Austria Reciprocity Schedule


Visa Classification Fee Number of Applications Validity Period
A-1 None Multiple 60 Months
A-2 None Multiple 60 Months
A-3 [1] None Multiple 24 Months
B-1 None Multiple 120 Months
B-2 None Multiple 120 Months
B-1/B-2 None Multiple 120 Months
C-1 None Multiple 120 Months
C-1/D None Multiple 120 Months
C-2 None Multiple 12 Months
C-3 None Multiple 60 Months
D None Multiple 120 Months
E-1 [2] None Multiple 60 Months
E-2 [2] None Multiple 60 Months
F-1 None Multiple 60 Months
F-2 None Multiple 60 Months
G-1 None Multiple 60 Months
G-2 None Multiple 60 Months
G-3 None Multiple 60 Months
G-4 None Multiple 60 Months
G-5 [1] None Multiple 24 Months
H-1B None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-1C None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-2A None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-2B None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-2R None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-3 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
H-4 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
I None Multiple 60 Months
J-1 [4] None Multiple 60 Months
J-2 [4] None Multiple 60 Months
K-1 None One 6 Months
K-2 None One 6 Months
K-3 None Multiple 24 Months
K-4 None Multiple 24 Months
L-1 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
L-2 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
M-1 None Multiple 60 Months
M-2 None Multiple 60 Months
N-8 None Multiple 60 Months
N-9 None Multiple 60 Months
NATO 1-7 N/A N/A N/A
O-1 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
O-2 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
O-3 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
P-1 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
P-2 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
P-3 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
P-4 None Multiple 60 Months [3]
Q-1 [6] None Multiple 15 Months [3]
R-1 None Multiple 60 Months
R-2 None Multiple 60 Months
S-5 [7] None One 1 Month
S-6 [7] None One 1 Month
S-7 [7] None One 1 Month
T-1 [9] N/A N/A N/A
T-2 None One 6 Months
T-3 None One 6 Months
T-4 None One 6 Months
T-5 None One 6 Months
TD [5] N/A N/A N/A
U-1 None One 1 Month
U-2 None One 1 Month
U-3 None One 1 Month
U-4 None One 1 Month
U-5 None One 1 Month
V-1 None Multiple 120 Months
V-2 None Multiple 120 Months [8]
V-3 None Multiple 120 Months [8]

Note: The euro/dollar rate for Consular fees is set by Embassy Paris for all posts in countries where the euro is used. Please check the Embassy Paris Intranet site at to obtain the latest rate. Do not use the daily market rate or any other rate.

Documents

Note: Except as indicated, each of the documents mentioned below is available only to the individual concerned or to his duly empowered agent. Except for police records which may be obtained only by the individual concerned in person, a local legal representative may obtain the document on behalf of the individual concerned on the latter's written power of attorney.

The processing time required for Austrian civil documents varies depending on the office of court concerned, but normally takes from 2 weeks to 3 months.

Birth Certificates

Available. Birth certificates (Geburtscheine) and baptismal certificates (Taufscheine) are both recognized as legal evidence of place and date of birth in Austria, depending upon when and where in Austria a person was, and what religion the parents professed at that time. Gentiles born prior to January 1, 1939 whose parents, at the time of their birth, professed a religion legally recognized in Austria must apply for birth (baptismal) certificates at the rectory (Pfarramt) of the parish in which they were born. Persons born into the Jewish faith prior to the above-mentioned date must apply to the Jewish Community Headquarters (Kultusgemeinde) of the community where they were born. All other persons born prior to January 1, 1939 must apply to the civil district authorities (Politische Bezirksbehoerde) of the district in which they were born. Special regulations apply to persons born in the Federal State of Burgenland, formerly a part of Hungary. If born after 1894 their birth is recorded with the Matriculation Office (Matrikelamt) of the community where they were born.

Since January 1, 1939 civil registration of births has been made compulsory throughout all of the Republic of Austria, and all applications for birth certificates concerning births which took place after that date must be addressed to the Matriculation Office (Standesamt) of the community in which the person was born. For these persons, only a birth certificate issued by the Standesamt, and not a baptismal certificate issued by the christening priest is recognized as legal evidence and date of birth in Austria. There is a fee for a birth certificate issued in duplicate by the parish or civil authorities or by the Israelitische Kultusgemeinde (Jewish Community), subsequently referred to as ‘Kultusgemeinde.

Adoption Decrees

Available. Under Austrian law an adoption contract must be concluded between the adopting parent and the adopted child (or its legal guardian) and approved by decree of the District Court (Bezirksgericht) which has jurisdiction over the area where the adopted child resides. A copy of the adoption decree may be obtained by the adopted child or the adopting parents from the court. There is a fee for each two pages, or fraction thereof, plus return postage.

Marriage Certificates

Available. Prior to August 1, 1938, the date when the German Marriage Law was introduced into Austria, there were two distinct types of legal marriage ceremony, the ecclesiastical and the civil. The ecclesiastical ceremony was the required procedure, whereas the civil ceremony was acceptable only in cases of persons who did not belong to any religion legally recognized in Austria, or, in cases where the priest refused the marriage ceremony for reasons not recognized by civil law. In Burgenland, the civil marriage ceremony was compulsory for everyone. Since August 1, 1938 this procedure has been applicable to all of Austria. Marriage certificates are issued by the same offices as birth certificates. There is a fee for marriage certificates issued in duplicate by the civil authorities, or issued by the Kultusgemeinde (Jewish).

