Executive summary (English/Deutsch)

Austria has favourable labour market conditions compared with other OECD countries, and the demographic challenges are stronger than elsewhere. Against this backdrop, a major reform of the legal framework for permanent labour migration – the Red-White-Red (RWR)-Card – was introduced in 2011 with a view to facilitate admissions of labour migrants in highly skilled occupations and to open up for migration for shortage occupations in the medium-skilled segment. The reform abolished numerical limits on permanent labour migration and converted the system into a points-based admission scheme. At the same time, the EU Blue Card was introduced. In spite of a significant increase since then, Austria still has one of the lowest inflows of permanent labour migrants relative to its population.