Guide · Living in Styria

Housing support in Styria: who gets it and how much, as of 2026

If you look for housing benefit in Graz, you will find it under a different name: since 2016 the provincial benefit has been called Wohnunterstützung. Depending on household size it pays up to € 196.91 (one person) to € 324.89 (eight or more) per month, and unlike Vienna the amount depends only on income and household size, the rent merely acts as a cap. Here are the current rules including the reform of 1 April 2026, a calculator with the full calculation and the application, without the outdated half-knowledge circulating online.

Important: what applies in 2026, and what changed on 1 April

Since 1 April 2026 (LGBl. 26/2026) all applicants, Austrians included, must have had their main residence in Austria without interruption for more than five years; newcomers are excluded. Two groups of third-country nationals (long-term resident EU, residence permits under § 49 NAG) additionally need 54 months of employment in the last five years or 240 in total, plus proof of German. The income thresholds rose on 1 January 2026 to € 1,308.39 and € 1,680.00; the maximum amounts (€ 196.91 to € 324.89) have applied since 1 January 2025 and were deliberately not indexed in 2026. Changes must now be reported within two weeks instead of one month, and persons with subsidiary protection are no longer eligible. If you read maximum amounts of 143 to 236 euros online, you are reading the state of play before May 2024.

The requirements at a glance

Age and main residence: Adult, all household members with their main residence in the flat (a person with a secondary residence in the flat excludes the claim), and since the 2026 reform more than five years of continuous main residence in Austria, for all applicants.
A lease under the Tenancy Act: A written main lease as tenant under § 1 MRG. Co-op flat yes, council flat yes (in Graz the city rent supplement even builds on it), subletting only in subsidised council or co-op flats. Ownership no, flats rented from relatives of the landlord no.
Student dorm: very probably no: The law supports tenants under the Tenancy Act; dorm places run as user contracts that the MRG expressly excludes. There is no explicit statement by the province, so ask the office if in doubt. Flatshare tenants with their own lease are eligible; there all flatmates have to sign.
What counts as income: The net incomes of all household members, calculated as annual net including 13th and 14th salary divided by 12. Family allowance, study grant, unemployment benefit, childcare allowance and alimony received count; increased family allowance, care allowance and other housing benefits do not. For students, the income of the parents liable for maintenance counts, regardless of where they live, as long as the student's own annual net is below € 7,903.80.
Assets: Savings of up to € 10,000 per household are disregarded; above that, assets have to be used first. Anyone who owns land, a flat or a house gets no housing support.
No entitlement to social assistance: Whoever meets the requirements for social assistance (Sozialunterstützung, or a rent allowance under the disability act) gets no housing support, since the housing-cost lump sum is already included there. There is, however, no minimum income as in Vienna.

How it is calculated (and why the rent hardly matters)

The Styrian formula is small and fully published. First the household income: all net incomes together, annual amount including bonuses divided by 12. Allowances for minor children are deducted: € 130 for the first, € 175 for the second, € 220 for each further child. The result is divided by the sum of household weights: 0.5 for the household itself, 0.5 per adult, 0.3 per minor, and 0.8 for a person with a disability pass or increased family allowance. That gives the assessment base.

If it is at most € 1,308.39, you get 100 per cent of the maximum amount for your household size; from € 1,680.00 you get nothing; in between the percentage falls linearly. The maximum amounts: € 196.91 for one person, € 246.13 for two, € 265.82 for three, € 285.52 for four, then € 295.36, € 305.20, € 315.04 and from eight persons € 324.89. Flat size and rent level play no role for the amount, the rent only limits it: you never get more than your actual housing costs. Amounts up to € 10 a month are not paid out.

The province's official example: two adults and two children with a household income of 3,200 euros. 3,200 minus 305 euros of allowances is 2,895, divided by 2.1 weights gives an assessment base of 1,378.57 euros, that is around 81 per cent of the maximum for four persons: 231.60 euros a month.

Housing support calculator: what it works out to for you

The estimate uses the formula of the Styrian Housing Support Act and the 2026 values, checked against the official table of the province. It shows every intermediate step so you can trace where the number comes from. Your entries stay in your browser, they are neither stored nor sent anywhere.

The application, step by step

01
Gather documents
Last year's payslips or the latest income tax assessments of all household members, notices on family allowance, unemployment benefit or alimony, for students the enrolment certificate and study-grant notice with the parents' income, the written main lease, rent payment proofs of the last twelve months, IDs or residence permits and the registration certificates of all persons.
02
Submit the application
Online via soziales.steiermark.at or by form to the Office of the Styrian Provincial Government, Department 11, Referat Beihilfen und Sozialservice, Burggasse 7 to 9, 8010 Graz (not by email). Advice is also available at the housing information office of the City of Graz at Schillerplatz 4.
03
Timing: filed by the 15th, it applies from the 1st
If the documents are complete by the 15th of a month, the support applies from the first of that month, otherwise from the following month; in justified cases up to six months retroactively. Decisions are made within three months of complete documents.
04
Decision, one year, then renewal
A decision is valid for at most twelve months, after which you file a renewal application. Since April 2026, changes in income, rent or household must be reported within two weeks; amounts received unlawfully above ten euros have to be repaid.

