Austria
Tourist visa for Austria: documents, fees and steps
Tourism (short stay) · 104 nationalities · residence in 220 countries · ordinary passport
Stay of up to 90 days · Verified on 18 October 2026
VisaGuideline helps you prepare your application. The decision belongs to the country’s authority: check the official page before paying or applying.
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Documents requested
Fully completed and personally signed Schengen visa application formConditions and details
The page of the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (BMEIA) places the completed and signed form at the top of the documents required in principle; its submission also determines the admissibility of the application. Form C1 is offered for download on the same page.- Colour identity photograph complying with ICAO criteria, 35 × 45 mm formatThe page requires a photograph complying with the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), in colour, 35 × 45 mm.
Passport issued less than 10 years ago, containing at least two free pages and valid for at least three months after the end of the period of the requested visaConditions and details
According to the page, the passport must have at least two free pages, must not be more than 10 years old and must remain valid for at least three months beyond the period of the requested visa. These conditions also appear among the admissibility criteria for the application.- Copy of the passport data page (the page bearing the photograph)The page requests a copy of the passport page on which the photograph appears.
- Proof of the means of transport: reservation or ticket (a paid ticket is not required)The page requests proof of the means of transport, in the form of a reservation, and states that presenting a paid ticket is not required.
Travel, illness and accident insurance valid in the Schengen area, covering at least 30 000 euros, including repatriation for medical reasonsConditions and details
The minimum coverage is 30 000 euros, including repatriation for medical reasons, for the Schengen area. Among the conditions of issuance, the page states that the insurance covers the duration of the planned stay or, for a multiple-entry visa, that of the first planned stay.Proof of sufficient means for the stay and the journey or, failing that, the eight-digit identification number of an electronic declaration of sponsorship (EVE)Conditions and details
The consulate must establish means of subsistence for the stay and the journey, derived from the applicant's assets or income. Failing that, a person residing in Austria may take out an electronic declaration of sponsorship: the applicant then provides the declaration's eight-digit identification number. The page warns that Schengen embassies representing Austria might not accept this electronic declaration.Evidence of economic, family and social ties in the country of originConditions and details
The page cites as examples ownership of property in the country of origin, employment, a certificate of studies, entitlement to a pension or proof of family ties. It adds, among the conditions of issuance, the intention to leave the Schengen area before the visa expires.
Depending on your situation
Fingerprints to be taken, unless they were taken during the last 59 months as part of a Schengen visa applicationConditions and details
Ten fingerprints, fingers flat, recorded digitally. The page requests them only if they were not taken during the last 59 months in the context of a decision on a Schengen visa application. The questionnaire does not collect this information: the condition is to be verified by the applicant.
Official fees
- Schengen visa — standard adult fee, excluding reductions and waivers 90 €
- Schengen visa — ordinary reduced rate: Armenia, Azerbaijan or Belarus, unless exempt; replaces the standard fee 35 €
- Schengen visa — adult citizen of Cabo Verde, unless exempt; replaces the standard fee 67.50 €
Steps
- Identify the competent Austrian representation: the Austrian consulate located in the country where the applicant legally resides.
- Submit the application to that consulate or, where the consulate provides for it, to the external service provider it designates.
- Hand in the form signed personally and the requested documents.
- Have fingerprints taken if they have not been taken in the last 59 months.
- Pay the visa fees: the application is only admissible, and can only be decided, after their payment.
Where to apply
- Competent Austrian consulate, located in the country of the applicant's legal residence
- External service provider designated by the Austrian consulate, in certain countries, for a service fee; it transmits the application and does not take part in the decision
- Embassy of a Schengen State representing Austria, in the countries without Austrian representation listed by the ministry; the procedure then follows the rules of the representing State
Good to know
- Submission periodThe application is admissible if it is submitted within the six months preceding the trip and no later than 15 calendar days before its start.
