Thairetired2016

Are there any Brits who have retired to Austria on BE?

MartinH

Yes, we have just done that!

Thairetired2016

Tks for replying.
I hope you enjoy your retirement in Austria. May I ask which area you have chosen?
We have been contemplating a move to Austria for some years. We know Salzburger Land quite well. We both have EU p.ports but one is British. What makes us a bit hesitant is the question of taxation and medical insurance which is a requirement. Our enquiries never gave us info we felt we can rely on. The Brexit will change the present rules I assume. We have been living outside Europe for 50 years. Although we more or less decided to stay put where we are, I just booked Salzburg for 3 month in summer. We enjoy the Salzburger way of life esp. the weekly Schrannenmarkt.
It would be great if you would share some of your experience preparing to move, and how to deal with Austrian bureaucracy. I can speak German.

MartinH

Hi

Sorry for not responding sooner - I don't hang out here much anymore.

We are in Steiermark around 100km south of Salzburg in fact just over the border from Salburgerland.

Are you actually a pensioner (official definition) or early retiree? In actual fact their are regulations which say that if you are an early retiree you can pay you own medical insurance on a voluntary basis and that will give you full cover. Cost is around €6,000 per year for two people. I am still employed under a German contract so using my German medical insurance but we will switch to the local insurance at the appropriate time.

Tax rates are quite high but not sure what your concern is! perhaps you could let me know. My advice would be that if your finances have any degree of complexity then you should speak with a steuerberater.

We have been full time resident here now for around 6 months. We are both German speakers so no too difficult to adapt but generally we find the administration to be a lot more relaxed than in Germany and we have certainly had no issues registering or getting set up with all local accounts etc. I suspect that will change for people coming AFTER Brexit but in the meantime I would suggest that people who are thinking of coming do so quickly before anything is written on paper. I think once you own a property it will actually be very difficult to remove someone.

Overall our observations are that Austria is everything we hoped it would be (we love to ski) and there are actually very few negatives for retirees. If you are skill working or need to travel on business then its not ideal as there are very few connections directly from Salzburg (my local airport).

The only negative I can think of is that the range available in local supermarkets is quite limited and food is generally more expensive than Germany....otherwise all good!

Happy to try and help with any specific questions you have.

Thairetired2016

Tks for your long reply. We are both retired (just 70), and we have been living overseas for our whole life. We enjoy living in Bangkok. Yet we feel drawn to Salzburg year after year. Not to the music but to the choice and quality of food. Old age seems to draw closer to our former home. My roots from my mother's side are Austrian. I'm well aware that other towns are very different to Salzburg, and smaller towns won't offer a Salzburg way of life. Yet life in a smaller, less touristy place may be more suited to get to know local people. Good to hear you found Austrian officialdom more relaxed than e.g. German one. This was my impression on one occasion visiting Finanzamt. Just wasn't sure if this was a one off.
It is our intention to get advice on finances etc. when we arrive early June. At present we could get medical on the basis of UK state pension. Not sure if they would cover me as I get just this "spouse" pension. Brexit may change the medical cover. We have to wait and see.
No doubt there will be a few more questions once we start getting matters moving. Once again, many tks.

Thairetired2016

Hi, We have to register with BH Salzburg Stadt once we stay for 90+ days. Do you know if we have to show income and health insurance at this point? Or do we simply fill in a form? Many thanks.