# ÖVP Rejects Easier Access to Austrian Citizenship

October 22, 2026 at 07:16 PM

> General Secretary Markus Gstöttner maintains that citizenship must remain the final step of integration under strict national laws.

**Markus Gstöttner**, General Secretary of the **ÖVP**, has officially rejected demands for easier access to **Austrian** citizenship. The party opposes introducing a conditional birthright citizenship principle, maintaining that the process should not be automatic.

Gstöttner stated that citizenship must remain at the end of the integration process. Applicants must meet defined criteria, including learning German, working, following rules, and committing to the Republic's values under some of the world's strictest laws.

The ÖVP dismissed claims of a democracy deficit, asserting that the right to vote is a right of citizenship. Gstöttner emphasized that full democratic participation in Austria is achieved through naturalization rather than birthright or place of birth.


[#Austria](<https://austriareport.com/hashtag/austria>) [#ÖVP](<https://austriareport.com/hashtag/%C3%B6vp>) #Citizenship [#Integration](<https://austriareport.com/hashtag/integration>) [#Politics](<https://austriareport.com/hashtag/politics>)

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