After Arrival in Austria
Mandatory Residence Registration (Meldepflicht)
Once you arrive in your new apartment, you will need to get yourself registered at the authorities. In Austria, you are obliged to do so during the first three workdays after moving if you want to avoid fines. If you get your room from a student housing company, you will most likely get a pre-filled Meldezettel (registration form) from them, make sure it is signed. Otherwise you can get the form online. Doing the mandatory residence registration will be the first thing you want to do after arriving in Austria, since you will need it for some of the following steps. It should also be noted that in the case that you move to a new apartment, you will have to re-register. The failure to do so will result in generous compulsory donations to the authorities.
For EU citizens, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Swiss nationals only:
Additionally to the Meldezettel, you will need to apply for another registration certificate based on EU law within the first four months of your stay. You can apply for this registration certificate, called Anmeldebescheinigung, at the Bezirksamt MA35. Although you do have the first four months to apply, you might want to do it as soon as possible.
PhD admission at UniVie
The PhD admission process has no deadline and can be done all year around. You can do it via the university’s webportal u:space. In order to so, you first have to activate your own u:account on the above website. Under admission to degree programmes you then have to select Doctorate/PhD and then the Doctoral programme for your dissertation area in the field of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy. In case of doubt, ask your supervisor. Afterwards you will have to upload your admission documents. For detailed information about the required documents as well as more information about the steps of admission, take a look at the description of the PhD admission process. In case of questions regarding the admission process, contact doktorat.zulassung@univie.ac.at.
To join the Vienna International School of Earth and Space Sciences, please consent to the Code of Good Practice. The Code of Good Practice for Doctoral Schools provides guidelines for good practice at Doctoral Schools and includes the rights and responsibilities of directors, supervisors and doctoral candidates.
Once you have completed the PhD admission, you will receive your u:card. The u:card is the ID card for students and staff of the University of Vienna. It needs to be validated at one of the u:card terminals.
Public Transport
As a student up to the semester in which you turn 26 years of age, you will get discounts at the Wiener Linien – the company which runs most of the public transit network within Vienna. The semester tickets are valid on all public transports in Vienna (Bus, Tram, U-Bahn, S-Bahn) from September 1st till January 31st (winter semester) or February 1st till June 30th (summer semester), respectively. They can be bought in one of the ticket offices or online. You will need the Meldezettel and the proof of enrolment at the university. In the case that you do not qualify for the discounts, the price for an annual ticket will be 365 € paid once or in installments 33 € per month. If you are looking for the public transportation network plans or timetables, they can be found on the same website. If you are planning to use the public transportation on a regular basis, you might want to consider getting the WienMobil app.
Most of the Austrian railway system is operated by ÖBB (Österreichische Bundesbahnen). You can plan your journey by train on the ÖBB website. The annual ÖBB Vorteilscard offers a 50 % discount on every train journey for anyone under the age of 26.
If you regularly use public transport throughout Austria or in a specific region, you can consider purchasing the nation-wide or one of the regional annual climate tickets.
Driving in Austria
Driving licenses from EU and EEA states are generally valid in Austria for an unlimited period. However, if a foreign driving license is not written in German, it is only valid in combination with an international driving license or a translation. Detailed information can be found here.
Rental cars can in generally be rented in the city center or at the airport. A search function comparing rental cars from different companies is found on rentalcars.com, or you can book directly from companies like Sixt or Europcar. There’s also the possibility to use carsharing within Vienna, Wiener Linien offers carsharing at an hourly rate or share-now.com offers carsharing too. Some information about the parking situation in Vienna can be found on wien.info.
Bank Account
In order to receive your salary from the university, you will have to set up a bank account, either in Austria or in a country of the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). If you do want or need to open an Austrian bank account: Up to a certain age, you will also get discounts for opening a bank account as a student. Here are some popular choices of banks in Vienna that offer student discounts: Raiffeisen, Bawag, Erste, Bank Austria. We recommend to visit some banks in person to clarify potential questions. In order to open a student bank account, you will need the Meldezettel and a proof of enrolment at the university.
Mobile Phone Contract
Most likely you are also looking for a mobile phone contract providing you with all the services you will need throughout your studies. Some providers offer student accounts, like educom, A1 and Magenta. A cheap option popular among students are the HoT contracts from Hofer. An overview of several Austrian providers can be found on simoptions.com or tarife.at. For making a contract you will need your Meldezettel, for student discounts a proof of enrolment at the university will be necessary.
Taxation
Employees pay taxes automatically. Only in the case of self-employment, taxes have to be declared online at the platform finanzonline via ID-Austria. General information about the taxation in Austria can be found on Wikipedia. For specific questions you can call the finanzonline hotline, office hours and contact details can be found here.
Health Insurance and Doctors
If you are not employed at the University of Vienna, you can get information on your health insurance here. Information on how to get your e-card, or proof of insurance can be found here. If you do not have Austrian citizenship you can get an e-card here. Every e-card needs a photo in order to be issued. More information can be found here.
As an employee of the University of Vienna, you are automatically insured at the bvaeb, the Versicherungsanstalt öffentlicher Bediensteter, Eisenbahnen und Bergbau. You will automatically get your e-card, your proof of insurance. It has two sides, one is valid for Austria, the other for the EU outside Austria. You will need to provide a proof of your insurance prior to your employment at the university in order to get the EU side filled, otherwise it will only get filled after the first year. The form is called "Bescheinigung über die Zusammenrechnung der Versicherungs-, Beschäftigungs- oder Wohnzeiten" and you should get it from your old insurance company. This is especially important for private travels going outside Austria during your employment.
In Austria most people have a "Hausarzt", usually a doctor in a private clinic ("Allgemeinmedizin") working in your district who can treat mild illnesses or refer you to a specialist. Ensure the doctor you choose has a contract with the bvaeb insurance company or accepts all insurance companies ("Alle Klassen"). You can go to general hospitals in the case of an emergency without a fee. In the unfortunate case that you may need it, here is a list of hospitals, and a website where you can search for specialised doctors in your district. If you go to doctors outside of the general hospitals you will have to pay 10 % (about 2€ per visit) of the treatment if the reason for visiting is not illness or injury during work.
Emergency Contacts
EU-wide emergency number: 112
Austria: Police 133, Ambulance 144, Fire Brigade 122
Security and Emergencies number of the University of Vienna +43-1-4277-777
Emergency text message for students at the University of Vienna
Checklist
- You have completed the PhD admission procedure.
- You have registered at the authorities and got your Meldezettel.
- You have completed further official steps, like opening a bank account, getting a sim card etc., if necessary.
- You have made yourself familiar with the Austrian emergency numbers, in case something happens.
Links
Meldezettel (registration form)
List of district offices (Bezirksämter)
General information about the registration requirements
Online appointments for visiting district offices
General information about living in Austria
Information about MA35 responsible for immigration
Description of PhD admission process on university webpage
u:space university webportal for admission
Code of Good Practice for Doctoral Schools of the University of Vienna
List of Wiener Linien ticket offices
Information about Single Euro Payments Area with list of member countries
Student bank account at Raiffeisen
Student bank account at Bank Austria
Phone contracts at Hofer (HoT)
Overview of Austrian phone contract providers on simoptions.com
Overview of Austrian phone contract providers on tarife.at
Information about driving licenses for foreign citizens
Comparison of different rental car companies on rentalcars.com
Information about parking in Vienna
Information about highway tolls in Austria
Website of the insurance company bvaeb
Information by Austrian Agency for International Cooperation in Education and Research