Many people expect Austrian citizenship by descent to work like the schemes in some neighboring countries, with a great-grandparent as the link. It does not. The route that the Austrian authorities describe in detail is a reparation scheme for the descendants of people persecuted by the National Socialist regime. This overview follows the Foreign Ministry’s pages, explains who counts as a persecuted ancestor, shows how a procedure starts and says plainly what is not covered and what we could not confirm.
Which door applies
| Route | Who it is for, according to the sources | Status of our information |
|---|---|---|
| Section 58c, persecuted persons and their descendants | Persecuted persons and their direct descendants, who may acquire citizenship by a declaration without giving up their current citizenship | Official pages of the Foreign Ministry and embassies |
| Birth to an Austrian parent | A private guide describes a standard descent route for those born to an Austrian parent | We did not read the statute, so check it |
| Other routes | We found no official route for descendants of ordinary emigrants who left for other reasons | Ask the Austrian authorities |
Section 58c in brief
According to the Austrian embassy in Washington, in October 2019 the Austrian parliament unanimously adopted an amendment to the Citizenship Act in recognition of its historical responsibility toward the victims of National Socialism and their descendants. Under the new paragraph 1a of section 58c, descendants of victims can acquire Austrian citizenship by means of a declaration, called an Anzeige, without having to give up their current citizenship or nationality. The embassy warns that some countries’ laws provide for the automatic loss of citizenship when another is acquired, so check with your home country’s authority. The amendment came into force on 1 September 2020, according to an embassy news item, and a law firm notes a further amendment in 2022.
Who counts as a persecuted ancestor
The Foreign Ministry’s page lists the categories. A persecuted person is someone who went abroad as an Austrian citizen, as a citizen of one of the successor states of the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy or as a stateless person, with a main place of residence in Austria before 15 May 1955, because they feared or suffered persecution. It includes those who lost Austrian citizenship shortly before they left by acquiring a foreign citizenship through marriage. It also lists Austrian citizens who did not have their main residence in Austria between 30 January 1933 and 9 May 1945 because they would have feared persecution if they returned, and Austrian citizens who died due to persecution or were deported abroad before 9 May 1945. The persecution must have been by organs of the NSDAP or the authorities of the German Reich, or because of defending the democratic Republic of Austria.
How a procedure starts
- The procedure starts by filing a declaration, an Anzeige, at your local Austrian embassy or consulate, which forwards it with the documents to the competent authority in Austria, according to the Jewish Community of Vienna and the Foreign Ministry.
- The Foreign Ministry offers an online questionnaire, in German, English, Spanish and Hebrew, which produces an individualized list of documents, including proof of your relationship to the persecuted ancestor.
- All direct descendants qualify, including children adopted as minors, and the line may run through a woman, since the FAQ says an ancestor qualifies regardless of sex.
- Documents about your own person must be submitted in original, and each family member who files separately must submit all documents about the persecuted ancestor, the FAQ says.
What is not covered
The Foreign Ministry’s FAQ states that descendants of persons who left Austria before the founding of the First Republic on 12 November 1918 are not eligible to file a declaration. Persecution is a requirement, so descendants of people who left for economic or other reasons are not covered by section 58c. The pages we read describe only this scheme. We could not find an official statement on any other descent route, so ask the authorities if your family’s story does not fit.
Dual citizenship
Section 58c is an exception to Austria’s general limits on dual citizenship. A reference article says Austrians who voluntarily acquire another citizenship automatically lose Austrian citizenship unless permission to keep it was obtained beforehand, and that dual citizenship is permitted for descendants of persecuted persons. That article is a secondary source, so confirm the general rule with the authorities.
What we could not confirm
- Current fees and processing times, which the official pages we read do not state.
- The details of the 2022 amendment, which we saw only mentioned.
- The rules for birth to an Austrian parent and for any other route.
- How the authorities treat individual cases at the edges of the definitions.
Go deeper in the complete guide to Austrian citizenship by descent and in Austrian Citizenship. If you are starting from the family side, try the first-weekend guide. Sources: the Austrian embassy in Washington’s citizenship page, the Foreign Ministry’s page on citizenship for persecuted persons, its FAQ, its page on the declaration, the Jewish Community of Vienna’s explanation and a reference article on the Austrian passport.
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