Austria vs Spain, Portugal, Greece and Hungary: Which Residence Route Fits You

People who look at Austria usually compare it with the sunny south. I put the figures side by side as BRIDGES publishes them (checked 27 October 2026), with the official Austrian amount from oesterreich.gv.at. For the other countries I quote BRIDGES data and do not add my own numbers.

The table

	Austria	Spain	Italy	Portugal D7	Greece FIP
Income requirement	from EUR 31,401 a year	from EUR 28,800 a year	guide of EUR 31,000	from EUR 11,040 a year	from EUR 24,000 a year
Annual quota	yes	no	no	no	no
Language before filing	German A1	no	no	no	no
Right to work	no	no	no	yes	no
Years to citizenship	10	10	10	10	7

Source: the BRIDGES Austria page. The Austrian amount equals the official EUR 2,616.78 a month for a single person times 12.

Where Austria wins

• A clear set of rules in figures and certificates. If the file meets them and there is a quota place, the outcome is predictable.
• A direct path: five years to Daueraufenthalt EU and 10 to naturalisation.
• Quality of life, schools and central location, which is why my clients ask about Vienna.

Where Austria loses

• The quota: miss the start of the year and you wait a full year.
• German before filing, for every adult.
• No work at all in Austria.
• A progressive tax scale up to 55% above EUR 1 million.

Hungary as a different kind of option

Hungary is not a passive income visa but an investment permit. BRIDGES describes the guest investor programme with a EUR 250,000 real estate fund route, no quota and no language test. In one BRIDGES case, a client who wanted Austria but had no German and no quota place chose Hungary and received EU residence. If your goal is the EU in general and not Austria in particular, that is worth considering.

Spain, Portugal and Greece

BRIDGES compares the Portuguese D7 and the Spanish non-lucrative visa and explains the Greek FIP visa. All three have lower or similar income thresholds and no language step at entry.

How I would choose

1. If you want to live in Austria, have the income and are ready for German, go for Austria and plan for January.
2. If you need to work, look at the D7 or at work permits instead.
3. If you only want an EU base without moving, a permit like Hungary’s may fit better.

Start with the complete guide if you have not read it.