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AUSTRIAN CITIZENSHIP

Reader question: Will a dual-citizen child in Austria have to choose between nationalities?

Austria has strict rules on citizenship and it won't allow dual citizenship in most, but not all, cases. Will a child have to choose when they reach 18?

Reader question: Will a dual-citizen child in Austria have to choose between nationalities?
Renovated facade. View over the ramp to the portico (Schmerlingplatz side) (Copyright: Austrian Parliament)

Austria has some of the strictest naturalisation rules in Europe. Besides being expensive (with fees and costs totalling more than €2,000 in some cases), the process usually means applicants need to renounce their original citizenship.

Dual citizenship is simply not allowed for most people in Austria. This not only means that applicants have to give up citizenship of their own country to naturalise but also that Austrians living abroad would have to give up being Austrian citizens if they wish to have full rights (including voting) where they live.

According to the law, there are only three cases when dual citizenship is allowed in naturalisation cases.

READ ALSO: How foreigners can get fast-track citizenship in Austria

First, if the retention of original citizenship is in the Republic of Austria’s interest–usually due to a person’s achievements or status, a famous case is that of Styria-born Arnold Schwarzenegger. The actor and politician asked (and was granted the right) to retain his Austrian citizenship as he naturalised as a US citizen in 1983.

Second, if personal reasons are worth considering, the law doesn’t provide any specific examples and an exception would depend on individual circumstances.

Third, if descendants of victims of the national socialist regime acquired Austrian citizenship.

Citizenship by birth

However, things are much different when it comes to citizenship by descent – such as when a child is born to an Austrian mother or father. 

As in many other European countries, Austria’s citizenship rules are based on blood (jus sanguinis). A child is considered Austrian if at least one of their parents is Austrian, irrespective of place of birth. It can get a little tricky, but the child is Austrian if the parents are married and either is Austrian. If they are not married, the child is automatically Austrian if the mother has Austrian citizenship and will be entitled to it if the Austrian father signs an acknowledgement of paternity.

You can read more about the rules for granting citizenship by descent and how to apply for it HERE.

The most important thing, though, is that if a child has the blood right to Austrian citizenship and a blood right to another citizenship, they will be entitled to both and will be a dual (or more) citizen in Austria.

READ ALSO: Austrian citizenship: Can you be rejected because of a driving offence?

If an Austrian mother and an American-Croat father have a child, that child will be entitled to Austrian, American and Croatian citizenship. And, also important: the child will not have to choose between any of them once they turn 18.

Austrian citizenship is not easy to get. (© The Local)

The myth of “having to choose once they are 18” is widespread in Austria, but it is not true. The Austrian government website is clear on this:

“If, in the case of parents of different nationalities (Austrian and another), the principle of descent also applies in the country of origin of the foreign parent, the child is a dual citizen. According to Austrian law, the child does not have to decide on a nationality when he or she reaches the age of majority – however, it may be that the other state requires a decision,” the website states.

It will all depend, then, on the other country. If it allows multiple citizenships through descent and doesn’t require a decision after the age of majority, then the person will be a dual (or multiple) national.

How can someone lose Austrian citizenship?

This doesn’t mean that this person will have the citizenship forever. There are several cases in which someone may lose Austrian citizenship, including by deliberately acquiring a foreign nationality (unless the person applied for and was granted retention of citizenship).

It is also possible to lose Austrian citizenship by voluntarily entering the military service of a foreign state, by harming the interest or reputation of the Republic of Austria, or by not giving up previous citizenship within two years of receiving the Austrian citizenship by naturalisation.

So, a dual citizenship child will never have to choose?

Actually, yes: there is one case in which a dual citizenship child will have to choose to either give up the Austrian or the other citizenship once they reach the age of majority.

If a child is naturalised Austrian with their parent, but the country of the original citizenship does not allow minors to renounce, they will keep both. For example, a British father is naturalising Austrian and adds his 10-year-old son to the naturalisation process.

