Austria Relocation Checklist

Phase 1 · 12–18 months out

Decide with real numbers

Take a scouting trip — you get 90 days visa-free per rolling 180 (the EES system is counting your days) Check you clear the income bar: €2,616.78/month single, €4,128.24/month couple (2026) — and remember your rent level raises it Start German now — you need an A1 certificate before you can even apply, and A2 within 2 years of arrival Shortlist places with the Where to Live guide — Innsbruck and Vienna price very differently from Graz or the Carinthian lakes Build a monthly budget from the Cost of Living data — including €565.25/month per person for health self-insurance Book a cross-border tax consultation before you trigger anything — Austria taxes worldwide income at up to 55% with no expat regime (Tax & Finance) If you plan to keep working — even remotely — stop: the retiree permit forbids it. Reassess the route in Working

Phase 2 · The year before the January window

Build the file — everything expires

Sit the A1 exam (ÖSD or Goethe-Institut, in the US or Canada) in the second half of the year — the certificate must be under 1 year old when you file Order FBI (US) or RCMP (Canada) criminal record checks in the autumn, then have them apostilled — these expire too Get birth and marriage certificates apostilled, with certified German translations Secure accommodation in Austria — a lease or deed "customary for the location" Assemble income evidence: Social Security/CPP/OAS award letters, pension statements, investment and bank statements Arrange health insurance covering all risks in Austria, no deductible — it must run until your ÖGK benefits actually begin Watch your embassy's website from October: pre-registration has recently opened in early November, appointment booking for one week in early December

Phase 3 · January — the quota window

File fast, then wait

File in person at your Austrian embassy or consulate in the first working days of January — first-time applications must be made from abroad Budget ~€160–230 per adult in fees (2026 schedule in flux — confirm the exact amount with your embassy) While you wait (statutory maximum 6 months): plan the physical move — see Living for pets and driving-licence rules Pets: ISO microchip → rabies shot ≥21 days before travel → EU health certificate endorsed by USDA-APHIS or CFIA On approval: collect the entry visa, book travel, and plan arrival — if you miss the quota, regroup for next January (renewals are never quota-bound once you're in)

Phase 4 · Arrival & first 90 days

Become a resident, properly

Register your address (Meldezettel) within 3 days of moving in — landlord's signature required Give biometrics and collect your 12-month residence permit card Apply for self-insurance (§16 ASVG) at your regional ÖGK office — €565.25/month in 2026; ask about the means-tested reduction, and keep private cover through the waiting period Open an Austrian bank account and set up utilities Start the driving-licence exchange in month one — your US/Canadian licence is only valid 6 months, and no practical test is needed for category B Diarise the long game: A2 German within 2 years, first renewal at month 12, B1 + permanent residency at year 5 (the full path)

One date rules this whole page: the quota opens in early January and places go almost immediately — for 2026, embassies took bookings in a single week of December 2025. Everything in Phases 1–2 exists to make you file-ready before Christmas. The newsletter below is how we tell you when the windows are announced.

The whole move,built around January.

Decide with real numbers

Build the file — everything expires

File fast, then wait

Become a resident, properly

This checklist updates. So should you.

The whole move,
built around January.