In addition to pupils, students or au pairs, social service workers can also obtain a residence permit in Austria.
Alternatives for a residence permit
The Austrian citizen Sophie met the surf instructor John during her last holiday in Bali and takes him with her to Austria. Marriage is out of the question for the time being and it is also not possible for John to obtain a Red-White-Red Card. The only option left to him is to start studying or go to school in Austria in order to obtain a residence permit as a student or pupil.
However, as John no longer wants to go to school and would rather contribute to society, he looks for another way to secure his stay in Austria, at least temporarily, and comes across the possibility of a residence permit for social service workers.
Requirements for a residence permit as a social service worker
In order to obtain such a residence permit as a social service worker, John must fulfil a whole series of requirements. First of all, he must find a job with a non-partisan and non-profit organisation (e.g. Caritas) that does not pursue profit-making purposes. In addition, he must not be paid for this work, the organisation must issue a declaration of liability for John and the social service must not be subject to the Aliens Employment Act. But that’s not all. The work must also be of a training or further education nature and the general requirements for obtaining a residence permit (secure livelihood, local accommodation and health insurance) must be met.
A further disadvantage of this residence permit as a social service worker is that a change of purpose to another residence title would only be possible as a family member and John Sophie would then have to marry. In addition, this residence permit is issued for a maximum of one year and cannot be extended.
All of these conditions significantly restrict John’s employment opportunities. In particular, it is not possible for him to take on work for which he is not allowed to be paid. John therefore decides against applying for a residence permit as a social service worker and tries to get a place at university so that he can stay in Austria as a student.
