Complaints Reach All-Time High

ORF and Asylum Cases Flood the Administrative Court

At the Federal Administrative Court in Vienna, the annual report for 2025 was presented—and the ORF was taken by surprise.(Bild: APA/HARALD SCHNEIDER)

The Federal Administrative Court takes stock: In addition to asylum cases, which make up the lion’s share of the caseload, judges are also increasingly having to deal with appeals regarding the ORF license fee. In fact, these appeals now rank second in number. However, resources are becoming increasingly scarce for such a high volume of cases. 

“2025 was an intense year,” says Christian Filzwieser, President of the Federal Administrative Court, by way of introduction. First, the raw numbers: There were 30,550 new cases filed—a quarter more than the previous year. 24,800 cases were concluded in 2025—an increase here as well. The number of staff, however, remained the same. 

Only Asylum Cases Outnumber ORF License Fee Appeals
What Vice President-designate Daniela Urban—who will take office on August 1—particularly highlights: “Complaints regarding the ORF license fee have risen sharply.” Last year, approximately 7,640 cases related to the license fee were filed. “Thousands of new cases came in all at once,” said President Filzwieser. Each one requires a time-consuming individual review. Only the asylum sector can top that.

Highest number of asylum cases since 2018
Unsurprisingly, “The asylum sector still accounts for the largest share,” Urban notes. Cases involving immigration and asylum made up more than half of all new cases—the highest figure since 2018. The total across Austria was 15,720. Just over five percent of these cases involved the detention of asylum seekers pending deportation.

President Christian Filzwieser and Vice President-designate Daniela Urban(Bild: Sophie Pratschner)

Syrians lead the way in appeal proceedings. They account for nearly 40 percent of those challenging decisions by the Federal Administrative Court. One example cited is the case of a Syrian man who had applied for subsidiary protection in Austria—even though he already had multiple prior convictions, including one for robbery. The Federal Administrative Court deemed deportation to be proportionate. The case is now before the Administrative Court.

Currently, 23,000 asylum cases are pending—2,800 of which involve family reunification. “The proceedings are currently on hold until the Settlement and Residence Act (NAG) goes into effect,” says Urban. The latest reform no longer classifies family reunification under asylum law but rather under the new NAG. This law is now intended to operate according to a quota system.

Investing in the judicial system and administrative courts brings faster legal certainty to the core areas of the state.

BVwG-Präsident Christian Filzwieser

“Lengthy proceedings cost the state money”
These changes, of course, require additional resources. Yet the ten newly approved judicial positions and ten other positions for the Federal Administrative Court have so far remained nothing more than an empty promise. “If even a moderate and carefully calculated increase in funding is now denied with a vague reference to budget constraints, the state is harming itself,” Filzwieser emphasizes. “When the duration of proceedings increases, so do the costs for the rule of law.”

Officially, the President of the Federal Administrative Court announces: “We support the appeal by the presidents of the Higher Regional Courts and other leadership bodies of the ordinary judiciary for the ‘Week of Action for the Rule of Law’ in October.” During this week, operations are to be suspended in many courts throughout Austria.