
Yes. If you qualify as a Very Highly Qualified Worker (at least 70 of 100 points), you can apply for a six-month Job Seeker Visa to come and look for work, then switch to the Red-White-Red Card once you have a matching offer.
The Job Seeker Visa is one of the more attractive features of Austria's system. If the Public Employment Service (AMS) confirms you have reached the 70-point threshold for the Very Highly Qualified Worker tier, an Austrian embassy or consulate can issue a category D Job Seeker Visa valid for six months. That gives you time to be in Austria and find a job that matches your qualifications. If you do, you then apply for the Red-White-Red Card for Very Highly Qualified Workers. The official Job Seeker Visa fee is EUR 195 and the Red-White-Red Card application fee is EUR 218 (2026 figures). Note this route is for the top points tier; most other tiers expect a job offer up front.
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