Within hours of the government’s Skilled-Labour announcement, the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WKÖ) issued a sharply worded statement calling for immediate implementation details. Secretary-General Jochen Danninger said member companies “cannot wait another year” for faster work-permit processing and warned that baby-boomer retirements will widen the labour gap unless foreign-talent channels open quickly. (wko.at)
WKÖ supports the strategy’s three-pillar design but stresses that apprenticeships alone will not plug shortages in IT, engineering and healthcare. Danninger welcomed the idea of extending the Red-White-Red Card to labour-leasing firms—a long-standing business demand—and backed a proposed pilot allowing adult apprentices from third countries. He also pressed for full digitalisation of filings, real-time status tracking and a “statutory 4-week SLA” for permit decisions. (wko.at)
![Austrian Chamber of Commerce urges ‘rapid, digital’ rollout of new Red-White-Red Card rules]()
Amid these procedural complexities, VisaHQ can step in as an outsourced visa partner. Through its Austria portal (https://www.visahq.com/austria/) the firm provides document checks, appointment scheduling and real-time status updates for Red-White-Red Cards, ICT permits and Schengen visas, helping both employers and assignees move faster while the government irons out the new rules.
The Chamber is lobbying for funding to expand labour-market training vouchers and to increase budgets for regional immigration offices (Bezirkshauptmannschaften), arguing many are already over-stretched. In a tacit swipe at the Interior Ministry, WKÖ says that unless back-office staffing is bolstered, “new legal entitlements will merely shift queues online.”
For mobility teams, the statement signals that business pressure may shorten lead-times sooner than official legislation. Companies should monitor WKÖ’s consultation papers—often precursors to amendments inserted during the parliamentary committee stage.
WKÖ supports the strategy’s three-pillar design but stresses that apprenticeships alone will not plug shortages in IT, engineering and healthcare. Danninger welcomed the idea of extending the Red-White-Red Card to labour-leasing firms—a long-standing business demand—and backed a proposed pilot allowing adult apprentices from third countries. He also pressed for full digitalisation of filings, real-time status tracking and a “statutory 4-week SLA” for permit decisions. (wko.at)
Amid these procedural complexities, VisaHQ can step in as an outsourced visa partner. Through its Austria portal (https://www.visahq.com/austria/) the firm provides document checks, appointment scheduling and real-time status updates for Red-White-Red Cards, ICT permits and Schengen visas, helping both employers and assignees move faster while the government irons out the new rules.
The Chamber is lobbying for funding to expand labour-market training vouchers and to increase budgets for regional immigration offices (Bezirkshauptmannschaften), arguing many are already over-stretched. In a tacit swipe at the Interior Ministry, WKÖ says that unless back-office staffing is bolstered, “new legal entitlements will merely shift queues online.”
For mobility teams, the statement signals that business pressure may shorten lead-times sooner than official legislation. Companies should monitor WKÖ’s consultation papers—often precursors to amendments inserted during the parliamentary committee stage.
