Many foreign residents in Austria – or those who dream of moving to the Alpine nation – will no doubt be watching the political situation more closely than ever.
As The Local has been reporting, the Austrian government – made up of a coalition between the centre-right People's Party (ÖVP), centre left Social Democrats (SPÖ) and the liberal NEOS – looks set to tighten citizenship rules.
READ ALSO: What Austria's planned citizenship reform could mean for foreign residents
The move affects internationals who are planning to settle in Austria long term, while also feeding in to the country's general anti-immigration agenda.
The Local spoke to a citizenship law expert to find out what hurdles foreigners currently have to overcome to become Austrian, and what is likely to change in future.
What are the main challenges for foreigners becoming Austrian?
Vienna-based attorney-at-law Balazs Esztegar said Austria’s naturalisation process is widely considered demanding in an international comparison.
"The Austrian requirements for becoming an Austrian citizen are quite high," he said.
Esztegar outlined four big challenges that foreigners face under the standard naturalisation route, starting with how long an applicant has legally lived in Austria.
"First is the residence period, meaning that you need to prove a residence period of certain time in Austria, and you're not allowed to stay for too long outside of Austria,” he said.
Foreign residents generally have to live in Austria for up to 10 years to be eligible for naturalisation, although this can be lowered to six years in some cases, for example if you are married to an Austrian national.
Within this timeframe, applicants can be abroad "for up to 20 percent" and no more, said Esztegar.
READ ALSO: Five surprising Austrian citizenship rules you should know about
The second major hurdle is German language proficiency. At the moment applicants need to have B1 level German but "this is likely to change in the next half year,” said Esztegar.
"According to the government's agreement from last year, it is very likely that they will raise the language skills requirements." Under the plans, applicants will soon need B2 level German.
The next common obstacle is financial stability. "The applicant needs to have a certain income," said Esztegar, adding that they can't have relied on benefits within a certain timeframe.
Finally, applicants can run into problems if they've had a brush with the law, for example through parking tickets or other fines.
Beyond the eligibility criteria, the process itself can be lengthy and "complicated", said Esztegar, adding that authorities "have to check a lot of things".
READ ALSO: What is the '2-year rule' for new Austrian citizens?
Will the dual citizenship law be relaxed in future?
One of the biggest barriers that stops foreign residents from applying is the ban on holding more than one nationality. Individuals generally have to renounce their original nationality upon acquiring an Austrian passport.
In 2024, neighbouring Germany relaxed its dual citizenship rules. But Esztegar said significant reform in Austria is unlikely in the near future. He said restrictions on holding multiple citizenships have deep roots in Austrian law and that there is currently little political momentum for change.
"Traditionally the liberal or left-wing parties would be open or something like that (relaxing dual citizenship rules)," he said.
"I think the conservative, right-wing parties are not. So basically I don't think that this will change."
READ ALSO: 'Receiving Austrian citizenship was an emotional moment'
However, he added that dual citizenship is possible in certain circumstances. "If for instance a child is born to parents of a set of different citizenships – like if one is Austrian and one is Italian – then by descent the child can get dual citizenship," he said.
Descendants of victims of Nazi persecution who become Austrian can also keep their original nationality or nationalities.
Esztegar said he understands the frustration of many foreigners on this issue, and believes it doesn't really fit with modern life.
"What I would say is that you cannot really say that this regulation for just allowing one citizenship is still consistent, because you have a lot of cases where dual citizenship is possible. And in the European Union where people are travelling, people are living abroad – more than they did 30 years ago," he said.
Given these changes – and the fact many children are now born to parents of different nationalities – he suggested it may be time to reassess the rules in Austria.
"I think it would be time to consider if we can really say this is a strict regulation for everyone, because it's obviously not for everybody," he said. "There are a lot of exclusions."
Citizenship is not easy to get
Some politicians in Austria – particularly those on the right and far right – have remarked that Austrian citizenship is given away too easily.
A member of the Freedom Party (FPÖ) recently said refugees who came to the country in 2015 were being handed Austrian citizenship "as a gift".
Esztegar criticised this viewpoint, saying it's untrue. In an opinion article for Die Presse, Esztegar said: "Contrary to what is being claimed, citizenship is neither being thrown at them nor given to them as a gift, because even those who are entitled to asylum must meet the requirements for citizenship set out in the law.
"As a solicitor specialising in citizenship law, I am not aware of any case in which citizenship has been ‘thrown at’ or ‘given’ to anyone."
Finally, it's never too late to apply.
"I've had clients who have lived in Austria for 30 years, or even more, on a residence permit basis and they didn't bother to become an Austrian citizen. Then something changed, their attitude changed," said Esztegar.
"So for many, it's not necessary, but it (getting citizenship) is something that makes life somehow more convenient."
His advice for anyone considering applying for citizenship? It's "critical" to learn German even if applicants don't need it in their job, especially now that this requirement is likely to be raised, Esztegar told The Local.
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