According to reports by Austrian newspaper Der Standard, the country’s 22 public universities are expected to receive around €15.5 billion in funding for the 2028–2030 performance agreement period, approximately €1 billion less than the €16.5 billion allocated for the current three-year cycle.

Brigitte Hütter, president of Universities Austria, said universities had estimated they would require around €18 billion for the next funding period, largely to offset rising inflation and operating costs. She described the resulting shortfall as reaching €2.5 billion by 2030 and confirmed that universities were withdrawing from the Science Ministry’s higher education strategy negotiations in protest.

Hütter also stated that although universities do not support the introduction of tuition fees, “everything would have to be considered” if such extensive funding reductions were implemented. The Science Ministry has meanwhile rejected suggestions that tuition fees are being planned.

University representatives argue that the proposed budget framework could force institutions to cut up to 10,000 full-time positions while negatively affecting approximately 270,000 students nationwide.