Federal Administrative Court

Competences

The Federal Administrative Court is Austria's central point of contact for complaints against decisions by authorities in matters of direct federal administration - except for financial law (competence by the Federal Finance Court). The nine regional administrative courts have jurisdiction in all legal cases which are in execution of regional matter or which are executed through indirect federal administration or which are attributable to the security administration. 

If you do not agree with the decisions of a federal administrative authority, you can generally lodge a complaint to the Federal Administrative Court. Here you have the opportunity to have decisions by the authorities checked by independent judges who are not subject to instructions. 

The Federal Administrative Court is in competence for you:

1. If you want to lodge a legal remedy against a decision by a federal authority (administrative appeal).

2. If an authority is in delay with your decision (default complaint).

3. If an employee of an authority issues an individual order against you or executes coercion against you and you consider this behaviour to be unlawful (complaint against measures).

The Federal Administrative Court has a wide variety of tasks.

Official decisions are reviewed in the following areas:

• Asylum and foreign matters (for example, complaints in asylum matters, detention pending deportation or visa procedures)
• Personal rights and education (for example, complaints in matters of the employment and disciplinary law of federal public servants, in the school system or in the field of data protection)
• Social matters (for example, complaints in matters of insurance of the unemployed, employment of disabled persons or employment of foreign nationals)
• Commerce, communication, transport and environment (for example, complaints in matters of environmental impact assessment, the award of federal public contracts or agricultural market supervision)