Language courses

Back to: Know-How: Access to Education and Employment (Austria)

The focus of public attention is on learning the German language. There are a large number of providers of language courses of varying quality.

Whether and which German courses asylum seekers receive funding as part of their basic care varies from state to state. Adult refugees usually receive only very few hours, which are financed by the accommodation providers from the € 10,00 leisure allowance per person and month. The situation is better where NGOs or private initiatives organise and finance German courses.

In Vienna, there have been an additional 10,000 places on German courses since 2017 and thus a wide range of German courses for asylum seekers. The following regulations apply for access to the courses:

Asylum seekers need to contact the Vienna education hub to find a suitable German course. There are two possibilities:

Asylum seekers who live in supervised accommodation are placed with the Vienna Education Hub via their supervisors in their accommodation. If asylum seekers live privately, they should contact the service point of the Basic Services Vienna. The service centre will refer you to the Vienna Education Hub.

Asylum seekers should contact the Public Employment Service or the Austrian Integration Fund.

Source (June 2019): https://www.refugees.wien/infos-fuer-fluechtlinge/sprache

The website of Asylkoordination Österreich offers a detailed and differentiated presentation of educational offers such as German courses, basic education courses, learning aids, compulsory school-leaving courses, transitional courses, offers only for women and higher education in the individual provinces.

The website within the project CORE – Integration im Zentrum offers a presentation of the Austrian education system and a question and answer catalogue about the education system and language courses, support and education and further links to the situation in Vienna.