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Austria bicycle passport photo requirements

The 25 × 30 mm photo rules set by oesterreich.gv.at (Bundeskanzleramt) for the Austria bicycle passport, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 8 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the Austria bicycle passport photo?

What people call the Austrian bicycle passport is the Fahrradausweis, the cycling permit children earn by passing the voluntary cycling test. The federal portal lists one passport photo, sent with a form that schools give to parents. Sizes differ: Vienna wants a current frontal photo no larger than 25 x 30 mm (W x H), ideally self-adhesive, without passport criteria; Lower Austria asks for 3 x 4 cm, not larger.

In Austria, children under 12 may ride a bicycle on the road only under the supervision of someone aged at least 16, unless they hold a cycling permit. That permit, the Fahrradausweis or Radfahrausweis, is granted by the authority on the application of the child's legal representative under the Road Traffic Regulations (StVO). Children usually earn it through the voluntary cycling test, often prepared and taken in the 4th year of primary school, which lets them ride without an adult between the ages of ten and twelve.

The test has a theory part and a practical part, and the practical part is examined by a police officer. The responsible authority is the district authority (Bezirkshauptmannschaft), or in Vienna the municipal department MA 46. The documents are an application completed by the parents, which schools hand out and then send to the authority, and one photo. Issuing the permit is free in principle, but authorities may charge a fee: Vienna charges 3.27 euros, and the Lower Austrian form lists 5.65 euros.

The name bicycle passport also belongs to something else: the police Fahrradpass. That is a form from the Federal Criminal Police Office on which owners record the frame number and other details of their bike as proof of ownership. It has fields for the owner's name and address but none for a photo of the owner, and it suggests keeping a photo of the bike on your phone or computer. This page covers the children's permit, the only one of the two that needs a portrait.

Austria bicycle passport photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by oesterreich.gv.at (Bundeskanzleramt):[1]

Print sizeNo national size. Vienna: at most 25 x 30 mm (W x H, 2.5 x 3 cm); Lower Austria: 30 x 40 mm (3 x 4 cm), not larger
Digital sizeNo digital file: a printed photo goes to school with the signed application
BackgroundNot specified; Vienna says passport criteria are not required
Photo ageVienna: a current photo
Print qualityVienna: self-adhesive print preferred
Pixels when printed295 × 354 px at 300 dpi · 591 × 709 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
25 mm30 mm
25 × 30 mm photo drawn to scale.

In the official words

Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:

. The Vienna notice says passport criteria are not needed; the Lower Austrian form (noe.gv.at docx) says 3 x 4 cm

Freiwillige Radfahrprüfung und vorbereitende Radfahrschulungen durch die Exekutive (2025/26)[3]

Key requirements

  • One photo with the school form

    The federal portal lists two documents: an application completed by the parents and one passport photo. Schools hand the form to parents and send it on to the authority. In Vienna, teachers collect the signed form and the photo before the second training module.

  • Vienna: small, frontal, no passport criteria

    The Vienna Education Directorate asks for a current photo in frontal view, preferably self-adhesive, no larger than 3 cm high and 2.5 cm wide, and states that passport criteria are not necessary (translated from German). Without the photo the permit cannot be issued, even if the child passes.

  • Lower Austria: 3 x 4 cm, not larger

    The application form used by Lower Austrian district authorities lists a photo of 3 x 4 cm and adds "not larger!!!" (translated from German). A standard 35 x 45 mm passport photo is bigger than that.

  • Signed consent first

    A child may take the test only with a consent form signed by the parents or guardians. In Vienna the consent form is in the Austrian Youth Red Cross learning booklet, and in Lower Austria a parent signs the application to the district authority.

  • Age and the test itself

    Children can take the test after their 9th birthday if they attend the 4th school year, or otherwise after their 10th birthday. The practical part is examined by a police officer; in Vienna, traffic police run the training and the test in the school traffic gardens.

  • Not the police Fahrradpass

    Do not confuse the permit with the police Fahrradpass, the ownership record for a bike. That form asks for the frame number, model and owner's details, needs no portrait photo, and can be downloaded or collected at police stations.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Check the size your school or district authority asks for before printing.
  • Use a current photo that shows the child from the front.
  • Choose a self-adhesive print for Vienna if you can.
  • Hand the photo in with the signed application by the date the school sets.

Don't

  • Do not send a 35 x 45 mm photo where Vienna or Lower Austria asks for a smaller one.
  • Do not forget the photo: without it the permit cannot be issued.
  • Do not worry about passport criteria in Vienna; they are not required there.
  • Do not confuse the permit with the police ownership record for bikes.