READ ALSO: What are Austria’s Social Democratic Party’s plans to ease citizenship rules?

Once the process is done, both of them will be granted Austrian citizenship and have two years to renounce their British citizenship. However, the UK does not allow minor children to renounce citizenship. So, the father will have to show proof of the UK law to Austrian authorities.

The child will temporarily hold both Austrian and UK nationalities but will be expected to give up one once they turn 18. 

If the country of the original citizenship allows children to renounce (for example, Austria allows minors to renounce Austrian citizenship), then this does not apply. The child and the father would renounce their original citizenship in the process of acquiring the Austrian one.

Member comments

  1. That is the best news ever. I have 2 children from an Austrian mother (ex wife) and an Australian father (me) who have dual citizenship and passports. One was born in Austria and the other in Australia. I was always led to believe that they would have to renounce one citizenship when they reach 18 years old. If I understand this correctly they will be able to keep both nationalities.

    1. Hi, Brian! Yes, the “choosing one citizenship” is a huge myth with Austrian nationality, but the government website is clear that as long as the other country doesn’t demand a renunciation, Austria accepts dual nationality “by blood”. Great news for your kids, as they are allowed to keep both, yes!

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For members

AUSTRIAN CITIZENSHIP

IN NUMBERS: Who are the new Austrian citizens in 2024?

The number of people receiving Austrian citizenship through naturalisation processes is slowing down. Here's a look at some stats about the new citizens and where they are from originally.

IN NUMBERS: Who are the new Austrian citizens in 2024?

In 2023, Austrian citizenship was granted to 19,939 people, including more than 8,000 living abroad, according to Statistik Austria. The number was 3.2 percent lower in total than last year.

“The trend of rising naturalisation figures did not continue in 2023. The decline is mainly due to the fact that naturalisations of victims of National Socialism and their descendants fell by 17.7 percent”, said Tobias Thomas, Director General of Statistics Austria.

Austria’s naturalisation rate (ratio of naturalisations to the number of non-Austrian citizens living in Austria) is relatively low compared to the rest of Europe and continues at 0.7 percent. This is because the naturalisation process is not easy in the country – people generally need to be residents for ten years, pay high fees (around €2,000) and give up any other citizenship they hold.

READ ALSO: Will my children get an Austrian passport if born in Austria?

The hurdles are rarely worth it for EU citizens who can live and work in Austria. This is shown in the Statistik Austria data.

Who are the new Austrian citizens?

Only 9 percent of the naturalisations were from people from EU states. The highest proportion of new Austrians held Israeli citizenship (21.4 percent). They are followed by people from Syria (9.4 percent) and the United States (8.2 percent). 

Other nationalities include Turkey (5.7 percent), United Kingdom (5.6 percent), Bosnia and Herzegovina (4 percent), and Afghanistan (4 percent). Nine percent of the naturalisations were of people from EU states and 4.4 percent of people from African countries.

The majority of the people naturalising as Austrians that were from the United Kingdom, the United States or Israel resided abroad – most of them were naturalised via the new process for restitution of Austrian citizenship to victims of the Nazi regime and their descendants. In these cases, people are allowed to keep their other citizenship. 

READ ALSO: Austria improves nationality law for descendants of Nazi victims

About half of the people naturalising (50.2 percent) were women, and a third were under 18 years old. 

In seven federal provinces, more people were naturalised in the year 2023 than the previous year. The relative increases were highest in Burgenland (44.9 percent to 297 naturalisations), followed by Styria (43.8 percent to 1,309), Upper Austria (36.1 percent to 1,808), Lower Austria (33.4 percent to 2,031), Tyrol (18.6 percent to 913), Salzburg (8.8 percent to 530) and Vorarlberg (4.6 percent to 677). 

Fewer naturalisations compared to the year 2022 were reported in Carinthia (−21.4 percent to 434) and Vienna (−12.9 percent to 3,899).

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