Registration of a new main residence or ‘secondary residence’

General information

Anyone who takes up accommodation in a dwelling in Austria is required to register themselves as well as all co‑habiting minors with the competent registration authority.

Affected

People staying in Austria.

Requirements

Registration is required in the following cases, for example:

• Moving into accommodation in Austria for the first time
• Moving house within Austria (a new main residence is being established)
• Establishing another place of residence ‘secondary residence’ (the main residence remains the same)

When a new main residence is registered, the competent authority for the new main residence may also carry out the de‑registration or change of status  of the former place of residence at the same time as registering the new one.

Registration of a main residence for a newborn child may also take place at the same time as registering the birth with the registry office  if a registration form has been filled in beforehand (usually at the hospital). In this case, it is not necessary to register with the registration authority.

Within Austria, changes of name, marital status, sex or citizenship are entered directly in the Central Population Register by the registry offices or citizenship administration offices; it is therefore not necessary to register these separately.

The registration of a residence (main or secondary) may only be made after actual accommodation has been taken. The accommodation provider confirms this on the registration form. A registration of a residence without actual (real) accommodation is punishable by law (sham registration).

Any person who fails to fulfil the statutory requirement to register, particularly because they neglect to register or de‑register at all, or they do so even though they have not taken up or left accommodation, is regarded as committing an administrative offence, which is punishable by a fine of up to 726 Euro (up to 2.180 Euro should the offence be repeated).

Information regarding notifying changes of address to administrative bodies, organisations, etc when moving house can also be found at www.oesterreich.gv.at

Deadlines

Within three days of moving into accommodation

Competent authority

For registration of a main residence or another ‘secondary residence’: the registration authority that is competent for the new place of residence

•  the Municipal Office^{German text}
•  in Chartered Cities: the Municipal Administration^{German text}
  • In Vienna: the → Municipal District Office^{German text}

Procedure

You can register in person or by post. It is also possible for registration documents to be delivered by a messenger. Registration by fax or email is currently not permitted under the law.

Minors must be registered by those responsible for their care or their parents or guardians, persons with a mental disability under the care of the legal guardian, by this person, or if these persons are unavailable, by the party providing accommodation.

If registering in person or by post, you will need the registration form, which is used by the registration authorities to enter the data in the population register. The form is available for download, or copies may be obtained from the registration authority and in a number of tobacconists/newsagents.

The headings in the registration form must be completed legibly and in full. Attention is drawn to the following particular areas:

• Religious denomination: It is possible to leave this heading blank until the accommodation provider has signed the registration form. It may also be left blank thereafter.
• Central Population Register number (ZMR): This must be stated, if known. The Central Population Register number is a twelve‑digit number that is randomly assigned by the system and is used by the authorities to identify you.
• Signature of person required to register: This serves to confirm that the registration data are true and accurate.
• Signature of the accommodation provider

The accommodation provider is any person who actually provides accommodation to the person taking it, e.g.:

• the actual owner of a house or owner‑occupied dwelling to a cohabitant (e.g. partner, family member) or the main tenant;
• the main tenant to a cohabitant or sub‑tenant;
• the sub‑tenant to the cohabitant.

A separate registration form must be completed for each individual person.

You will receive a written confirmation of regsitration (formerly: registration form).

Required documents

• Official records showing the family names and forenames, maiden names, date of birth, place of birth and nationality of the person taking the accommodation (e.g. passport and birth certificate)
• Any certificates of academic qualifications
• For persons without Austrian citizenship (foreign nationals) taking accommodation:
  • Travel document (e.g. passport)
• When registering a newborn child (with the registration authority):
  • The The child’s birth certificate

If you are not registering in person, you will need to enclose your original documents or copies of these documents that have been certified by a civil‑law notary or a court with your completed registration form or provide them to the messenger. If registering a place of residence by post, please consider the risk associated with using the post, for which the authority will not accept liability.

Costs and fees

There are no fees or charges payable.

Further information

Staying in tourist accommodation (e.g. hotels, guest houses, B&Bs, privately rented rooms) must also be registered in all cases by an entry in the register of guests (until 31 March 2016 known as ‘visitor book compendium’ at the tourist accommodation.

Homeless persons have the option to make an application for a confirmation of a main residence from the registration authority if:

• they can plausibly demonstrate that their living circumstances have focused exclusively on this municipality for at least 1 month; and
• they are able to name a location within this municipality that they visit regularly (point of contact such as a private contact address, social services, homeless shelter).

Exemptions from the duty to register

Persons who are already registered elsewhere in Austria do not have to register if they:

• are living in a dwelling free of charge for no longer than two months (e.g. holiday with grandparents);
• have been admitted to hospital as a patient;
• are minors and are staying in accommodation for children, pupils, students, youths or sports teams;
• are living in shared accommodation (e.g. barracks) as a member of the Federal Armed Forces, Federal Police, customs officials or prison officers or under the care of a disaster aid service.

Regardless of whether or not they are already registered in Austria, people being provided with accommodation in a dwelling for no more than three days do not have to register, for example.

In accordance with the Austrian E‑Government Act, the registration authority is required to enter existing marital status certificates and proofs of nationality in the standard register of documents. The submission of originals of these already outmoded documents is generally no longer required in (electronic) administrative processes.

Legal basis

• Sections 1 bis 13, 19a and 22 of the Meldegesetz (MeldeG)
• Section 17 of the  E-Government-Gesetz (E-GovG)

Link to form

• Online service "residence registration" via oesterreich.gv.at
• Registration form^{German text}

Authentication and signature

• In person, by courier or through the post: with a signed residence registration form.

You can find additional information about this under procedure and Required documents and also at oesterreich.gv.at.

• Electronically: Registration for the online service "residence registration" via oesterreich.gv.at using a ID Austria or EU Login 

  • Information on the changeover from mobile phone signature and citizen cards to ID Austria^{German text}

Means of redress or appeal

An appeal against a decision by the registration office can be filed with the relevant Regional Adminstrative Court. This must be submitted within four weeks to the authority which issued the decision.

Assistance and problem-solving services

There are no assistance or problem-solving services.

For better understanding and easier reading, the form chosen for all personal designations in this text applies to both genders.