Sample photos

How a Austria bicycle passport photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 25 × 30 mm and background colour.

Correct
Open-mouth smile
Head tilted
Too close: head too big
Too far: head too small
Busy background
Shadows on face or background
Glare on glasses

Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.

Babies and children

The permit exists only for children: it lets them ride alone before their 12th birthday, and from 12 no permit is needed. Children under 12 must wear a bicycle helmet, and the person supervising them is responsible for making sure they do; in Vienna each child brings their own helmet to every session in the traffic garden.

A clear, recent picture taken from the front is all Vienna asks for, and it says outright that passport criteria are not required. Lower Austria sets only the maximum size, so a simple, well-lit head-and-shoulders photo of the child is enough in both.

The permit process runs on paper: the photo is handed in as a print with the signed application, and no authority offers an upload. Vienna prefers a self-adhesive print, and Lower Austria will not take one larger than 3 x 4 cm.

A digital photo can be cropped and printed small. Print it at up to 25 x 30 mm for Vienna or at 30 x 40 mm for Lower Austria, or ask the school what your district expects.

Where to submit the photo

In most cases you hand everything to the school. The federal portal says the form is given to parents by the school and then sent to the authority, and the Vienna Education Directorate has teachers collect the signed form and photo before the second training module. The permit is issued by the district authority, or MA 46 in Vienna.

In the Wels-Land district of Upper Austria, the test runs through the compulsory schools and the permit is handed out right after the test, free of charge. If your child is not taking the test through a school, ask the district authority how to apply.

How to get your Austria bicycle passport photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Austria bicycle passport: 25 × 30 mm print. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: one photo with the school form; vienna: small, frontal, no passport criteria; lower Austria: 3 x 4 cm, not larger; signed consent first.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. The permit process runs on paper: the photo is handed in as a print with the signed application, and no authority offers an upload. Vienna prefers a self-adhesive print, and Lower Austria will not take one larger than 3 x 4 cm.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. In most cases you hand everything to the school.

Make this photo online

Austria bicycle passport photo FAQ

Usually the Fahrradausweis, the cycling permit that lets children ride on the road without an adult before they turn 12. It is issued by the district authority, or MA 46 in Vienna, after the voluntary cycling test. The police Fahrradpass is a different thing: a record of your bike's details with no owner photo.

There is no national size. Vienna asks for a photo no larger than 2.5 cm wide and 3 cm high, and the Lower Austrian form asks for 3 x 4 cm, not larger. Elsewhere, follow the instructions of the school or district authority.

Not in Vienna, where the education directorate says passport criteria are not necessary and asks only for a current photo in frontal view. The federal portal uses the word passport photo, so other districts may expect one; check with the school.

Not in Vienna: the education directorate says the photo is essential for issuing the permit, while the signed consent form is needed to take part in the test. The federal portal also lists the photo as a required document.

Issuing it is free in principle, but authorities may charge. Vienna charges an administrative fee of 3.27 euros, the Lower Austrian application form lists 5.65 euros, and Wels-Land in Upper Austria issues it free of charge.

No. The Fahrradpass from the Federal Criminal Police Office is a form for recording your bike's details, such as frame number, model and colour, to prove ownership. It asks for your name and contact details and suggests keeping a photo of the bike, not of yourself.

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Official sources

  1. oesterreich.gv.at (Bundeskanzleramt). Freiwillige Radfahrprüfung (Fahrradausweis) oesterreich.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  2. oesterreich.gv.at (Bundeskanzleramt). Radfahrausweis oesterreich.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  3. Bildungsdirektion für Wien. Freiwillige Radfahrprüfung und vorbereitende Radfahrschulungen durch die Exekutive (2025/26) bildung-wien.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  4. Amt der Niederösterreichischen Landesregierung. Radfahrbewilligung noe.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  5. Amt der Niederösterreichischen Landesregierung. Ansuchen Radfahrbewilligung (Formular) noe.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  6. Land Oberösterreich (Bezirkshauptmannschaft Wels-Land). Wels-Land – Fahrrad land-oberoesterreich.gv.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  7. Bundeskriminalamt (BMI). Fahrraddiebstahl bundeskriminalamt.at. Checked 2 November 2026.
  8. Bundeskriminalamt (BMI). Fahrradpass (Formular) bundeskriminalamt.at. Checked 2 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with oesterreich.gv.at (Bundeskanzleramt) before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"Austria bicycle passport photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/austria/bicycle-passport-photo

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