Sharp criticism of the amendment to the Assisted Dying Act: expert review, period of validity, and four-eyes principle contentious

Because the deadline elapsed without a statutory repair being made, existing and new assisted dying declarations are currently valid indefinitely. The Federal Ministry of Social Affairs suggested setting the entry into force for 1 April 2027 in order to implement the "considerable technical preliminary work in connection with the assisted dying register."

Initial situation: VfGH ruling and missed deadline

Criticism of the short 14-day expert review period for the law came from several quarters, including the Tyrolean state government, the Senior Citizens' Council, and the Austrian Bar Association (ÖRAK). The Constitutional Service in the Federal Chancellery notes that the expert review period for legislative projects should normally be six weeks. "In the present case, the expert review period is only 14 days."

At its core, the draft provides that assisted dying declarations will continue to be valid for only one year. However, they are to be renewable within a five-year period through a "simplified procedure." Whereas for the initial application, two doctors — one of them with a qualification in palliative medicine — must provide counselling, and the declaration must be drawn up in writing before a notary or the patient advocate, the simplified renewal is to be possible either before a single doctor or before a documenting person (notary or patient advocate).

Criticism of deadline and procedure

Several submissions take a critical view of the missing multiple-witnesses principle for the renewal of an assisted dying declaration. The Bar Association and the Tyrolean state government also criticised this point. The ARGE Patient*innen- und Pflegeanwält*innen (Working Group on Patient and Care Advocates) stated that it rejects a conflation of the roles of doctors and documenting persons in the renewal of assisted dying declarations.

The Austrian Society for a Humane End of Life (ÖGHL) considers the proposed provisions inadequate. "The problem is that a legally carried out assisted suicide will continue not to be equated with 'natural death'," the Society stated. In practice, this frequently leads to police investigations against relatives and helpers, even though all legal requirements were correctly fulfilled. The ÖGHL therefore suggests extending the period of validity to at least two years.

ÖGHL demands

The ÖGHL pointed by way of comparison to advance directives, which are generally valid for eight years. Even with the simplified procedure, a "considerable burden" would arise for persons wishing to die, "entailing financial and psychological strain as well," the Society warned.

The Bishops' Conference stated in this regard that it is taking the amendment as an opportunity to reaffirm its criticism of the Assisted Dying Act and of the impunity of assisting in self-determined death. "Human life deserves unrestricted protection, including under criminal law, until its natural end." The draft goes well beyond the requirements set by the Constitutional Court and is "excessive and unreasonable." In line with the VfGH ruling, what would be appropriate, according to the Bishops' Conference, would be to provide, instead of the planned regulation, merely a one-time possibility of renewal within a defined period, "immediately after the end of the validity" of the assisted dying declaration.

Position of the Bishops' Conference

The Bar Association also demands that not only notaries but also lawyers be able to act as "documenting" persons. In addition, the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs suggests that, in individual cases, the organs of the public security service be allowed to inspect the electronic assisted dying register, because in individual cases the security authorities had disregarded the wish to die of the persons concerned and, for example, initiated resuscitation attempts.

Further submissions

The Senior Citizens' Council calls for a data-protection-compliant linkage of the assisted dying register with pharmacy dispensing data. If a declaration is not actively extended within a deadline to be set, an official request for the return or verification of the whereabouts of the lethal substance must be triggered automatically.

There is sharp criticism of the amendment to the Assisted Dying Act planned by the federal government. The expert review period ended in the night to Thursday. (APA, 25.6.2026)