Thousands obtain citizenship.. and these are the most prominent countries
Statistik Austria announced on May 13, 2025, the latest naturalization figures in Austria for the first quarter of the year, where 5,479 people obtained Austrian citizenship, including 2,188 residing abroad, which accounts for 39.9% of the total. This figure shows an increase of 1.9% compared to the same period in 2024.
One of the main drivers of this increase is the rise in the number of naturalized citizens under §58c of the Citizenship Act, which has allowed since 2020 victims of the Nazi regime and their descendants to obtain citizenship without losing their original nationality. In the first three months of 2025, 2,176 people were naturalized under this provision, most of whom (2,173) live abroad. This number represents 39.7% of all naturalized citizens during that period, an increase of 6.8% compared to the same period last year.
Three countries topped the list of countries to which new immigrants belong under this category: Israel: 1,325 people (24.2%) United States: 472 people (8.6%) United Kingdom: 191 people (3.5%)
As for naturalization for other reasons, it included 3,303 people from various nationalities. Women constituted half of the naturalized individuals (2,769), while minors under 18 years old made up about a third (1,812), whereas around 20.7% of the naturalized were born in Austria (1,133 people). Four Austrian states recorded increases in the number of naturalized individuals compared to last year: Vorarlberg: +39.3% (227) Burgenland: +31.7% (83) Lower Austria: +10.2% (615) Vienna: +4.0% (945)
In contrast, the number of naturalized citizens decreased in: Carinthia: −22.6% (106) Upper Austria: −14.2% (638) Styria: −11.4% (296) Salzburg: −10.8% (149) Tyrol: −5.3% (232) About 77.7% of naturalization cases were based on a legal right, including: 1,640 after residing for at least six years and special circumstances (§11a) 2,176 from victims of Nazism and their descendants (§58c) 198 from spouses (§11a) 132 after 15 years of residence and full integration (§12)
A total of 305 people were naturalized based on a discretionary decision (5.6%), among them: 274 after ten years of residence (§10) 22 due to exceptional achievements for the state (§10) And 917 people were included in the "extension of citizenship grants," including: 121 from spouses (§16) 796 from children (§17)