AUSTRIA
Right
to Shelter
Right to Health Care
Right to Fair Labor Conditions
Right to Organize
Right to Education and Training
Right to a Minimum Subsistence
Right to Family Life
Right to Moral and Physical Integrity
Can an undocumented migrant receive accommodation in a public housing
shelter or in a private shelter that receives public funding?
Rejected
asylum seekers may spend short periods in shelters maintained by NGOs, which
mainly cater to the needs of asylum seekers, and which are supposed to be
refunded by the government (the government only shelters about a third of asylum
seekers). However, the refunding has recently been problematic.
Is it legal for a landlord to rent out an apartment to an undocumented
migrant?
In
Austria, a landlord has to make sure that his/her tenant registers with the
authorities. Thus, there is no legal way to rent out an apartment to
undocumented migrants. This relegates them to the gray market, which leads to
overpriced and unsanitary living quarters. For this reason, there are also
several associations in Austria that rent apartments where undocumented migrants
can get accommodation.
Do undocumented migrants have access to public health care or is there a
special health service only for undocumented migrants?
No.
Even for asylum seekers, access to (free) health care is not guaranteed.
However, there are some NGOs that try to meet asylum seekers’ and undocumented
migrants’ needs in this field. Undocumented migrants can always be private
patients, but the costs are high. Some organizations intervene at the stage when
a bill cannot be paid, either trying to get it cancelled or reduced, or by
footing it themselves.
Do health care professionals have the duty to report an undocumented
migrant to the authorities? If yes, why? If no, why not?
No.
3. Right to Fair Labor
Conditions
Does
national labor law stipulate that an employer is obliged to pay an undocumented
migrant for work done, even if the worker does not have a legal residence or
work permit?
No information provided.
If an undocumented migrant has an accident at the workplace, can s/he receive coverage from Social Security (via accident insurance) to cover the costs of treatment or care?
No information provided.
Can an undocumented
migrant bring a court case against an employer for withheld wages?
No information provided.
Do undocumented migrants have the right to organize?
No information provided.
Can
an undocumented migrant be a member of a trade union?
The
ÖGB, the confederation of Austrian trade unions, is not supportive of
undocumented migrants. Although they advocate a crackdown on the employers
rather than the employees, the effect on the undocumented migrant worker is
still immediate deportation. Membership of undocumented migrant workers in trade
unions in Austria is not considered.
5. Right to Education and
Training
Can undocumented minors under the age of 18 enroll in schools?
In Austria, school attendance is obligatory for nine years (starting at
the age of six). Therefore, residence status does not exclude minors from
education. However, in the Traiskirchen reception center, children are not
allowed to attend school. There have also been cases, especially involving
African children, where the school authorities refused the children because of
their residence status.
Problems usually get worse at the level of vocational training (because
there is also an element of work, which means that there has to be a work
permit).
Are
schools obliged to report the presence of undocumented children/adolescents to
the authorities?
No information provided.
Do schools receive any funding for these children/adolescents?
No information provided.
Do undocumented adults (over the age of 18) have the right to education
and training?
No.
There are, however, several NGOs that offer training (German courses, computer
training, etc.) to undocumented migrants.
6. Right to a Minimum
Subsistence
Do
undocumented migrants have a right to welfare benefits from the government?
Social
support and welfare benefits are subject to regulations of each individual
federal state in Austria. Therefore, the system is quite complicated. However,
the trend is to generally exclude undocumented migrants, as well as asylum
seekers, from public assistance.
Can
an undocumented migrant legally get married or legally cohabitate?
The
right to marriage and family life, as laid down in the European Convention on
Human Rights, Art. 8, has constitutional status in Austria. Therefore, in theory
there is a right to marriage. Nevertheless, the authorities do try to make
marriage difficult for undocumented migrants.
Is
it legal to deport an undocumented migrant without his/her spouse or child/ren?
No information provided.
8. Right to Moral and
Physical Integrity
Are
there rules and regulations upholding the right to integrity of undocumented
migrants in this country?
No information provided.
Has
this country been condemned for not respecting international agreements
concerning protection of the personal integrity of undocumented migrants?
Detention practices in Austria have been criticized several times over the
last years, by international organisations such as the UNHCR, the Committee for
the Prevention of Torture, Amnesty International, and by Austrian NGOs and human
rights experts. The main issues were the lack of a review by a judge (detention
is decided upon by the Foreigners Police), the detention of asylum seekers, the
detention of particularly vulnerable individuals such as minors or victims of
torture. But also the sanitary, medical and social circumstances of detention,
the right to appeal and visiting rights were criticized.
Are detention centres accessible to non-governmental organizations?
The
detention in order to ensure a procedure of deportation, expulsion or of a ban
from staying in Austria usually takes place in special sections of prisons. The
law stipulates that it should be as short as possible, but it can be extended to
up to two months, in exceptional cases up to six months.
Since
1998, the government has had contracts with NGOs to ensure the care of detainees
(“Schubhaftbetreuungsverträge”). The goal of these contracts is to ensure
social, humanitarian and psychological care and juridical advice for detainees.
However, there is no general visiting right for NGOs that have such contracts.
The detainee him/herself has to apply. This procedure is explained to the
detainees in a short leaflet they receive.
Are undocumented migrants entitled at any time to free legal aid from a
jurist or lawyer?
There are several NGOs which offer free legal counseling to undocumented
migrants.
Can undocumented migrants freely assert their rights in court and in the
appeals court?
No information provided.