Commission greenlights Austria’s fourth payment request for €325 million under NextGenerationEU

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

Today, the European Commission positively assessed Austria’s fourth payment request for €325 million under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU.

This is an important step in the delivery of the reforms and investments tied to this payment request, supporting the green transition in businesses, zero emission vehicles, renewable energy, circular economy, primary health care, as well as education, culture and innovation.

The Commission found that Austria has satisfactorily completed the nine milestones and eight targets set out in the Council Implementing Decision.

Flagship measures in this payment include:

• Promoting the green transition by installing 17,800 residential photovoltaic systems, supporting the purchase of 2,767 zero emission buses and 167 lorries, funding green investments in 13,500 enterprises. It has also facilitated 500,000 electronic device repairs—including 250,000 through the latest repair bonus scheme—reducing e-waste and promoting a circular economy.
• Improving health and education by funding 155 primary health care centres, providing 240,000 laptops and tablets for schoolchildren, and expanding access to early childhood education and care.
• Increasing innovation and prosperity by funding (digital) research infrastructure at universities, digitising cultural objects to improve their visibility, and by implementing the Research Technology and Innovation Pact 2027-2029, outlining funding priorities for research and innovation over the next three years.

Next steps

The Commission has sent its preliminary assessment of Austria’s fulfilment of the milestones and targets required for this payment to the Council’s Economic and Financial Committee (EFC), which has four weeks to deliver its opinion. The payment to Austria can take place following the EFC’s opinion, and the adoption of a payment decision by the Commission later.

Background

Austria submitted its payment request on 24 March 2026. The Austrian recovery and resilience plan includes a wide range of investment and reform measures supporting climate and digital transition objectives, such as the decarbonisation of the building stock, sustainable transport, broadband in rural areas, and digital public services. 

The plan will be financed by €3.96 billion in grants.

Today’s payment request will bring the funds paid out to Austria under the Recovery and Resilience Facility to €3.66 billion, including €492 million in pre-financing. This amount corresponds to 92% of all funds included in the Austrian recovery and resilience plan, with 89% of all milestones and targets in the plan now fulfilled.

With a view to the closure of the Facility at the end of 2026, Member States must implement all outstanding milestones and targets by 31 August 2026 and submit their last payment requests by the end of September 2026.

For more information

Commission’s preliminary assessment of Austria’s fourth payment request 

Austria’s recovery and resilience plan

Recovery and Resilience Facility

Recovery and Resilience Facility project map

Recovery and Resilience Scoreboard

Recovery and Resilience Facility Regulation

Recovery and Resilience Facility – questions and answers

EU as a borrower