Austria's shortage occupations 2026 and the Filipino profiles that fit

Nationwide shortage occupations 2026 that match Filipino profiles

• Welders and cutting-torch operators (#24) — TIG, MIG/MAG, SMAW, pipe welders; Philippine welding NC III+, shipyard and Gulf fabrication backgrounds.
• Milling machinists and metal turners incl. CNC (#19, #20) — Machining NC III, CNC milling and turning from export-electronics and aerospace suppliers.
• Electrical installers and fitters (#14) and electrical mechanics (#38) — Electrical Installation and Maintenance NC III, industrial electricians.
• Pipe installers and fitters (#16) — plumbing, heating and air-conditioning installers; Plumbing NC III, RAC Servicing NC III, Pipefitting NC II.
• Motor vehicle mechanics (#10), rough mechanics (#30), machine fitters (#46) — automotive, plant and machine technicians from dealer networks and Gulf fleets.
• Roofers (#9), carpenters/Zimmerer (#29), concrete fitters (#44), civil-engineering specialists (#52), building and construction fitters (#35), special fitters (#27) — construction and steel trades with Gulf project experience.
• Varnishers/industrial painters (#22), sheet-metal fitters (#11, #26), vehicle body workers (#17) — coating and sheet-metal trades.
• Restaurant chefs (#47) — cooks from hotel schools, cruise lines and Gulf kitchens.
• Graduate nurses (#2), nursing assistants (#53, #54), medical-technology specialists (#12) — regulated: nostrification and B2 apply.
• Technicians and engineers for mechanical, electrical and civil engineering (#13, #25, #41, #48, #49) — degree-holding Filipino engineers.

What the three cases mean

• Nationwide shortage — the Rot-Weiß-Rot card for skilled workers in shortage occupations: completed vocational training, 55 points, collective-agreement pay, no labour-market test, eight-week decision, anywhere in Austria.
• Regional shortage — the same route, but only for employment in the Land whose list carries the occupation; the employer decides which listed occupation the position corresponds to.
• Not a shortage occupation — the Other Key Worker card: €3,465 gross a month in 2026 plus special payments, 55 points and an AMS labour-market test; assessed case by case.

The Philippine match

For listed occupations, the BMWET Pre-Check register tells the AMS which Philippine trainings already meet the requirements — typically NC III and above and technical diplomas — so the training is not examined case by case. Regulated professions (nursing, medical technology) are outside the register and follow nostrification. We screen every candidate against the list and the register before you interview. Everything here is subject to the Fachkräfteverordnung in force, the AMS assessment and Austrian residence and labour law.

Frequently asked questions

• Is 'welder' on the nationwide list?

  Yes — welders and cutting-torch operators are nationwide shortage occupation #24 for 2026.

• Waiters?

  Regional in 2026 — Salzburg lists waiters, for example; cooks are nationwide.

• Warehouse or production workers?

  Not shortage occupations; only the Other Key Worker route with its salary floor and labour-market test, which rarely fits. We say so before you brief.