Becoming a mediator in Austria: from training course to your own mediation practice

Registered or commercial: the first decision

The word „Mediator:in“ on its own is not protected in Austria. What is protected is the designation „eingetragener Mediator“ or „eingetragene Mediatorin“ (§ 15 para. 1 ZivMediatG), and anyone who uses it without authorisation or in a confusingly similar form risks an administrative fine of up to €3,500 (§ 32 ZivMediatG). Offering mediation without registration is a commercial activity that requires a trade licence. Under § 1 para. 4 GewO, merely offering it on a website already counts as carrying it on.

For most people who want to make mediation their profession, registration is the more coherent route: you get a state-verified title, a public entry in the Ministry of Justice's mediator search and legal effects that commercial conflict counselling does not offer. The rest of this post follows that route. General set-up questions such as bank account, bookkeeping and premises are covered in the overview Setting up a firm in Austria.

What the ZivMediatG requires for registration

§ 9 ZivMediatG names four requirements and also asks you to state the rooms in which you mediate. The Ministry of Justice checks them against the documents you enclose with your application.

• Aged 28 or over. You can start training earlier, but you can only be registered from this age.
• Professional qualification, proven by training under the ZivMediat-AV (more in the next section).
• Trustworthiness, usually evidenced by a criminal record certificate (Strafregisterauszug) no more than three months old. According to the BMJ information sheet, lawyers, notaries, psychotherapists and public servants do not need one.
• Indemnity insurance under § 19 that expressly covers your work as a mediator.
• The premises where you mediate. The list shows up to three work addresses.

It is worth thinking about premises, especially at the start: a round table, daylight and a separate waiting area help more in highly contentious separations than prestigious furniture. Sharing an office with a law firm or a psychotherapy practice can work, as long as both parties experience the room as neutral.

Training under the ZivMediat-AV: 365 or 220 units

The scope is set by the Zivilrechts-Mediations-Ausbildungsverordnung (Civil Mediation Training Regulation). How many units you must complete depends on your source profession (Quellberuf), that is, the profession you come from.

The practical part of the shortened training is made up of self-awareness work, role play, peer groups, case work and supervision, including individual supervision. The BMJ recommends completing the training at a registered training institution; the ministry also keeps the list of institutions and courses. University courses are an option but not a requirement. Membership of an association does not replace proof of training.

The application to the Ministry of Justice

The first registration is valid for five years, each renewal for ten years. You submit the renewal application no earlier than one year and no later than three months before expiry, again for a fee. If you miss the deadline, you are removed from the list and may no longer use the title from that day, not on your website either.

Insurance, CPD, records: the ongoing duties

Registration brings duties that go beyond the training. They also shape how you organise your practice.

The record-keeping duty has practical consequences for your software: if you keep appointments, notes and final agreements digitally, you need a system with access control and reliable storage over seven years. A calendar shared with your office or co-mediator should only show appointment times, never the content of conflicts.

Tax, social insurance and legal form

Because the Gewerbeordnung does not apply to registered mediators (§ 35 ZivMediatG), you need no trade licence and do not become a member of the Wirtschaftskammer through mediation. You are still self-employed, though: without a trade licence you are usually insured with the SVS as a Neue:r Selbständige:r (new self-employed person) and must register there yourself within one month. Clarify your classification with the SVS or your tax adviser, especially if you are also employed or practise a chamber profession.

• VAT: mediation is subject to VAT. Up to €55,000 in annual turnover you can use the small business scheme. For business mediations commissioned by companies, waiving it can make sense, because the companies deduct the input tax.
• Legal form: registration is personal; only the registered person can mediate. Sole practices, shared offices and cooperation in co-mediation teams are common.
• Co-mediation: if you work together, put fee sharing, liability and the handling of documents in writing. For publicly funded family mediation, working as a team is a requirement anyway.

Finding your first clients

People rarely look for mediation on their own initiative. The impulse usually comes from outside: from a lawyer who sees a deadlocked maintenance dispute, from a family court or from a counselling centre. In Austria, some of these routes are set out in law.

• Family courts: in custody and contact proceedings, the court can order attendance at an initial information meeting on mediation (§ 107 para. 3 AußStrG).
• Funded family mediation: the Federal Chancellery funds mediation in separation and divorce on the basis of § 39c FLAG. Funding is only available if you are listed with one of the five organisations on the Federal Chancellery's list and work in a team combining a psychosocial and a legal source profession. According to the 2026 fee table, the fee is €220 per hour for the pair of mediators, and the parties pay an income-related contribution.
• Neighbours: in disputes about light and air blocked by trees or other plants, an attempt at settlement is required before going to court, for instance before a registered mediator (Art. III ZivRÄG 2004 on § 364 para. 3 ABGB).
• Network: family lawyers, notaries, tax advisers, family counselling centres and HR departments refer clients when they know your focus areas. A short talk or a specialist article does more here than a flyer.

An online presence that builds trust

Anyone looking for a mediator before a separation or a shareholder dispute first checks whether they would feel in good hands. Your website answers the questions that would otherwise take up time in the first meeting: how does mediation work, what does an hour cost, is it confidential, does it suspend deadlines, and who will be sitting opposite me. A note such as „Please do not describe the conflict in the form, we will discuss it in the first meeting“ shows that you take confidentiality seriously.

• A home page with your fields of mediation, your location and a reference to your BMJ registration with a link to your list entry.
• The process in a few steps, from the first meeting to the final agreement, with a note on the suspension of deadlines under § 22.
• A fees page with the hourly rate per mediator or team, the length of a session and, where applicable, a note on funded family mediation.
• An about page with your source profession, training and working languages.
• An imprint with your title, the BMJ list and your insurer: details in the post Mandatory details for mediators in Austria, and you can create it with the imprint generator.

You do not need an agency budget for the website: according to our market overview (November 2026), agencies charge €3,000 – €20,000 one-off. We build a finished website for a fixed price of €1,800 net, and hosting costs €30 a month. Which items come up in a website project is shown in the post What does a firm website cost?. A well-maintained Google Business Profile makes sure you also appear on the map for searches such as „Mediation Scheidung Graz“ or „divorce mediation Vienna“.