Foreign Ministry determines purchasing power parity for November: Geneva at the top

The Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs has determined the percentages for the calculation of cost-of-living allowances for the month of November 2026. The ordinance BGBl. II No. 319/2026, published on November 5, 2026, in the Federal Law Gazette for the Republic of Austria, lists 121 foreign duty stations; the highest value is assigned to Geneva at 46 percent. The determination is issued in agreement with the Federal Chancellor.

The legal basis is § 21b Para. 2 and 3 of the Salary Act 1956 (GehG), BGBl. No. 54, most recently amended by the Federal Act BGBl. I No. 22/2026. The ordinance is signed by Federal Minister Meinl-Reisinger, officially signed on November 5, 2026, and comprises two pages. It concerns all federal civil servants and contractual employees stationed abroad and regulates the allowance exclusively for the month of November 2026.

The determination follows the same pattern as in previous months: the regulation for October 2026 had already been issued on October 9, 2026, via BGBl. II No. 295/2026, preceded by BGBl. II No. 268/2026 (September 9, 2026) for September and BGBl. II No. 245/2026 (August 14, 2026) for August. Of the 121 mentioned duty stations, 45 have a percentage above zero; in 76 cases, the value remains at zero, marked by a horizontal line.

The highest percentages in November 2026

At the top of the ranking are the Swiss duty stations and the representations in the Middle East:

• Geneva: 46 percent
• Bern: 45 percent
• Zurich: 43 percent
• Tel Aviv: 41 percent
• Ramallah: 41 percent
• Singapore: 32 percent
• New York: 30 percent
• Hong Kong: 24 percent
• Copenhagen: 24 percent
• Oslo, San Francisco and Los Angeles: 22 percent each
• Accra: 21 percent
• Washington: 19 percent
• London: 18 percent

Significantly lower are the neighboring European locations: Berlin and Munich reach 11 percent, Frankfurt and The Hague 10, Bonn, Hamburg and Tirana 9, Brussels and Paris 8, Helsinki and Beijing 6.

Increases compared to the previous month

Compared to the October regulation (BGBl. II No. 295/2026), the rates are increasing at most expensive duty stations, significantly in individual cases:

• Geneva: from 43 to 46 percent
• Bern: from 42 to 45 percent
• Zurich: from 41 to 43 percent
• Tel Aviv and Ramallah: from 39 to 41 percent each
• New York: from 27 to 30 percent
• Washington, San Francisco and Los Angeles: from 19 to 22 percent each (Washington from 16 to 19)
• Oslo: from 18 to 22 percent
• Singapore: from 30 to 32 percent
• Hong Kong: from 22 to 24 percent
• London: from 15 to 18 percent
• Havana: from 3 to 7 percent
• Beijing: from 3 to 6 percent
• Buenos Aires: from 8 to 11 percent
• Moscow and Saint Petersburg: from zero to 2 percent each

The only reduction concerns Accra, which decreases from 22 to 21 percent. Additionally, Seoul (3 percent) and Guangzhou (1 percent), which were still listed as zero in October, are now listed with a rate other than zero. Remaining unchanged are, among others, Copenhagen (24), Prague (10), Riga (7) and Dakar (7).

Duty stations without cost-of-living adjustment

In 76 cases, the percentage remains at zero. These include major European capitals such as Madrid, Rome, Athens, Lisbon, Warsaw, Stockholm, Sofia and Milan, as well as significant overseas locations such as Ottawa, Brasilia, Mexico City, New Delhi, Tokyo, Warsaw and Cairo. The Austrian neighboring representations in Bratislava (5 percent) and Ljubljana (zero) are also treated differently; Strasbourg is at 2 percent.

The percentages serve to compensate for different costs of living and exchange rate ratios at foreign duty stations and to secure the purchasing power of the remuneration of Austrian employees compared to the domestic level. For the affected officials and contract employees, the November regulation means a noticeable increase in the allowance in most expensive locations, while around two-thirds of the listed duty stations continue to remain without adjustment. The values apply exclusively for the month of November 2026 and will be redetermined with the next monthly ordinance.

Source: Federal Law Gazette for the Republic of Austria, BGBl. II No. 319/2026, issued on November 5, 2026, Part II, pp. 1–2 (official reference: BGBl. II No. 319/2026).