The Red-White-Red Card

The Red-White-Red Card is Austria's instrument for qualified immigration from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland. Applicants earn points for qualifications, work experience, language skills and age; each category sets a minimum score, and the Public Employment Service (AMS) verifies the count and, for key workers, checks that no equally qualified jobseeker registered in Austria is available for the role — the very highly qualified, shortage-occupation and graduate categories are exempt from that test.

The application is filed either by the applicant at the Austrian consulate in the country of residence or, in many constellations, by the prospective employer directly with the settlement authority in Austria. The card is issued for two years — or, where the employment contract is shorter, for its term plus three months — and is tied to employment with the named employer for that period; changing jobs means a change-of-purpose application, although since August 2026 the holder may provisionally start the new job 45 days after filing a complete one. It combines residence and work permission in a single document, so no separate work permit is needed.

The card sits alongside two other routes for working newcomers: the EU Blue Card for graduates with high salaries, and the self-employment categories for entrepreneurs and start-up founders. The immigration hub compares them all in one table.

For senior executives relocating to Vienna — a managing director joining a group's CEE headquarters, a specialist hired to lead a function — the key-worker category is the standard vehicle, and it is built for exactly this profile. The applicant needs a binding offer for a position that corresponds to their qualifications, a gross monthly salary of at least EUR 3,465 (2026), and 55 of 90 points from qualifications, experience, language and age. An executive with a degree, a career record and professional English will usually clear the points bar comfortably.

Two features make the route attractive. First, speed: the authorities must decide within eight weeks of a complete application — the AMS has four weeks of that for its part — which fits a corporate relocation calendar. Second, language: the applicant need prove no German at all — unusual among Austrian permits, and a genuine difference from the independent-means permit, which requires A1 German before applying and offers no right to work. Accompanying family members aged 14 and over do, however, generally need an A1 certificate before entry; only the families of very-highly-qualified card holders, EU Blue Card holders and researchers are exempt.

The labour market test remains: the AMS confirms that no equally qualified registered jobseeker is available. For genuinely senior or specialised roles this is rarely an obstacle, but the employer's role description should be prepared with it in mind.

A spouse or registered partner and children under 18 can be included from the outset. They receive the Red-White-Red Card plus — a residence title with immediate, unrestricted access to the labour market, so a spouse may take any job, start a practice or not work at all. No quota applies. Family members aged 14 and over must generally show basic German (A1) before entry; the exemption from that test covers only the families of very-highly-qualified card holders, EU Blue Card holders and researchers.

The broader rules on income requirements, later additions to the family and the position of other relatives are covered under family reunification.