Austria has no citizenship-by-investment programme in law. Section 10 (6) of the Citizenship Act allows citizenship to be conferred for extraordinary achievements, including economic ones, once the Federal Government confirms them, without the usual residence and renunciation rules. In Mirabello practice experience it rests on an active investment in Austria of EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million and takes 24 to 36 months. It is never guaranteed.
Austria has NO citizenship-by-investment programme and no law sets a price, contribution or investment amount for citizenship. Section 10 (6) of the Citizenship Act (Staatsbürgerschaftsgesetz 1985, a constitutional provision) lets the Federal Government confirm that granting citizenship lies in the special interest of the Republic because of extraordinary achievements already rendered and still expected; the confirmation removes the 10-year residence requirement, the income test and the duty to give up the previous nationality, but every character and security requirement still applies. The Council of Ministers criteria of 25 February 2014 cover science, the economy, sport and the arts; economic achievements mean owning or leading a company, creating jobs and making investments or projects in Austria, and the criteria state that mere money flows are not sufficient. The decision is case by case, with no entitlement and no published timeline; the Government decides at least once every half-year. In Mirabello practice experience, successful applicants make an active investment in Austria of EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million, and the process takes 24 to 36 months; neither is an official figure. 21 people received citizenship this way in 2022 and 40 in 2023, and their names and professions are published. Ordinary naturalisation otherwise takes 10 years of lawful residence (6 on certain grounds), German at B1 and, in principle, renunciation of the previous nationality.
Austria does not offer citizenship by investment. No Austrian law sets a contribution, donation, property purchase or investment amount that leads to a passport. What exists is a narrow, discretionary exception in the Citizenship Act, section 10 (6) of the Staatsbürgerschaftsgesetz 1985, under which the Federal Government may confirm that granting citizenship to a foreign national lies in the special interest of the Republic because of extraordinary achievements. The citizenship it confers is full Austrian citizenship, and with it citizenship of the European Union.
The law sets no amount, and there is no right to a grant. In Mirabello Consultancy's practice experience, successful applicants make an active investment in Austria of EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million, typically in a business they own or lead that creates jobs, and the process takes 24 to 36 months. Neither figure is set in law or published by the Federal Government, and we state them as what we see in practice, not as a price.
The benefits of an Austrian, European passport
An Austrian citizen is a citizen of the European Union. That gives the right to live, work, study and retire in any of the 27 EU member states without a visa or work permit, under Articles 20 and 21 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Directive 2004/38/EC, and the same freedom of movement extends to Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The Austrian passport gives visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 184 destinations, including the whole Schengen area, the United States under the Visa Waiver Program with an ESTA, Canada with an eTA and the United Kingdom with an ETA.
EU citizenship also brings consular protection from any EU member state's embassy where Austria has no representation, the right to vote and stand in municipal and European Parliament elections in the EU state where you live, and access to its universities on the same terms as its own nationals. Unusually for Austria, a section 10 (6) grant does not require you to give up your present nationality. Austria itself is a stable, German-speaking EU member state in the eurozone. If you already hold an EU, EEA or Swiss passport, you have most of these freedoms already, and we will say so plainly.
Is there citizenship by investment in Austria?
No. Austria has no citizenship-by-investment programme, no price list and no intake. Section 10 (6) is a constitutional provision that removes three ordinary requirements (ten years of residence, secured income and giving up your previous nationality) once the Federal Government confirms a special interest of the Republic. The Government's own published criteria state that mere money flows are not sufficient. Capital alone does not qualify, and no amount is set by Austrian law or official guidance. What qualifies is an active economic contribution to Austria: in practice, an investment in a business that the applicant owns or leads, with real jobs and projects in the country.
The route is used sparingly and individually: according to the Federal Minister of the Interior, citing the national naturalisation statistics, 21 people in 2022 and 40 people in 2023 received Austrian citizenship under section 10 (6). The names and professions of those confirmed are published in the decision records of the Council of Ministers, so the route is public by design rather than discreet.
How does the section 10 (6) procedure work, and who decides?
The decision belongs to the Federal Government acting as a collegial body, and there is no entitlement to a positive answer. The procedure is set by a Federal Government regulation (Federal Law Gazette II No. 39/2014):
- You apply in person to the citizenship department of the competent provincial government.
- The province checks the requirements that still apply, including a clean criminal record, no pending criminal proceedings, no security concerns, a positive attitude towards the Republic and no harm to Austria's international relations, and only then forwards the file to the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
- The Ministry sends it to the federal minister or ministers responsible for your field (and, if you have no main residence in Austria, also to the foreign ministry), who each issue a reasoned opinion and may consult experts.
