity within eight weeks. Although studies show that a lengthy path to citizenship can often be counterproductive, migration and integration researcher Rainer Bauböck from the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) and political scientist Gerd Valchars emphasize that citizenship in Austria only comes “at the end of a completed, successful integration process”.
Despite increasing citizenship procedures, the number of naturalizations in Vienna is falling
According to SOS Mitmensch, more than 260,000 people born in Austria do not have Austrian citizenship. In addition, more than 80,000 people who have lived in Austria since childhood have not yet been naturalized. In 2024, a total of 15,824 people were granted Austrian citizenship by September. According to preliminary data from Statistics Austria, this corresponds to an increase of 43.4 percent compared to the same period last year, when 11,033 naturalizations were recorded. Among the people naturalized in 2024 until September were 6,133 people (38.8 percent) residing abroad. The increase in naturalization figures in 2024 is mainly due to the rise in the number of naturalizations of victims of National Socialism and their descendants. A change in the law made it possible for the descendants of victims of National Socialism to acquire Austrian citizenship, which was actively taken up by many of those affected. There were particularly high increases in Austrian naturalization in 2024 in Upper Austria (+50.2 percent to 1,869 naturalizations), followed by Styria (+40.4 percent to 1,271). In Vienna, on the other hand, there was a decrease of 2.9% to 2,777 naturalizations, as well as in Burgenland, where the number fell by 2.7% to 143.
A closer look at Vienna
| Domestic naturalization of persons | 1-9/2023 | 1-9/2024 | Change in % |
| Application deadlines for domestic naturalization | 3.899 | 6.727 | +72,5% |
| Total transactions | 4.183 | 4.881 | +16,7% |
| Naturalizations according to Statistics Austria Vienna | 2.859 | 2.777 | -2,9% |
Source: https://www.statistik.at/fileadmin/announcement/2024/11/20241113Einbuergerungen2024Q3.pdf Despite the increasing number of citizenship procedures in Vienna, fewer people are being naturalized. This is due to the fact that many applicants in Vienna do not meet the high income requirements. These procedures are then decided negatively, with most people withdrawing their application after being notified of the result in order to at least save themselves the fees for the decision.
Reform processes in Vienna
In 2020, the Immigration and Citizenship Department of the City of Vienna faced considerable challenges. The corona crisis further increased the pressure on the department: face-to-face appointments were only possible to a limited extent, which led to a large number of inquiries by email and telephone. The employees of the Immigration and Citizenship Department did their best despite these difficult conditions, but were often overwhelmed by the enormous workload. This repeatedly led to criticism from customers and Viennese citizens. While the availability of the authority was severely limited, the number of inquiries increased significantly at the same time, especially in the area of citizenship. In order to respond quickly to this challenge, the Counselling Center for Migrants initiated a cooperation between the Department of Integration and Diversity (MA 17) and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (MA 35) to offer new information appointments. The aim of the information appointments is to quickly identify potential citizenship applicants. This is because the requirements for citizenship have become increasingly diverse and complex in recent years, which requires more time and more specialist knowledge for processing the procedure. For this reason, intercultural skills and sound knowledge of related legal areas are essential for advisors. Around 1,350 people are informed about citizenship at each of the major monthly events. These events are part of the reform processes of MA 35 in Vienna, which aim to reduce the aforementioned legal hurdles. In 2024 alone, around 13,000 people received information and advice. The rush is great: the waiting time for a place at one of the initial information events is currently up to five months.
Conclusion
A reform of the Austrian Citizenship Act is urgently needed. In view of global mobility, social diversity and the increasing number of people who were born or grew up in Austria but continue to live without Austrian citizenship, there is an urgent need for action. Only flexible and fair legislation that reduces bureaucratic hurdles and breaks down social barriers can create a modern naturalization policy that promotes social participation and integration in the long term. Excerpt from Original – A&W Blog – Vienna, January 7, 2025