Social security coverage

A loved one needs care and you are therefore no longer able to carry out your work. The Unemployment Insurance Act states: If you are caring for someone, the qualifying period for unemployment insurance is extended.

According to the Unemployment Insurance Act, there is a so-called qualifying period of 2 years. During this qualifying period, you must have been employed for at least 52 weeks in order to receive unemployment insurance benefits, such as unemployment benefit, for the first time. This does not include marginal employment. If you are caring for someone, the period of care is added to this qualifying period. This means that the period in which the insurance periods must be completed is extended by the period of care. This means that insurance periods prior to care that were longer ago can be taken into account and you are entitled to unemployment insurance benefits after care. Prerequisites for this are:

• Beneficiary continued insurance or self-insurance in pension insurance for the care of a close relative with entitlement to care allowance from level 3 or
• free self-insurance in pension insurance for the care of a disabled child.

You do not have to submit an application for this.

Additional information

There is a maximum framework extension: you can claim unemployment insurance benefits for a maximum of 5 years longer. The prerequisites for this are that you are unemployed and take this time

• family hospice leave or
• care leave and
• receive care leave benefits.

For more information on unemployment insurance, click here:

Self-insurance

If you do not have your own health insurance and are not co-insured with anyone, you can take out voluntary insurance with the Austrian Health Insurance Provider (ÖGK).

In 2025, you will pay a maximum of 526.79 Euros per month for health insurance, entitling you to the following benefits:

• doctor's visits
• hospital stays
• medication
• aids
• medical aids

If you were not previously covered by health insurance, you are only entitled to these benefits six months after submitting your application. You already have to pay for health insurance during this time.

If you are not doing well financially, you will pay less for health insurance. The amount may be lower if you provide information about your finances. You will need the following proof:

• payslip
• tax assessment notice
• savings books or savings accounts
• maintenance payments

The prerequisites for reducing the contribution for health insurance are that you

• are not currently covered by health insurance and
• have your main place of residence in Austria.

How do I submit an application?

Submit your application to the regional office in your federal state. To do this, click on the general website of the Austrian Health Insurance Provider, ÖGK for short: 

To the application

If you are not doing well financially, you pay less under certain conditions. To do this, complete the application for self-insurance and the application for a reduction in the contribution base. You can find both applications here:

If you are in need of social protection and want to apply for non-contributory self-insurance, click here:

In the case of caring for a disabled child, the contribution for self-insurance in health insurance is waived, as well as in the case of social protection needs;

If you look after a relative in need of care at home, you can be co-insured free of charge with the recipient of the care allowance.

You can find out which requirements must be met for non-contributory co-insurance in the SVS health insurance scheme under the following link:

Additional information:

To access information in your federal state, click on the following link:

Free co-insurance

Caregiving relatives can be co-insured with the close person receiving care. The requirements for your co-insurance are that the person in need of care must have health insurance cover themselves, be entitled to care allowance from level 3, be cared for at home in Austria and predominantly use your working capacity as a carer.

To the application

You can find the application to check eligibility for relatives and further information via the following link. You can submit the application online via ID Austria or print it out and send it by post to the regional office in your federal state:

If you take on the task of caring for a close relative, you may no longer be able to go to work. This means that you are no longer compulsorily insured. However, you are entitled to free pension insurance.

In this case, you can apply for continued pension insurance.
The prerequisites for this are that the person in need of care

• receives care allowance from level 3,
• is cared for at home and your entire working hours are required as a carer.

If you continue to work while caring for a close relative and are therefore already compulsorily insured, you can also take out additional self-insurance. Self-insurance while caring for a close relative is also possible if you have never been insured under any form of pension insurance. This means that you have never been compulsorily insured, self-insured or continued to be insured.

In these cases, you apply for self-insurance under the pension insurance scheme.The prerequisites for this are that the person in need of care

• receives care allowance from level 3,
• is cared for at home and your work capacity is required to a considerable extent for the care. This means that your full working hours are not required for this. Nevertheless, caring for the person in need of care requires a large amount of your working time.

To the application

For continued insurance or self-insurance, select the correct form and submit the application by post or e-mail to the Pension Insurance Provider:

For more information on submitting the application, click on the following link:

If you want to submit the application for self-insurance online you will need a ID Austria. You can submit an online application here:

Additional information

Only one carer can be self-insured per person in need of care. As a carer, you must be resident in Austria.

The date of self-insurance can be freely chosen.

Registration is

• possible at the earliest when you are entitled to care allowance level 3 or
• at the start of care and
• retroactively for a maximum of 1 year

In the case of continued insurance, please note that the person requiring care must have already been in need of care during your employment. In this context, it can be understood that you have given up your job so that you have time to care for a loved one.

Both with continued insurance and with self-insurance, you do not have to pay anything yourself. The costs are covered by the federal government.

You can find more information on the following website:

If you would like to contact the Pensionsversicherungsanstalt, PVA for short, in person, call 05 03 03.

The telephone hours are:

Monday to Thursday from 7 a.m. to 3.30 p.m.
Friday from 7 am to 3 pm

To access the relevant telephone number and direct information for your federal state, click here: