Why Manuella turned to Immigrant Invest
Manuella is a businesswoman and a single mother. When she turned to us for consultation, her 11-year-old daughter Sophia had studied at a boarding school in Vienna for two terms, that is, for 7 months.
As a Brazilian citizen, Manuella had visa-free access to Austria and had no problems visiting Sophia. However, visiting did not seem to be enough. The mother and daughter missed each other a lot and badly endured the separation.
When Manuella decided to relocate to Austria, she studied how to do it. Without a visa, she could stay in Vienna for up to 90 days out of each 180. To live permanently, Manuella needed an Austria residence permit.
Manuella was not planning to work in Austria and was not ready to expand her business to the country, so she realised a residence permit for financially independent persons suited her best. But it is issued according to the quotas, which are allocated once a year and which number is much fewer than the number of applicants.
If Manuella had failed to obtain a quota, her daughter and she would have had to spend another year apart. Manuella could not take such a risk, so she sought professional help. She chose Immigrant Invest after learning how meticulously we prepare applications for every client, having read our article on how to get a quota in 2022.
Before signing a contract with Manuella, we ran the preliminary Due Diligence check on her. Our Anti-Money Laundering Officer did it to see whether there were any red flags in Manuella’s biography that might lead to the refusal of her application. No red flags were found. If Manuella filed a well-prepared application on the first working day of the year, her odds of success would be 99%. And it was our job to make that happen.
Investment programs expert
Preliminary steps: taking a language exam, renting an apartment, collecting documents
Applicants for a residence permit in Austria for financially independent persons must meet several requirements: have no criminal record, earn income at a certain level outside Austria, know the basics of German, and get a residential address and insurance in the country.
Proving knowledge of German. Applicants are required to have at least the A1 German language proficiency level. Manuella spent a month revising her school knowledge of German with the tutor and then took an exam at the Goethe Institute branch in Rio de Janeiro. She received the Goethe-Zertifikat A1.
Converted from Brazilian reals, the exam price was about €100.
Renting an apartment. Applicants must conclude a lease agreement for at least a year. Our real estate expert helped Manuella find a three-bedroom apartment within a 15-minute walk from Sophia’s school. Manuella came to Austria to inspect the property with her daughter and make sure they both liked it.
The cost of renting amounted to €1,800 per month. The first payment consisted of prepaid rent for 6 months, a security deposit in the amount of rent for 3 months, and an Austrian realtor service in the amount of 2-month rent payment. In total, €19,800.
Getting insurance. Applicants are obliged to take out medical insurance with full coverage valid for at least 3 years. For Manuella’s family, insurance policies cost €800 per month.
Collecting evidence of financial solvency and source of income. Applicants must prove they have enough money for a yearlong stay in Austria. The required amount is calculated based on the family composition and the minimum cost of living validated for the year before application.
Manuella needed to have €2,061 per month for herself and €318 for Sophia. Rental and insurance costs as well as Sophia’s tuition fee must be added to the amount. Sophia’s education cost about €25,000 per annum. Thus, for a year, Manuella was supposed to prove a minimum of €85,000 in assets, which she did.
Preparing a final package of documents. With Manuella, we collected the following set of papers:
- A passport.
- A birth certificate.
- Two passport-sized photos.
- A German proficiency certificate.
- A certificate of no criminal records from Brazil.
- A bank account statement.
- Manuella’s company charter and constituent treaty as proof of income source.
- Sophia’s passport, birth certificate and photos.
- An application form for a residence permit for financially independent persons.
- An application form for change of purpose for Sophia’s residence permit.
The documents were apostilled, translated into German and notarised.
Applying for and obtaining Austrian residence for financially independent persons
To have the highest chance of getting quotas, Manuella needed to apply on the first working day morning of the year. Austrian consulates accept applications according to appointments made online. So, the actual challenge was to make such an appointment, and the Immigrant Invest managers took care of it.
Manuella filed an application to the Austrian consulate in Rio de Janeiro on January 3d, 2022. The request for residency was considered for a little over 2 months and was satisfied. 2 out of the 130 quotas allocated for Vienna were given to Manuella and Sophia.
The next step for Manuella was to obtain a D visa. She applied for it at the same Austrian consulate in Brazil, and in 2 weeks, the visa was issued.
In ordinary situations, Manuella had visa-free access to Austria. But receiving a residence permit is not considered a regular case, and visa exemptions do not apply. So, to collect her residence permit card, Manuella had to obtain a special residence visa, or a D visa, and enter Austria on it.
Sophia did not have to get a D visa, as she already held a student residence permit in Austria.
Investment programs expert
In Austria, we helped Manuella register her daughter and herself in the apartment and open a bank account in an Austrian bank. Manuella transferred the money to this account for a yearlong stay in the country. These arrangements took about a week to complete and were the last requirements for receiving residence permit cards.
5 months and €85,470 it took Manuella to obtain residency in Austria
How the new status has changed Manuella’s and Sophia’s lives
Manuella and Sophia again live together after separation for a year and a half. Sophia continues attending the Amadeus International School, just without the boarding part. The tuition fee is now almost twice as less.
Sophia excels in singing and playing the violin. Manuella does not miss her daughter’s performances anymore, and they both are happy about it.
Sometimes, Manuella has to go on business trips back to Brazil. In such situations, Sophia stays with a nanny.
The family’s opportunities before and after obtaining an Austria residence permit for financially independent persons
| Before | After |
| ❌ Manuella could stay in Austria only for 3 months out of 6 | ✅ Manuella can stay in Austria continuously |
| ❌ Studying in Austria, Sophia could only live in a boarding school | ✅ While Sophia studies in Austria, Manuella and Sophia can live together |
| ❌ Sophia would have to leave Austria after finishing school if she did not enter an Austrian university | ✅ Before she finishes school, Sophia will have obtained a permanent residence permit in Austria. With this permit, she can stay in Austria as long as she wants |
Manuella’s and Sophia’s residence permits are valid for a year. Then, they need to be renewed for another year, and after that, for three years. To be eligible for renewal, they will have to prove they spend no less than 183 days in Austria and are still a financially solvent family.
After 5 years of living in Austria, Manuella and Sophia will be able to apply for a permanent residence permit, a termless status. To maintain it, they do not have to continue living in Austria. But it’s necessary to visit the country at least once in two years.
Svetlana Gorchakova, head of the Sales Department
