Austria will tighten its integration requirements for refugees from 2026, extending mandatory orientation courses to five days and introducing a ten-point “integration declaration.” Integration Minister Claudia Plakolm said the changes follow concerns over illegal migration and a successful pilot programme.
All asylum seekers and people with subsidiary protection will have to complete the course and sign the declaration, which commits them to democratic principles, gender equality, respect for Austrian traditions and efforts to learn German and find work. Those who refuse may face reduced benefits, fines or even the loss of residency.
The five-day course will be split into modules covering language and education, work and responsibility, democracy, security and social cohesion—including combating antisemitism—and civic engagement. Interpreters will be available in eleven languages.
Further training will follow over three years, with workshops on violence prevention, equality and volunteer work, as well as visits to memorial sites. Plakolm said integration “is an obligation, not an invitation.”
