Austria is a landlocked country with a strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe. It shares borders with the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lichenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. It has an area of 83,858 square kilometres. Its capital city is Vienna. Austria had a population of 8,139,299 in July 1999 with a population growth rate of 0.09%. The population is concentrated mainly on eastern lowlands. The country's main language is German.

Austria's climate varies from cold winters with frequent rain and snow in the mountainous regions, to cool summers with occasional rain. The terrain in the east and north is mostly flat, whereas the west and south is predominantly mountainous. Austria's natural resources include iron ore, oil, timber, lead and coal.

Austria is a federal republic. It received independence from Bavaria in 1156. The Executive branch of government is composed of a President, Chancellor and the Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advise of the chancellor. The legislative branch consists of the Federal Council or Bundersrat, where members represent each of the states, and the National Council or Nationalrat, where members are elected by direct popular vote.

Austria has a well developed economy, closely linked with that of Germany. By privatisation Austria brought its total public sector deficit and public debt down in line with the EU's Maastericht criteria. The economy relies heavily on the service industry which accounts for 67.8% of the workforce with only 0.7% employed in agriculture. The unemployment rate was 7% in 1999. Austria's currency is the Euro.

Franchising is growing in Austria. The Austrian Franchise Association is a member of the European Franchise Federation.

There is no specific franchise law in Austria