Meldebestätigung: Is there a limit on the number of people who can be registered at one address?

Graham Crewe
Aug 23, 2023
4 min read

Updated: Sep 1, 2023

This question has recently come up in one of our Facebook groups [link to post in private group] and we thought it worth looking into.

Before we start, a reminder that the Meldezettel is the form used to apply for the Austrian registration confirmation document which is called the Meldebestätigung. People often use the word "Meldezettel" to refer to the latter.

We haven't found a specific law at the national level that limits the number of inhabitants per square metre but we believe that registration offices might apply their own local rules, so you should ask there (see article).

People have told us anecdotes about having a registration refused due to overcrowding, for example for a 4-person family in a one-bedroom apartment. It is also possible that officials MAY check for different family names and/or genders in an accommodation (e.g. a Garconniere/studio apartment with four occupants with totally different family names.

If you are renting an apartment the landlord will sign the Meldezettel (the application for a Meldebestätigung) for everyone listed in the contract. One of these people can then sign the Meldezettel for further inhabitants. You should certainly read your tenancy agreement very carefully to check if there is limit on occupants, and it would be wise to be clear and honest with your landlord about how many people will be living in the accommodation.

Austrian Tenancy Law: Subletting

One point to note is that the Austrian Tenancy Act (Mietrechtsgesetz) includes a provision to allow a landlord to stop a sublet (when the tenant rents the property out to a third party) if "the number of occupants of a rented dwelling exceeds or would exceed the number of habitable rooms [Anzahl der Wohnräume] after the admission of the subtenant" Mietrechtsgesetz § 11 (1) 3: https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10002531

Asylum seekers

For Asylum seekers "the minimum standards ... define a maximum occupancy of 5 persons per room" but this seems to be disregarded in Burgenland, Styria and Tirol where adults are being placed in rooms with 6 to 8 beds. See paragraph 5 here: https://asylumineurope.org/reports/country/austria/reception-conditions/housing/conditions-reception-facilities/

Statistics

Statistik Austria produces some interesting data about housing. Particularly relevant are the statistics about living space*:

The average living space in rented accommodation is around 69 m².
The average living space per person is 35 m².
The average number of rooms per occupant is 1.5.

* For these figures I have averaged the figures for "Tenancy in communal flats", "Tenancy in co-operative flats" and "Other primary tenancy" weighted by the number of dwellings in each category.

See: https://www.statistik.at/en/statistics/population-and-society/housing/housing-conditions

Further information

For further information about registering for the Meldebestätigung in Austria please see our article: https://www.englishspeakers.at/post/meldezettel-registering-at-a-new-address-in-austria

An image depicting a family living under one roof

Our research

In researching this piece we uncovered various pieces of information, none of which give the complete picture. We are adding it here as a footnote, should anyone need a starting point for their own research.

Germany

The German Bundestag in 2017 produced a document listing the regulations on the minimum living space per person in rented apartments in different areas in Germany.

Most seemed to be 9 m² per person plus 6 m² for children under 6.

Austrian Parliament

In <date unknown*> there was an inquiry into practices used by MA62 regarding the withdrawal of residence rights based on a criterion in the Residency Act for a "customary local accommodation".

This criterion stated in principle that, in accordance with "accommodation customary in the locality" (translated from German) for a married couple with one child, in addition to a living space for the whole family, there must also be a parents' room and a separate bedroom for the child. They were also using a guidelines of 10 m² per person. The inquiry argued that these rules were not in fact based on local custom but were a means to deny residence to immigrant families.

* The inquiry is addressed to Dr Caspar Einem as Minister for the Interior. Dr Einem was Minister for the Interior between 1995 and 1997

BMI Regulations

The BMI regulations for the granting of residence permits to third-country nationals now state that “The accommodation must be customary for a family of comparable size”. Neither the NAG nor the NAG-DV seem to stipulate what that is.

Vienna Regulations

Vienna defines different categories of apartments with a category A apartment being min 30 m²; for category C apartments (build between 1961 and 1970) the average size is 29 m².

Vienna municipal guidelines from 2000 define the following:

“a room with a minimum size of 8 m² is defined as living space and in the case of kitchens, they are only considered additional living space if at least 8 m² remain, minus the kitchenette. If there is only one living space up to 15 m² available, it is always considered overcrowded and therefore not customary in the area. There is also an overburdening if two people have only one living space, three people only two living rooms, five people three living rooms and seven people only four living rooms.”

In 2018 Der Standard reported that the minimum apartment size for social housing in Vienna is 30 m².

Legal Cases

There was a Supreme Administrative court case (ECLI:AT:VWGH:2000:1998190179.X01) in 2000 related to “customary local accommodation”

This judgement seems to reinforce the idea that there must be a minimum of 8 m² of living space per person in Vienna.

Caution: It is not clear if there has been any follow-up to this.

Summary

As Austria is Federal republic made up of nine provinces, there may be regional variations on these regulations but as a general rule of thumb you need a minimum 8 m² of living space per person plus kitchen, plus toilet, plus bathroom facilities which are appropriate to the number of people. Most new apartments should be over 30 m².