Family members of Austrian citizens: section 47 NAG, nuclear family, other relatives, evidence and the distinction from EU free movement.
Third-country family members of Austrian citizens do not automatically receive the same document as relatives of EEA citizens. In the national setting, section 47(2) NAG leads to the Family Member residence permit. The Austrian sponsor must be permanently resident in Austria without a relevant EU free-movement return case.
Nuclear family is defined in section 2(1)(9) NAG. It includes spouses, registered partners and minor unmarried children including adopted children and stepchildren. Spouses and registered partners must be at least 21 when the application is filed. Parents, life partners and other relatives fall under a different assessment in section 47(3).
The correct title is only the first step. Relationship, Austrian nationality, residence, passports, civil-status certificates, housing, insurance, means and possible German evidence need a single coherent file. A valid marriage certificate does not answer every grant condition.
This article distinguishes section 47 from general spouse reunification and from identifying the sponsor’s residence status.
The check separates national and EU routes, nuclear family, other relatives and open evidence packages. Every result can be submitted with its own context.
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Where the Austrian citizen genuinely exercised free movement in another EEA state and the family returns to Austria, EU residence documentation may be relevant. It must not be mixed with the national Family Member permit.
Section 47 NAG covers Austrian citizens permanently resident in Austria who have not exercised the relevant EU residence right for more than three months. Cross-border history requires assessment of the actual life arrangement.
Minor unmarried children including adopted children and stepchildren fall within the nuclear family. Birth certificate, custody, consent to relocate and naming must fit the real family situation.
Parents in the ascending line, life partners and other relatives are not automatically within the Family Member permit. Section 47(3) requires specific relationships, actual maintenance or care needs and additionally a declaration of liability.
Marriage, partnership, birth, divorce and name-change records need to form an unbroken chain. Translation, apostille or legalisation depends on the document and issuing state.
The national permit under section 47(2) requires the conditions in Part One of the NAG. Depending on the case, housing, insurance, sufficient means and absence of mandatory obstacles need evidence.
Certain first applications require German before entry. Section 21a contains requirements, recognised evidence and exceptions. Age, health, permit setting and family status determine whether proof is required.
Section 47(1) describes sponsors in the national route: Austrian citizens and certain EEA or Swiss citizens permanently resident in Austria who have not exercised the relevant EU residence right. This distinction is decisive for an Austrian sponsor.
A third-country nuclear family member is to receive the Family Member permit under subsection 2 if the Part One conditions are met. The permit is a settlement status with its own assessment rather than a mere certificate of relationship.
The family reunification topic page explains the system. This article stays with Austrian sponsors and section 47.
Austrian citizens can exercise free movement by genuinely living in another EEA state under EU conditions. On return to Austria, their third-country family members may fall within an EU residence-card route.
A short holiday or formal address is not enough. Actual residence, work or sufficient resources and genuine family life matter. The cross-border history must be arranged chronologically.
The routes are not interchangeable forms. They have different records, effects and legal tests. An early route decision prevents contradictory applications.
Spouses and registered partners must be 21 at filing. Marriage or partnership certificate, identity details and the continuing relationship need evidence. Earlier marriages must have ended legally.
Minor unmarried children include adopted children and stepchildren. Birth record, custody, relocation consent and any adoption or stepchild relationship supplement the basic certificate.
Our article on children in family reunification covers custody and records. Adult children do not qualify solely through descent.
Ascending relatives may qualify where actual maintenance is provided. Life partners must evidence a durable relationship in the country of origin and actual maintenance.
Other relatives can qualify where they received maintenance in the country of origin, lived in the same household there or serious health grounds make personal care essential. General family closeness is not enough.
The permit is Settlement Permit Relative rather than Family Member. A declaration of liability is additionally required. Conditions and labour-market consequences must not be equated with subsection 2.
Civil-status records need to prove the relationship without gaps. Different names should be linked by marriage, divorce or name-change documents. Passport and translation should use consistent spelling.
An apostille or legalisation may be required depending on the issuing state. A certified translation does not automatically authenticate the original. Treat both questions separately.
The documents and translations checklist helps organise originals, authentication, translation and person reference.
Section 47(2) refers to Part One. A legal entitlement to adequate housing, insurance effective in Austria and sufficient means are commonly relevant. Calculation depends on household and regular liabilities.
Mandatory obstacles and public interests remain part of assessment. Article 8 ECHR can require a specific balancing exercise in some cases. A family relationship does not automatically replace every missing condition.
The family reunification check gives an initial structure. A reliable application requires consistent numbers and records.
Section 21a requires elementary German for certain first applications. It refers to recognised certificates and contains exceptions based on age, health and particular permit settings.
For the Family Member permit, determine whether proof is required and whether an exception applies. An unrecognised course confirmation or stale record may be insufficient.
Our article on German evidence for a NAG first application covers recognition, timing and exceptions.
First choose the route, national or EU. Second classify the relative. Only then create the document list. This avoids collecting records for the wrong permit.
The core package includes passports, Austrian nationality evidence, sponsor residence, relationship and name records, photographs plus housing, insurance, means and German evidence where relevant. Children need custody and consent records.
A short family chronology helps: relationship, marriage, joint residences, earlier marriages, children, residence abroad and planned entry. The family reunification checklist organises evidence by issue.
No. The relationship opens the section 47 route but the Part One conditions and required evidence must still be met.
Parents are outside the nuclear-family definition in section 2(1)(9). Section 47(3) and the Settlement Permit Relative may apply with additional conditions.
Where the Austrian sponsor genuinely exercised free movement in another EEA state and the family situation connects to it, an EU route may need assessment.
Section 21a requires elementary German for certain first applications. Exceptions depend on age, health, permit setting and other statutory factors.
Passports, nationality evidence, marriage or partnership records, birth certificates, earlier divorce decisions and name-change documents. Translation and authentication may also be required.