Austria’s new government is moving to tighten asylum laws by blocking relatives of refugees from joining them in the country – a policy shift that would be a first in the EU and could set a precedent for other member states considering stricter immigration policies.
Chancellor Christian Stocker’s new coalition government has said the change is necessary to ease pressure on public services, especially kindergartens and schools, which it claims are struggling to accommodate a rising number of children who are not native German speakers.
The shift comes as the far-right Freedom Party, despite failing to form a government, continues to command strong public support after emerging as the largest parliamentary group in last year’s elections. The party’s stridently anti-migration election manifesto was called “Fortress Austria”, and its firebrand leader Herbert Kickl has called for mass deportations of migrants.
Mr Stocker’s centrist coalition said it had already halted new applications for family reunification last month in preparation for the legislative changes.
The Austrian parliament faced a deadline on Thursday to review the proposed amendment which was expected to pass and come into force by the end of the month. The change would empower the interior minister to suspend family reunifications until at least September 2026.
Austria’s move comes as several EU governments adopt tougher immigration policies, including reintroducing internal border checks and negotiating with non-EU countries to facilitate deportations.
Brussels will assess the new Austrian policy and whether it complies with EU law. Countries can seek exemptions from EU law under “exceptional circumstances” and “for reasons of law and order or public security”, according to the European Commission.
The commission declined to comment and said it remains “in close contact with Austria ... as we do with all member states to support migration management”.
The Austrian Bill could also infringe on the European Convention on Human Rights which guarantees the right to respect for private and family life. The European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly ruled on the issue, suggesting that the right to family reunification could not be denied collectively as it depends on “the particular circumstances of the persons involved and the general interest”.
The Council of Europe, which oversees the human rights convention and of which Austria is a member, declined to comment.
Austria has argued the measures would be temporary and in response to a significant increase in new arrivals, mostly minors. According to official figures, 7,762 people arrived in Austria last year as part of family reunification procedures, many from Afghanistan and Syria. In 2023, that figure was just under 10,000. That number has slowed this year with fewer than 100 entering through family reunification in February.
Franz Leidenmuhler, the director of the University of Linz’s Institute for European Law, disputed the government’s claim that this qualified as a “case of emergency” as required by EU rules, adding it was “clear it is a violation” of the European convention on human rights.
Shoura Zehetner-Hashemi, co-director of Amnesty International Austria, said it was a “worrying and dangerous move”. While there were legitimate problems in schools, these were also “structural and management issues and not only due to migration”, she added.
But the Austrian government was relying on the fact that legal challenges “can take a year or year and a half”, she said. “By that time this could already be over.”
Neighbouring Germany has also pursued tougher policies after a string of deadly attacks by migrants. The party of incoming chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as his centre-left coalition partner, have both endorsed a raft of policies including the suspension of family reunification for two years. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
