During the Vienna Congress, at which European ambassadors are negotiating the realignment of the continent, not only Prince Metternich (Conrad Veidt) has his own agenda; glovemaker Christel (Lilian Harvey) also has an ambitious strategy for selling her gloves. But then she falls in love with the Russian Czar Alexander (Willy Fritsch), who has her picked up in his coach and taken to a villa. But the dream is short-lived: When news of Napoleon's return spreads, the rulers must turn their thoughts back to the business of governing. The congress is over, and Christel remains in Vienna without the Czar.

Wine, music and waltzes set the tone and rhythm of the musical comedy and made  Der Kongress tanzt one of the most successful films in the early days of German talkies. Lilian Harvey's song Das gibt’s nur einmal [Just Once For All Time] immortalises the wonderful moment of surpassing joy that would soon be over for many of the participants in the film: they were driven into exile in 1933 – because they were Jews and were threatened by professional bans and persecution, like producer Erich Pommer, director Erik Charell, musician Werner Richard Heymann and scriptwriter Robert Liebmann. Or they left the country because they were opposed to the Nazis, such as Conrad Veidt and later Lilian Harvey. The song Das gibt’s nur einmal became a popular hit at the beginning of the 1930s and is still known today. From 1937, The Congress Dances was no longer allowed to be screened as too many Jewish names appeared in the credits.