Austria, main destinationConditions and details
The Austrian consulate is competent for a Schengen visa when Austria is the sole or main destination. Without a main destination, the Schengen State through whose external border the traveller enters is competent.Documents specific to the consulateConditions and details
The visa page refers to the website of the competent consulate for specific information on supporting documents. The directory of Austrian representations, published in German, makes it possible to find it.- TranslationsThe consulate may request a German translation of the supporting documents; documents in English do not require one. The competent consulate specifies what is necessary.
Announced processing timesConditions and details
As a general rule, the processing of an admissible application should not exceed 15 calendar days, and may reach 45 days if additional verifications are necessary. For certain nationalities, a prior consultation of other Schengen States, of up to seven calendar days, is mandatory.Visa facilitation agreementsConditions and details
Nationals of a country linked to the European Union by a visa facilitation agreement pay the amount provided for in that agreement, which the page states is generally 35 euros, unless an exemption is provided for in the agreement.Fee exemptionsConditions and details
The page notably exempts pupils, students and accompanying teachers on study trips, researchers within the meaning of Directive (EU) 2016/801 and representatives of non-profit organisations up to 25 years of age participating in certain events.- Distrust of visa agenciesThe ministry expressly warns against visa agencies that demand large sums and against money transfers to unknown persons; in case of doubt, contact the consulate.
No entitlement to a visa, remediesConditions and details
Each application is examined on a case-by-case basis and there is no entitlement to a visa. In the event of refusal, the applicant may file a "Vorstellung" with the consulate or bring the matter before the Federal Administrative Court; the refusal form describes the procedure.Time limit for appealConditions and details
According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, an appeal against a visa decision is made to the Federal Administrative Court within four weeks and is filed with the authority that issued the decision.Electronic declaration of sponsorshipConditions and details
The host, resident in Austria, files the declaration free of charge with the regional police directorate (Landespolizeidirektion) of his place of residence. He then communicates an identification number to the applicant. The applicant files his application no earlier than 48 hours afterwards and cites this number. This declaration is not possible for an application filed with a Schengen embassy that represents Austria.- The visa does not guarantee entryThe issuance of a visa does not guarantee entry: if a ground for refusal appears at the border crossing, the visa may be annulled and entry refused.
Extension only in exceptional casesConditions and details
A C visa is extended in Austria only in exceptional cases: force majeure, humanitarian reasons or serious personal reasons. The application is submitted, during the lawful stay, to the competent regional police directorate. The desired duration should therefore be requested from the outset.Entry/Exit System (EES)Conditions and details
Since 10 April 2026, the entry/exit system applies fully at the external borders of the Schengen area; in Austria, it concerns only airports and aerodromes. Third-country nationals on a short stay provide their fingerprints and a facial image there. A refusal results in a refusal of entry; allow for a longer waiting time.
Nationalities covered
This procedure applies to 104 nationalities.
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Angola
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Bahrain
- Bangladesh
- Belarus
- Belize
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- China
- Comoros
- Congo
- Côte d'Ivoire
- Cuba
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Fiji
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Guyana
- Haiti
- India
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Jamaica
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kenya
- Kuwait
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos
- Lebanon
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Libya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Maldives
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Mongolia
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Myanmar
- Namibia
- Nepal
- Niger
- Nigeria
- North Korea
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palestine
- Papua New Guinea
- Philippines
- Qatar
- Russia
- Rwanda
- São Tomé and Príncipe
- Saudi Arabia
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Suriname
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
- Thailand
- Togo
- Tunisia
- Türkiye
- Turkmenistan
- Uganda
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Vietnam
- Yemen
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Official links
- Bundesministerium für europäische und internationale Angelegenheiten (BMEIA) (new tab) www.bmeia.gv.at
- Search for Austrian Representations – BMEIA - Außenministerium Österreich (new tab) www.bmeia.gv.at
- Einreise / Visa / Visumfreiheit / EVE (new tab) www.bmi.gv.at
- Entry/Exit-System (new tab) www.bmi.gv.at
- Representations by Schengen Partner – BMEIA - Außenministerium Österreich (new tab) www.bmeia.gv.at
- European Commission — Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (new tab) home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
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