English information
Budget advice in Austria
An independent budget advice service for people with low income - who are not (yet) overindebted - was missing in Austria. Within the framework of the pilot project "Budgetberatung" such an offer was developed and initially implemented in the Austrian province Vorarlberg in 2011.
The project was coordinated by asb, the umbrella organisation of the officially recognised debt advice centres in Austria. Potential clients could contact the budget advisors via a telephone-hotline and/or make an appointment for a personal budget advice session.
Due to the positive response on the pilot project budget advice is now offered in almost all Austrian provinces, starting from October 2012.
In addition to this the website www.budgetberatung.at offers various tools to improve one's overview on people's personal financial situation to everyone interested. The website includes:
- an online budget-calculator
- budget-samples
- reference budgets for various household types
- further information and links
Watch a short film about budget advice in Austria on youtube (German with english subtitles)
Reference budgets
Reference budgets for several household types have been calculated to serve as guidelines for debt prevention and budget abdvice. These budgets were initially developed in the framework of an EU transnational project in 2008 and have been regularly updated ever since. They are taking into account the actual costs of a basic standard of living based on an individual's physical, psychological and social needs, and are meant to enable people to adequately participate in today's society.
- More information about reference budgets: www.referencebudgets.eu
ASB Schuldnerberatungen GmbH
Umbrella organisation of the officially recognised debt advice centers in Austria
E-Mail: pr@asb-gmbh.at
Web: www.schuldenberatung.at