- The Ministry of the Interior prepares a reasoned recommendation, and the Federal Government decides regularly, at least once in each calendar half-year.
- The province then completes the conferral.
On confirmation, you are also exempt from the German language and citizenship knowledge tests. Physical residence in Austria is not a legal precondition, and the regulation expressly provides for applicants who live abroad.
What counts as an extraordinary achievement, including economic contributions?
An achievement qualifies only if it is currently far above the average in its field and conferral serves the Republic's interest to a special degree; citizenship is never granted as an honour, and a decoration alone is not enough. The Council of Ministers' criteria of 25 February 2014 describe four fields, without excluding others of comparable weight: science, the economy, sport and the arts.
For economic achievements the published indicators are entrepreneurial and focused on Austria: owning a company or holding a leading position with decisive influence (board membership alone is not enough), high economic performance of the business, creating and safeguarding jobs in Austria to a relevant extent, particularly in economically weaker regions, substantial investments already made or projects already carried out in Austria, the company's international standing, and support for Austria's external economic relations. The criteria need not all be met, but they must be predominantly met with real weight in the overall assessment. In practice this describes an established business builder with a track record in Austria and continuing plans there, not a passive investor, which is why the investments we see are active ones.
Investment and timeline: what the law says and what we see in practice
There is no published fee, threshold or price for the section 10 (6) confirmation, and nothing in law or guidance links an amount to approval. In Mirabello practice experience, successful applicants make an active investment in Austria of EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million, in a business they own or lead, that creates and safeguards jobs and carries projects in the country. That range is an observation from practice, not an official threshold: a larger sum does not secure a grant, and a passive or purely financial investment does not meet the criteria.
There is also no official processing time. The Federal Government decides on prepared cases at least once every half-year, and in our practice experience the whole process, from preparing the file to the conferral, takes 24 to 36 months. The ordinary federal and provincial naturalisation charges apply to any conferral; we set out the full expected budget for your case at the first consultation.
Can you keep your current citizenship, and can your family be included?
Austria generally does not allow dual citizenship: in an ordinary naturalisation you must give up your previous nationality, usually within two years of an assurance. Section 10 (6) is the main exception, because it removes that requirement by law. Whether your current country lets you keep its nationality is a question of that country's law, so it should be checked before you apply.
Conferral can be extended to a spouse living in the same household and to minor, unmarried children, at the same time and with the same effective date. For a section 10 (6) grant the spouse's residence and marriage-duration conditions and the renunciation rule do not apply, but each family member must still meet the character and security requirements.
What are the realistic routes if you do not qualify?
For most people the route to Austrian citizenship is residence. Ordinary naturalisation requires ten years of lawful, uninterrupted residence, five of them on a settlement title, with no more than 20 per cent of the period spent abroad, German at B1, the citizenship test, secured income over 36 months within the last six years, a clean record and, in principle, renouncing your previous nationality. Six years can be enough for spouses of Austrians after five years of marriage, EEA nationals, people born in Austria, applicants with German at B2 or proven sustained integration, and people whose extraordinary scientific, economic, artistic or sporting achievements are in the Republic's interest, though renunciation still applies on these routes. The Government programme for 2025 to 2029 announces a B2 requirement and a mandatory citizenship course; as of 26 October 2026 these changes are not law, and the current Act still requires B1.
For financially independent non-EU nationals the usual first step is the settlement permit excluding gainful employment. In 2026 it requires regular passive income of EUR 2,616.78 a month for a single applicant or EUR 4,128.24 for a couple, plus EUR 403.76 per child, German at A1 with the first application, full health insurance, suitable accommodation and a free place in a tight annual quota. It does not allow work in Austria, and the years count towards naturalisation. Clients who need a second citizenship sooner usually look at established programmes in our citizenship by investment comparison, such as St Kitts and Nevis, while non-EU families who mainly want a European base compare the options in our golden visa overview, for example the Portugal Golden Residence Permit or the routes in our guide to Schengen access. A comparable discretionary model exists in Malta, explained in our article on Malta citizenship by merit. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens already enjoy free movement and do not need these residence programmes.
Who is section 10 (6) a poor fit for?
It suits founders and business owners who invest actively in Austria, create jobs there and can document a record far above the average in their field. It is the wrong route for anyone who wants a guaranteed outcome or a passport in exchange for capital alone. It does not suit passive investors, people without an established and documented record in Austria, or anyone uncomfortable with their name being published. At Mirabello Consultancy we give an honest assessment first: whether your record could plausibly meet the published criteria, and if not, which residence or citizenship route genuinely fits your goals. Book a free, confidential consultation to review your profile.
