Can people from third countries have a permanent right of residence in several EU countries? Jim is a US citizen. He was stationed in Germany as a US Marine and decided to live there after completing his military service. He then lived in Germany for over 10 years where he worked as a fitness trainer and was granted permanent residency. He then moved to Austria 5 years ago and works as a tour guide in Salzburg. He is now about to be granted permanent residence in Austria as well, but wonders what influence this could have on his right of permanent residence in Germany.
The final stage of the immigration process
For third-country nationals, the granting of an EU permanent residence title is the final stage in the immigration process, apart from citizenship. In addition to housing, health insurance, a secure livelihood and Module 2 of the Integration Agreement, this requires uninterrupted and actual settlement in Austria for a period of 5 years. This period is only interrupted if the person concerned has resided outside Austria for more than 10 months in total or more than 6 months continuously. This regulation also applies in all other EU states, including Germany.
As soon as a third-country national has acquired the right of permanent residence in an EU country, it is generally easier to obtain a residence permit in another EU country. In Austria, however, this is usually only possible under the same conditions as for Red-White-Red Card.
Expiry of the right of permanent residence
Even if the right of permanent residence is generally valid for an indefinite period, the residence title ‘EU permanent residence’ can also expire again. This is the case if the third-country national spends more than 12 consecutive months outside the EEA territory, e.g. in the USA. Longer stays in other EU countries are therefore not a problem if you receive a residence title and do not terminate the right of permanent residence in this country. However, a ‘permanent residence EU’ residence permit becomes invalid if the person concerned has not resided in the country for 6 years or receives a ‘permanent residence EU’ residence permit in another member state. A third-country national cannot therefore be authorised to reside permanently in two EU states at the same time.
For Jim, this means that he has to decide whether he should actually apply for an EU permanent residence title in Austria or whether he wants to retain his permanent right of residence in Germany.
