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ID Austria

Your digital identity: ID Austria

ID Austria is the state's electronic "key" for logging in to online services (FinanzOnline, ELGA, MeineSV, oesterreich.gv.at and hundreds more) and for signing documents electronically. It replaces the Handy-Signatur.

Who can get it
From age 14: Austrian citizens and foreigners with a sufficient link to Austria (Inlandsbezug)
Cost
Free to use
Where (foreigners)
Landespolizeidirektion or Finanzamt — in person
App
ID Austria (replaced the "Digitales Amt" app on 20 June 2025)
Phone
Smartphone with iOS 16+ or Android 12+ and a mobile number

Step by step

  1. Prepare your smartphone: install the current ID Austria app and turn on device protection — fingerprint, Face ID or a device password (at least 4 characters).
  2. Choose a Registrierungsbehörde. Without Austrian citizenship: a Landespolizeidirektion or a Finanzamt. Austrian citizens in Vienna can also use a Pass-Servicestelle or the Stadtservice at City Hall. Some offices need an appointment — check beforehand.
  3. Go in person: your identity is verified only face to face, no proxies. Bring your documents and phone.
  4. At the office you receive a one-time code by SMS (SMS-TAN) to tell the clerk. You get a printout with an activation code (Aktivierungscode) and a revocation password (Widerrufspasswort).
  5. At home, complete the registration with the activation code on the A-Trust website and link the ID Austria app — within 3 months at the latest.

What to bring

  • Official photo ID: passport or national ID card
  • A recent passport photo — not needed if your photo is already on file for the e-card
  • For foreigners — proof of a link to Austria: Meldebestätigung, student ID, employer letter or a company ID from an Austrian employer
  • Your prepared smartphone with the ID Austria app

Common mistakes

Going to a Pass-Servicestelle without Austrian citizenship: foreigners are registered at a Landespolizeidirektion or a Finanzamt.

Forgetting proof of Inlandsbezug (e.g. the Meldebestätigung) — without it a foreigner cannot be registered.

An unsuitable phone: outdated OS, a rooted device or a model lacking the required certification (e.g. Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+).

Relying on the Basisfunktion (the former Handy-Signatur): it cannot be renewed and gives no digital documents in the app or EU-wide recognition. For that you need the Vollfunktion, with identity verified at an office.

Words you will meet

die Registrierungsbehördeauthority that registers ID Austria
die Landespolizeidirektion (LPD)state police directorate
der Inlandsbezuglink to Austria (work, study, residence)
der Lichtbildausweisphoto ID
die Vollfunktionfull version of ID Austria

Official sources

Checked: 2026-10-05. This is a plain-language summary of official information, not legal advice. Deadlines and amounts change — check the linked official sources before you go.