Request for an employment reference (Austria)
Published byDocMuse
This document is in German
The PDF you download is in German — that is the language it has to be filed in, so it is not translated. Everything on this page is here to tell you what it says.
A letter asking the employer in Austria for a written reference (Dienstzeugnis) under § 1163 ABGB and § 39 AngG — a final reference when the employment ends, or an interim one during it, which is issued at the employee's cost. Austrian law owes only the simple reference stating the length and kind of the work, and it may contain nothing that makes finding a new job harder; the letter also asks politely for a favourable description of duties and achievements. In German, to print and sign.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Employee
- Employee's address
- Employer
- Employer's postal address (department if any, street, postcode and town)
- City
- Date
- Employee's personnel number
- Kind of reference: final or interim
- Employment began on
- End of the employment (final reference only)
- Work done (job title)
- Duties and achievements you would like the reference to mention (optional)
Preview
This document is produced for you. Your answers are typed into it and the finished PDF is yours to keep.
Common questions
- Am I entitled in Austria to a reference that assesses my performance?
- No. What is owed on request is a written reference stating the length and kind of the work (§ 1163 ABGB, § 39 AngG); there is no claim to a full reference with an assessment as in Germany. The reference may contain nothing that makes finding a new job harder. You can ask for a favourable description but cannot demand it — which is exactly what the letter does.
- Can I ask for an interim reference during employment in Austria?
- Yes. If you ask for a reference while the employment continues, it must be issued at your own cost — for white-collar employees under § 39 AngG, for blue-collar workers under § 1163 ABGB, which says the same. It is common, for example, when a line manager changes or before applying elsewhere. Choose the interim reference (Zwischenzeugnis) in the letter and leave the end date empty.
- What can I do if an employer in Austria issues no reference or an incorrect one?
- First ask in writing — with this letter, handed over against a receipt or sent by registered post. If no reference arrives, or it contains statements that make finding a new job harder, issuing or correcting it can be claimed before the labour and social court (Arbeits- und Sozialgericht); the Chamber of Labour advises and represents its members. Ask for the reference soon after the employment ends.
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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