Graz: what comes on top of the provincial benefit

City rent supplement (Wohnen Graz): For council flats there is an additional rent supplement of the city. It expressly requires that housing support has already been applied for with the province. Unlike the province, the city applies reasonable floor areas: 50 m² for one person, 70 for two, 10 more per additional person.
Deposit contribution of the City of Graz: Up to 1,000 euros towards the deposit for rented flats on the open market or with non-profit developers, but only after at least one year of residence or employment in Graz, so mostly not for newcomers.
Province's heating cost subsidy: The Styrian heating cost subsidy (most recently 340 euros for winter 2025/26) is not available on top: if one person in the household receives housing support, the whole household has no claim. Nothing had been published for 2026/27 as of August.

What is wrong online

Maximum amounts of 143 to 236 euros: That was the state from 2016 to April 2024 and is still on several pages, official ones included. Since 1 January 2025 the maximums are 196.91 to 324.89 euros.
"The amounts were raised in 2026": No. Only the income thresholds were raised on 1 January 2026; the maximum amounts are frozen, the province scrapped their annual indexation.
"The five years only apply to foreigners": Since April 2026 the law requires them of all applicants, Austrian citizens included. Only the 54 months of employment and the German proof affect two groups of third-country nationals.
"The amount depends on flat size": Not in Styria. Household income and household size count; the rent only acts as a cap, the flat size not at all.
"Students count from 10,000 euros of own income": The threshold up to which the parents' income is included is currently 7,903.80 euros annual net.

And the difference to Vienna?

Vienna calculates its housing benefit as the difference between a capped gross rent and the reasonable share of income, requires a minimum income and grants up to two years. Styria calculates only from income and household size, the rent merely acts as a cap, there is no minimum income, but at most one year per decision. Anyone moving between the two cities is dealing with two different systems.

Vienna housing benefit: calculator & requirements →

Common questions about housing support

How much housing support do I get in Graz?

Between zero and the maximum for your household size: € 196.91 for one person, € 246.13 for two, € 285.52 for four, up to € 324.89 from eight persons. What percentage of it is decided by the assessment base from household income and household size: up to € 1,308.39 you get everything, from € 1,680.00 nothing, in between proportionally. The calculator on this page shows your case with the full calculation.

Is it called Wohnbeihilfe or Wohnunterstützung in Graz?

Since 2016 the provincial benefit has been called Wohnunterstützung (Styrian Housing Support Act); it replaced the old Wohnbeihilfe. People still search for Wohnbeihilfe Graz, it is the same benefit; the province is responsible, not the city.

How do I calculate the housing support myself?

In four steps. First the household income (annual net including bonuses divided by 12) minus child allowances (130, 175, then 220 euros each). Second, divided by the weights (0.5 household, 0.5 per adult, 0.3 per child, 0.8 for a disability pass or increased family allowance): that is the assessment base. Third the percentage: 100 up to € 1,308.39, 0 from € 1,680.00, linear in between. Fourth, percentage times the maximum for your household size, but at most your rent.

Do I get housing support as a student?

Only for a tenancy under the Tenancy Act, i.e. for the studio or the flatshare room with your own lease, not for a dorm place. For students the parents' income counts as long as the own annual net is below 7,903.80 euros, and since April 2026 it takes five years of main residence in Austria. Whether it works out therefore depends mainly on parental income.

Does it also apply to council and co-op flats?

Yes, to both. In Graz, applying for the provincial housing support is even the requirement for the additional rent supplement of the city for council flats. There is none for owned flats.

How long do I get it, and does it work retroactively?

A decision is valid for at most twelve months, then you need a renewal application. If the documents are complete by the 15th, the application applies from the first of the month, in justified cases up to six months retroactively. Decisions are made within three months.

Do the 13th and 14th salary count as income?

Yes, unlike in Vienna: the calculation uses the annual net income including bonuses, divided by twelve. Family allowance, study grant, unemployment benefits and alimony count, increased family allowance and care allowance do not.

I receive social assistance, do I get housing support on top?

No. Whoever meets the requirements for social assistance is excluded from housing support, because the housing-cost lump sum is already included there. The provincial heating cost subsidy and housing support are also mutually exclusive.

Read on

As of 16 August 2026 (Styrian Housing Support Act as amended by LGBl. 26/2026, implementing regulation as amended by LGBl. 28/2026; income thresholds from 1 Jan 2026, maximum amounts since 1 Jan 2025; information sheet and calculator of Department 11) · Orientation, not legal advice. Binding: the decision of the province.