How can a skilled worker move to Austria for a job?

For a skilled worker, Austria offers several work routes and the best fit depends on your profile. The EU Blue Card suits highly qualified professionals with a degree (or comparable IT/managerial experience), a six-month-plus job offer and gross annual pay of at least EUR 55,678 in 2026. Among the Red-White-Red Card tiers, Very Highly Qualified Workers is the points-based premium route (70 of 100 points, with the option to enter on a Job Seeker Visa before you have an offer).

If your trade or profession is on Austria's official shortage list, the Skilled Workers in Shortage Occupations tier needs a job offer in a listed occupation and 55 of 90 points. For roles that aren't shortage-listed or very-highly-qualified, the Other Key Workers tier requires 55 of 90 points, a labour-market test by the AMS, and gross monthly pay of at least EUR 3,465 (2026 threshold).

Across most of these, the points test, a matching job offer and meeting the relevant salary minimum are the recurring themes, and after about 21 of 24 months in qualifying work you can move to a Red-White-Red Card plus with open labour-market access.

Shortage lists, salary thresholds and points criteria change from year to year, so confirm the current figures on migration.gv.at. ACME's free initial consultation can help you identify which tier you're most likely to qualify for.