Divorce Decrees

Available. Issued by the Superior Courts (known in Vienna and provincial capitals as Landesgericht, and elsewhere as Kreisgericht). Prior to the introduction of the German Marriage Law, divorce decrees were called Trennungsurteil and, after August 1, 1938, Scheidungsurteil. Before August 1, 1938 Jews were able to obtain a divorce from the District Court (Bezirksgericht). Under the old Austrian law, Roman Catholics were unable to obtain a full divorce, but merely a separation from bed and board, which, if based on mutual consent, was granted by the District Court. This impossibility of obtaining a divorce also applied to marriages where only one party was Roman Catholic at the time the ceremony was performed. However, during the period following World War I, up to February 1934, legally separated Roman Catholics could obtain a dispensation in certain of the Austrian Laender (especially Vienna) from the existing bond of matrimony. On the basis of such a dispensation granted by the civil administrative authorities, they could conclude a second (civil) marriage. If such second marriage was subsequently contested by lawsuit, the Federal usually ruled that the second marriage was void. When the German Marriage Law was introduced in Austria in July 1938, persons separated from bed and board under Austrian law could apply to the Superior Court for a decree by which such separation was changed to a full divorce without further proceedings. There is a fee for each two page, or fraction thereof, plus return postage.

Death Certificates

Available. Death certificates (Sterbeurkunde) are issued in Austria by the same authorities that issue birth certificates. There is a fee plus return postage for a death certificate issued in duplicate by the parish or by the civil authorities. If issued by the Kultusgemeine (Jewish), return postage is not required.

Police Records

Available. Persons residing outside of Austria must apply at the Austrian mission or consulate in their country of residence. Persons residing in Austria must apply to the Federal police in the larger cities or any mayor's office in the rural areas. Application forms entitled "Antrag auf Ausstellung einer Bescheinigung gemaess Paragraph 10 des Strafregistergesetzes" must be used. These forms may be obtained at any of the above Austrian offices. The applicant must apply in person and be able to prove his identity by a suitable document bearing the applicant's photograph. A certificate of Criminal Record (Bescheinigung ueber Verurteilungen) will be issued by the office where the application was filed after a search of the centralized records of the Federal Police Headquarters (Bundespolizeidirektion) in Vienna. However, such certificates will not be issued to persons who are wanted by the Austrian police in Austria or in any other Schengen country. Certified copies of court records of conviction (Urteilsabschrift) may be obtained directly from the court by the applicant or his legal representative upon presentation of a power of attorney. These records are available for a period of fifty years from the date of the conviction.

Convictions (except those resulting in a sentence of life imprisonment) are automatically expunged from the centralized penal records after the passage of the specified period of time; for less serious offenses, after five years and for more serious crimes, after 10 years. An act of clemency or a general amnesty may remove any conviction from the records. Convictions that have been removed from the records will not appear on the Certificate of Criminal Record. The removal of convictions from the records under Austrian law is not recognized for visa purposes, since the innocence of the convicted person is not a pre-condition for the removal.

NOTE: A Certificate of Criminal Record can only be obtained by the applicant himself.

Prison Records

Available. See police record above. No separate prison record is available.

Military Records

Available. The Republic of Austria maintains a number of military records (generally called “Auszug aus den Militaer Gerichsakten”. This document may be obtained from the Oesterreichisches Staatsarchiv-Kriegsarchiv, Stiftgasse 2, Vienna VII. Records pertaining to the old Imperial Armed Forces prior to 1918 were partially destroyed during World War II, and in many cases no document can be obtained covering any trials before a military court during this period. Other records available cover persons who served in the Austrian Army from 1934 to 1938, and also civilians who were tried in military courts during the July 1934 disturbances. Very few records are available concerning persons who served in the German Armed forces during the period when Austria was part of Germany (March 1938 to May 1945), except for records of the 177th Division.

Residence certificates

The police certificate of conduct does not list the exact places and periods of residence of the person concerned, therefore, a residence certificate is required to make certain that the applicant's statements concerning his residence in Austria are correct. Residence certificates are issued in Vienna and the in larger cities by the police authorities, and cover only the residence in that particular community by which issued. In smaller communities, residence certificates are issued by the office of the mayor (‘Gemeindeamt’). The certificates are variously titled ‘Meldezettel’, ‘Aufenthaltsbestaetigung’, ‘Meldungsbestaetigung’ and ‘Meldeausweis’. The fee for a residence certificate varies according to the issuing authority, plus return postage.

Alien's Passport

The bearer of an Austrian "Alien's Passport" requires a valid Austrian visa to enable the bearer to apply for readmission to Austria. Therefore, such passports meet the requirements of Section 101(a)(30) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, only if they contain an Austrian reentry visa, valid for six months beyond the date of intended stay in the United States.

Special Clearance and Issuance Procedures

None.

Visa Issuing Post

Vienna, Austria (Embassy)

USEMB Vienna
APO AE 09108-9900

Visa Services

All visa categories for all of Austria.