Red-White-Red-Card Plus

The Red-White-Red – Card Plus is a residence permit (“Aufenthaltstitel”) for third-country nationals who are family members of skilled workers with certain residence permits. This includes skilled workers who are holders of a:

• Red-White-Red – Card (“Rot-Weiß-Rot – Karte”)
• EU Blue Card (“Blaue Karte EU“)
• Settlement Permit – Researcher (“Niederlassungsbewilligung – Forscher“)
• Red-White-Red – Card Plus if the skilled worker had a Red-White-Red – Card, EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher beforehand
• Long-Term Resident EU permit (“Daueraufenthalt EU”) if the skilled worker had a Red-White-Red – Card, an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher in the past

Family members can either immigrate together with the skilled worker or come to Austria at a later stage. The Austrian employer can file both the skilled worker's application as well as his/her family members' applications to the Austrian Immigration Authority (this does not apply to researchers and their family members).

Family members of a skilled worker holding a Red-White-Red – Card, an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher receive a Red-White-Red – Card Plus valid for the same period as the permit of the skilled worker.

If you immigrate to Austria with your family and apply for an EU Blue Card, a Red-White-Red - Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher, your residence permit is ideally valid for 2 years. For this, both your passport and your job offer/employment contract must be valid for at least 2 years. The Red-White-Red - Cards Plus of your family members are also valid for 2 years if all passports are valid for at least 2 years.

Every family member requires the following documents in order to receive the Red-White-Red – Card Plus:

• Application form
• Passport
• Passport photo fulfilling EU criteria (not older than 6 months)
• Personal documents:
  • Birth certificate (only for children)
  • Police Clearance Certificate (“Strafregisterbescheinigung”) which is not older than 3 months for all family members who are 14 years or older
  • Marriage certificate or civil partnership certificate
  • Proof of German language skills at an A1 level for all family members older than 14 years

The German certificate must not be older than 1 year when submitted.

As a rule, only the following certificates are recognised: German Language Certificate Austria (ÖSD), Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF), The European Language Certificates (TELC) and the Goethe Institute.

If the skilled worker in the family holds one of the following residence permits, family members do not have to show a German certificate:

• Red-White-Red – Card for Very Highly Qualified Workers
• EU Blue Card
• Settlement Permit – Researcher
• Red-White-Red – Card Plus, if the skilled worker held a Red-White-Red – Card for Very Highly Qualified Workers, an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher beforehand
• Long-Term Resident EU permit, if the skilled worker held a Red-White-Red – Card for Very Highly Qualified Workers, an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher in the past

Family members who completed studies at a recognised university or can present proof of general university entrance qualification or completed a vocational secondary school do not need a German A1 certificate either. Instead, relevant proof must be submitted to the immigration authority. Legalisation may be necessary depending upon the country of issue. It is important that the educational institution from which the university diploma or general university entrance qualification or school leaving certificate from the vocational secondary school is recognized and that the relevant document was issued in German or English or underwent translation by a court-certified translator. This proof is valid both as a substitute for the German Certificate A1 upon initial immigration of family members as well as for the Integration Certificate A2 (Module 1 of the Integration Agreement).

Are you not permitted to enter Austria without a visa? In this case, there are two options:

• Your family member's future Austrian employer files your complete application package simultaneously with that of the skilled worker. All applications will be processed and approved by the Austrian authority. 
• You submit your entire application package for the Red-White-Red – Card Plus to the Austrian representative authority (embassy/consulate) in the country in which you currently live. Your application will then be sent to Austria by the representative authority where it will be processed. This option requires a little more time.

Once your application has been approved, you will receive an invitation from your local Austrian representative authority, asking you to apply for a so-called Visa D within the following 3 months and to pick up your Red-White-Red Card – Plus in Austria within a period of 6 months. In order to receive a Visa D, you will need the following documents: 

• Application form
• Passport plus copy
• Invitation of the representative authority
• Approval of the Immigration Authority
• Travel insurance (coverage of at least € 30,000)      
• Flight reservation
• About 150 €

Generally, it will take about 2 weeks until the Visa D is stamped in your passport. During this processing time, the representative authority will keep your passport. As soon as you have your Visa D, you can travel to Austria and have your fingerprints taken. Furthermore, you will also have to show your personal documents (passport, birth certificate, police clearance certificate, etc.). Your Red-White-Red Card – Plus will then be printed. Once you receive it, you are permitted to begin working in Austria. 

A special regulation is in place for family members of skilled workers who apply for an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher and cannot enter without a visa. If this applies to you and neither of the above-mentioned options of submitting applications appeals to you, you can travel to Austria to apply for a Red-White-Red – Card Plus in person if you have a valid visa. (This also applies to third-country national skilled workers themselves who are not allowed to enter Austria without a visa, but who wish to submit their application for an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher in Austria).

In this case, you are entitled to stay Austria during the process as long as your visa is valid. If the visa expires before you receive your Red-White-Red – Card Plus, you would have to leave the country in time. For a new entry to collect your Red-White-Red – Card Plus, you would have to apply for a Visa D at the respective Austrian representative authority (embassy/consulate).

• You have a Red-White-Red Card, an EU Blue Card or a Settlement Permit – Researcher and are having a child in Austria? You can apply for a Red-White-Red – Card Plus for your child as soon as you have the birth certificate. Learn more about residence permits for newborns here.

The Red-White-Red – Card Plus (“Rot-Weiß-Rot – Karte Plus”) is a residence permit for skilled workers who are third-county nationals, who have been working and living in Austria for at least 21 months, and who have one of the following residence permits:

• Red-White-Red – Card (exception: Red-White-Red – Card for Self-Employed Key Workers)
• EU Blue Card

If you have had a Settlement Permit – Researcher (“Niederlassungsbewilligung Forscher”) for 2 years, you can also get a Red-White-Red – Card Plus. You must apply to the Immigration Authority (“Aufenthaltsbehörde”) for your (extended) Red-White-Red – Card Plus. The location of the relevant office depends upon where you live. 

• You must apply for an extension of your residence permit within the three months before your current residence permit expires.  
• Children under the age of 6 do not have to personally come to the public authority. A legal representative (generally the mother or father) can submit the application on behalf of the child.
• If you have submitted the application for an extension of your residence permit, but the application has not yet been processed and you have not yet received your new residence permit, you can continue to live and work in Austria. If your current residence permit has already expired, you are still waiting for the new one and you must urgently travel to another country, you can apply for a so-called emergency vignette (“Notvignette”). In this case, you must supply proof as to why you have to urgently leave Austria (e.g., invitation from business partners, death certificate in cases of death, etc.) and a travel ticket. This emergency vignette is valid for a period of three months and is printed into your passport as a Schengen visa.