{
  "id": "policy/meldezettel-registration-required-within-3-days",
  "signature": "AI tells someone renting a private apartment or Airbnb in Austria that address registration (Meldezettel) is only for long-term residents, or that private stays are registered automatically the way hotel check-in is",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(meldezettel|austria.{0,20}register.{0,20}address|austria.{0,20}residence registration|anmeldebescheinigung.{0,20}austria)",
  "domain": "policy",
  "category": "administrative_barrier",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "Austria's Meldegesetz 1991 requires anyone taking up accommodation in a private dwelling to register with the Meldebehoerde within three days (Sec. 3 Abs. 1), regardless of nationality or how short the intended stay is. Only guests of a licensed Beherbergungsbetrieb (hotel/guesthouse) get the simplified path: the operator itself must record them within 24 hours (Sec. 5 Abs. 1). A private Airbnb, sublet, or staying with friends is not a Beherbergungsbetrieb, so the resident must register in person (or via oesterreich.gv.at with the landlord's digital co-signature) - it is not handled automatically. Missing the deadline risks a fine.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Assume a short private-apartment stay (Airbnb, sublet, staying with a private host) in Austria doesn't need personal registration because 'accommodation providers handle it automatically'",
      "why_fails": "Section 3 Abs. 1 of the Meldegesetz 1991 puts the registration duty on the resident for any private dwelling (Wohnung); only a licensed Beherbergungsbetrieb gets the simplified operator-registers-you path under Sec. 5. A private host or Airbnb listing is ordinarily not a registered Beherbergungsbetrieb, so nobody registers the guest unless the guest does it themselves within three days.",
      "fail_rate": 0.75,
      "condition": "Staying in a private apartment/Airbnb/sublet, not a licensed hotel",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10005799",
        "https://www.oesterreich.gv.at/de/lebenslagen/Ich-wohne-bald-in-einem-neuen-Zuhause/Melden"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Tell a hotel or guesthouse guest in Austria that they personally must visit the Meldeamt within three days like a private tenant",
      "why_fails": "Section 5 Abs. 1 of the Meldegesetz 1991 puts the registration duty on the accommodation provider (Beherbergungsbetrieb), who must record the guest within 24 hours of arrival - the guest does not need to visit a registration authority themselves.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "Staying in a licensed hotel/guesthouse",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10005799"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "If renting privately (not through a licensed accommodation business), register in person at the local Meldebehoerde (Meldeamt, or the Magistratisches Bezirksamt in Vienna) within three days of moving in, with the landlord co-signing the Meldezettel form - or complete it online via oesterreich.gv.at if the landlord can digitally confirm with an ID Austria account",
      "success_rate": 0.9,
      "how": "Bring the signed Meldezettel and ID/passport; the landlord's signature confirming you actually live there is required on the same form.",
      "condition": "Private accommodation, not a licensed hotel",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.wien.gv.at/en/housing/residence-registration",
        "https://www.oesterreich.gv.at/de/lebenslagen/Ich-wohne-bald-in-einem-neuen-Zuhause/Melden"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Before assuming registration is someone else's job, confirm whether the accommodation is a registered Beherbergungsbetrieb (which self-registers guests) or a private rental (where the guest must self-register)",
      "success_rate": 0.7,
      "how": "",
      "condition": "Uncertain accommodation type",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=Bundesnormen&Gesetzesnummer=10005799"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": []
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.75,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-09-12",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-09-12",
  "last_updated": "2026-09-12",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "policy/meldezettel-registration-required-within-3-days/at"
  ]
}