Austria Reaches Agreement on Military Service Reform

The Austrian government finalized a military reform on July 27, 2026, introducing a new service model and pay raises starting January 2027.

On Monday, July 27, 2026, the Austrian government reached an agreement on a military service reform during a cabinet meeting at the Schwarzenberg barracks in Salzburg. Effective January 2027, basic military service will include six months of core service and three months of mandatory militia exercises, with recruits receiving vacation days and a monthly pay increase to 1,000 euros. Civilian service will transition to a "9 plus 2" model, featuring a nine-month term plus a two-month extension. This extension is voluntary in the first year but becomes mandatory if recruit numbers drop below 15,000 by more than 7.5 percent. A mandatory extension requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority, which the coalition parties seek to secure by approaching the opposition.