Around 2.55 million people living in Austria had a migration background in 2025, according to Statistics Austria’s new Migration & Integration 2026 yearbook.
That adds up to 28.2 percent of the population (up from 27.8 percent a year earlier). But the number of people moving to Austria is actually falling, with net migration dropping sharply again in 2025.
Here are six findings from the report that stand out for international residents.
1. Nearly three in ten people now have a migration background
Austria’s definition of migration background is broader than simply holding a foreign passport — but perhaps not as broad as some would expect.
Under Statistics Austria’s definition, a person has a migration background if both parents were born abroad.
Of the 2.55 million people in this group, around 1.9 million were themselves born abroad, the so-called first generation. Another 652,400 were born in Austria to parents who were both born abroad.
Foreign citizenship is a separate thing. At the start of 2026, around 1.88 million people living in Austria were foreign citizens, equivalent to 20.4 percent of the population.
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2. Germans are still the largest foreign group, but migration has slowed
German citizens remain Austria’s largest foreign-national population by a considerable margin.
Around 242,300 Germans were living in the country at the start of 2026, followed by 157,700 Romanians, 123,400 Turkish citizens, 122,500 Serbians and 115,200 Hungarians.
Some 161,900 people moved to Austria from abroad in 2025, while 131,200 left. That produced net migration of around 30,700 people, down from 50,100 in 2024 and 66,600 in 2023.
Almost half of arrivals in 2025 were citizens of EU or EFTA countries or the UK.
READ ALSO: Austria’s population is growing—but only because of immigration
3. Migrants are much more positive about coexistence than Austria-born respondents
The yearbook also includes a separate migration survey of 5,356 people. It covered people born in Austria and migrants from nine selected countries: Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Syria, Turkey and Ukraine.
Some 58 percent of foreign-born respondents rated coexistence between Austrians and migrants as very or fairly good. Among people born in Austria, only 26 percent did.
Positive ratings were more common among Austria-born respondents who had more frequent contact with migrants. Among Austria-born respondents who had daily contact with migrants, 42 percent rated coexistence positively. That fell to 21 percent among those who rarely or never had contact.
Among migrants who had been in Austria for one to under five years, 68 percent rated coexistence positively, compared with 52 percent of those who had lived here for more than 15 years.
Overall, 75 percent of surveyed migrants said they felt a sense of belonging to Austria. The figure was highest among respondents born in Syria, at 83 percent, followed by Afghanistan at 80 percent and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 78 percent.
READ ALSO: What does it mean to be fully integrated in Austria?
4. German is used much more outside the home, and improves with time
Only 15 percent of the foreign-born respondents said they spoke exclusively or mainly German at home. Another 45 percent mainly used another language or languages.
German was more common with friends. Some 29 percent mainly used German, while 51 percent said they mixed German with one or more other languages.
Overall, 61 percent rated their German as at least good.
Length of residence made a major difference. Only 34 percent of those who had been in Austria for one to under five years rated their German at least good, compared with 72 percent of people who had lived in the country for more than 15 years.
READ ALSO: 'No chance' without it: How much German do you really need to live in Austria?
5. There is still a sizeable employment gap
Among people aged 15 to 64, the employment rate for those with a migration background was 69 percent in 2025, around eight percentage points below the rate for people without one.
The gap was wider among women. Some 64 percent of women with a migration background were employed, compared with 75 percent of women without one.
Employment rates varied between groups. The employment rate among women with a background from EU countries that joined before 2004, EFTA countries or the UK was also 75 percent.
For women with a migration background from Afghanistan, Syria or Iraq, it was just 29 percent.
READ ALSO: How hard is it for immigrants in Austria to find a job?
6. Many migrants report being treated differently because of their origin
The survey also asked migrants whether they had experienced any disadvantage because of their origin over the previous 12 months.
Overall, 72 percent said this had happened at least rarely. The highest shares were among people born in Afghanistan, at 83 percent, Turkey at 82 percent and Iran at 80 percent.
Work and education were particular problem areas. Across the migrant groups surveyed, 65 percent said they had experienced some disadvantage due to their origin at least rarely in those settings.
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