Adoption Erstreckung
Adopted minors may be naturalised through Erstreckung (extension) under §17 StbG upon application by the adoptive parents.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
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Austria Citizenship Guide
18 citizenship pathways — everything you need to know about eligibility, documents, timelines, and costs.
2 min readLast updated: April 2026
Adoption
1 pathway in this category
Birth
1 pathway in this category
Stateless-child §14
A child born in Austria who would otherwise be stateless acquires Austrian citizenship ex lege at birth under §14 StbG.
Short95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Child
1 pathway in this category
Minor-child derivative
Minor children may acquire Austrian citizenship derivatively through Erstreckung under §§17-18 StbG when a parent is granted Austrian citizenship.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Descent
2 pathways in this category
Jus sanguinis acquisition from Austrian parent at birth
A child born in wedlock acquires Austrian citizenship at birth if at least one parent is an Austrian citizen at the time of birth.
Immediate95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Jus sanguinis for non-marital child
A child born out of wedlock acquires Austrian citizenship at birth; if only the father is Austrian, acquisition depends on paternity acknowledgement under §7(3) StbG.
Short95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Historical
1 pathway in this category
StV 1955 Art 7 minority recognition
Article 7 of the Austrian State Treaty 1955 recognises Slovene and Croatian minority communities. Recognition-and-protection regime rather than an independent acquisition pathway.
Short95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Investment
1 pathway in this category
Economic contribution §10(6)
Discretionary grant by Bundesregierung on grounds of compelling public interest evidenced by sustained economic contribution.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Marriage
1 pathway in this category
Spousal naturalization
Six years of continuous lawful residence combined with at least three years of cohabitation with an Austrian spouse.
Long95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Military
1 pathway in this category
MIL placeholder
Austria operates no military-service citizenship route; §34 StbG treats foreign military service as a ground for loss rather than acquisition.
Short95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Naturalization
4 pathways in this category
Ordinary naturalization 10-year
Ten years of lawful uninterrupted residence plus B1 German, civics test, good character, financial self-sufficiency, renunciation of prior nationality.
Long95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Reduced 6-year naturalization
Six years of continuous lawful residence for recognised refugees, EEA nationals, or Integrationsabschluss holders.
Long95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Reduced 4-year naturalization
Four years with evidence of exceptional integration.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Former-national reacquisition
Former Austrian citizens may reacquire via reduced-residence §10(1)(9) route.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Restoration
4 pathways in this category
§58c(1) persecution victims
Austrian nationals persecuted between 1933 and 1955 by the National Socialist regime may acquire Austrian citizenship by notification (Anzeigeverfahren), preserving any existing foreign nationality.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
§58c(1a) direct-line descendants
Direct-line descendants of a §58c(1) qualifying persecution victim may acquire Austrian citizenship by notification under §58c(1a), preserving any existing nationality.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
§58c(2) spouses
Spouses or registered partners of a §58c(1) qualifying Austrian national may acquire Austrian citizenship by notification under §58c(2).
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
§58c(3) former nationals abroad
Former Austrian nationals who were persecuted and lost nationality abroad under conditions set out in §58c(3) may reacquire Austrian citizenship by notification.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
Special
1 pathway in this category
§10(6) exceptional achievement
Austrian authorities may grant citizenship under §10(6) StbG on grounds of exceptional achievement in science/economy/sport/culture, or compelling public interest.
Medium95% data confidenceNo renunciation required
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