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Dear Virtual Viennese,
I am an American citizen currently in the US. I am looking to move to Vienna later this year and I am searching for work there. I speak German well and have been in Vienna before so the language is not a problem, but I am looking for advice about the best way to approach getting the work permit. Others on this forum have said they have had a work permit but no job, which is confusing to me because I thought you would need a job to get a work permit! Some jobs I have seen advertised have specified that they would only consider people who already can legally work in Austria. Is it possible to get a work permit from the States without already having a job? What is your advice as to the best approach? Do you think that if an Austrian employer is interested and willing to hire a foreign citizen, that they would generally be willing to go through the steps of arranging a work permit, or would they consider that too much of a hassle?
Thanks for any tips!
I believe I would qualify for Schluesselkraft, with graduate degrees and IT skills. But I still wonder how much of a “hassle-factor” would enter into a potential employer’s decision if I am a foreigner and don’t yet have a work permit.
Well it will factor in quite a bit. Obviously the best course of action would be to line up a job first with an employer that is willing to go through that hassle. I did this for someone once at my company however they backed out of the job offer after we already secured a work permit. Needless to say my company no longer is interested in non-EU applicants. The employer has to show that they cannot hire your skill set locally, but there is a trick they use… they say something to the effect that your position will create several more jobs for local workers which sounds good to the AMS.
But I would guess it is quite rare since all the Americans I’ve known have work permits through marriage, work on assignment at the IAEA, UN, Embassy, AIS (or some American company) or are just plain freelancers.
Fortunately even though I grew up in the states I was born in England so just had to apply for a passport.
Perhaps try a staffing agency?
Thanks very much for the comments!
In the case of freelancers, is the usual practice to get a contract assignment first, before applying for the work permit, or vice versa? To apply for a permit without a contract would seem to require much more paperwork to give evidence of a successful work history with income, business plan, etc.
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