Visa

Travel documents

You need a valid passport to enter Austria. Please note that in principle it has to be valid for another 3 months after your trip – so you better check the date your passport was issued!
If you come from an EU country or from Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino or Switzerland you can also use your national ID card instead of a passport.

Visa

Do I need a visa to come to Austria?

NO

-    if you come from an EU country.
-   if you come from Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland.

NO

-    if you come from one of the following European countries:
Andorra, Croatia, Monaco or San Marino

-    if you come from one of the following European countries and hold a biometric passport:
Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro or Serbia

-    if you come from one of the following non-European countries:
Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region), Israel, Japan, South Korea, Macao (Special Administrative Region), Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Singapore, United States of America, Uruguay or Venezuela

AND

-    if you want to stay for less than 3 months.
    (for Japanese citizens: less than 6 months)

YES

-    if you come from one of the following European countries:
Andorra, Croatia, Macedonia (FYROM), Monaco, Montenegro, San Marino or Serbia

-    if you come from one of the following non-European countries:
Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region), Israel, South Korea, Macao (Special Administrative Region), Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Singapore, United States of America, Uruguay or Venezuela

AND

Different visas for different purposes

There are different kinds of visa, most important are travel visas for the Schengen area, visitor visas and a combination of these two which also covers short stays:

travel visa (Reisevisum C):
The standard visa for tourists. It allows you to enter and stay in the Schengen area for maximum 3 months.

The Schengen area covers the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and Spain.

visitor visa (Aufenthaltsvisum D):
It allows you to enter and stay in Austria for 91 days to maximum 6 months. It is issued mainly for training and study reasons.

This is only a national visa which means it does not allow you to stay in another Schengen country. It only allows you to travel through other Schengen countries once (for max. 5 days) in order to get to Austria. This means no travelling through other Schengen states, not even for your way back home!

visitor-travel visa (Visum D+C: Aufenthaltsvisum welches zugleich als Visum für den kurzfristigen Aufenthalt gilt):
On the one hand the visa is valid as a short stay Schengen travel visa for maximum 3 months (starting from the first day of the visa’s validity). On the other hand it allows you to enter and stay in the issuing Schengen country for more than 3 months. Note that after the first 3 months no other travelling through other Schengen states is permitted!

Where do I get it?

Visas for coming to Austria can only be issued by the Austrian representation authority (embassy, consulate) in your country or in exceptional cases by the representation of another Schengen country. If you apply for a travel visa at the Austrian representation, your main destination must be Austria. If you don’t have a main destination within the Schengen area, Austria at least has to be the country where you enter the Schengen zone.

Note:
– You have to appear in PERSON at the embassy/consulate!
– If you’re under 18 you need your parents’ consent (BOTH of them! Either they come with you and sign the visa application form or you have to provide notarised letters of consent! If you’re under 16, your parents/legal guardian have/has to sign anyways.)
– A visa can not be issued or extended inside Austria!

How much does it cost?

travel visa C: € 60
for people from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Serbia or Ukraine: € 35
visitor visa D: € 75
visitor-travel visa D+C: € 75

Note: In case your visa application is denied, you DON’T get the money back!

How long does it take to get it?

This is different in different countries, but normally visas are never issued on the same day! So be careful to allow enough time between the visa application and the date you plan to travel (advisably 3-4 weeks)!

For more information please contact the Austrian embassy/consulate in your country!

Related Documents
Guide to entry and residence requirements for foreign students: PDF brochure by the Austrian Agency for International Cooperation in Education and Research (OeAD) Leitfaden-Studi-engl.pdf (1.24 MB)