Rules of the road
Driving in Austria
Every value below links to the official source it was checked against, with the date it was checked. What is not verified yet says so.
Quick answers about driving in Austria
- Which side of the road do you drive on in Austria?
- In Austria you drive on the right.
- How old do you have to be to drive in Austria?
- You must be at least 18 years old to drive in Austria. Austria's own L17 scheme issues a licence at 17, but that is for Austrian learners. A visitor drives at 18.
- What is the speed limit in Austria?
- 130 km/h on motorways, 100 km/h on country roads and 50 km/h in towns and cities. Those are the national default limits, which apply where no sign says otherwise.
- What is the drink driving limit in Austria?
- The legal limit in Austria is 0.5 g/l. A breath reading of 0.25 mg/l is the same thing. Drivers who passed their test recently are held to 0.1 g/l.
Which side of the road
Which side of the road you drive on
Right
From the RAC's list of the European exceptions: the UK, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta drive on the left, and every other European country drives on the right.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Speed limits
Alcohol
How much alcohol you may have in your blood
0.5 g/l
A breath reading of 0.25 mg/l is the same thing.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Alcohol limit for drivers who passed their test recently
0.1 g/l
Every new Austrian licence is probationary for three years. If your own licence is that new, drink nothing at all.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Alcohol limit for professional drivers
0.1 g/l
Lorry and bus drivers, and anyone carrying schoolchildren.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Your licence and age
Youngest age you may drive
18 years
Austria's own L17 scheme issues a licence at 17, but that is for Austrian learners. A visitor drives at 18.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Looking to rent a car? The minimum age to drive is 18, but most car rental agencies have their own minimum rental age. Remember to check with your car rental agency before you book. We earn a commission if you book through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we make money.
Whether you need an International Driving Permit
Depends on where your licence is from
An EEA licence is enough on its own. A licence from anywhere else works without a translation only if its categories are the standard A to E, or if it is written in German; otherwise carry an International Driving Permit or a translation with it. Some countries' licences are not accepted at all, so check yours before you travel rather than at the desk.
Checked 20 Aug 2026 · official source
What you must carry in the car
What you must carry in the car
- First aid kit
- Warning triangle
- High-visibility vest
The first aid kit is the one people forget. A hire car does not always have all three — check before you drive away. Only the driver's vest is required, though ÖAMTC advises carrying one for every person in the car.
Checked 19 Aug 2026 · official source
Headlights
When you must switch your headlights on
Not required
Cars do not have to run headlights in daylight. Motorcycles and mopeds do.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Phones at the wheel
Seatbelts and children
Winter driving
Winter tyres
Required whenever the road is icy or snowy
Not a date rule. Inside the winter season a car may only be driven in wintry conditions — snow, slush or ice on the road — with winter tyres on all four wheels. Snow chains on at least two driven wheels are the alternative. Ask the hire company what the car is fitted with.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
Motorbikes and scooters
Helmets on a motorbike or scooter
Required for rider and passenger
Rider and passenger, on mopeds and motorcycles alike. The only exemption is for enclosed, cabin-style vehicles with an equivalent restraint system.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Largest motorbike or scooter you may ride on a car licence
- Engine up to 50 cc
- Top speed up to 45 km/h
A category B licence includes class AM, so it covers a moped with no extra step. The source defines a moped by both thresholds together: engine size and approved design speed. It gives no power figure. Riding up to 125 cc (11 kW) on a B licence needs "Code 111" entered on the licence first: B held for at least five years without a break, out of the probationary period, and a practical course. Code 111 is a national provision for Austrian-issued licences. The source does not say whether a foreign B licence gets the moped allowance.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Youngest age you may ride the smallest class of scooter
15 years
Training may start two months before the 15th birthday, but the licence is only issued at 15. Under 16 needs a parent's consent.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
What a rider must wear or carry
Nothing beyond a helmet
By law a helmet is enough; gloves, jacket and boots are strongly advised but not required. Courts and insurers may treat missing protective clothing as partly your own fault after a crash. A first aid kit must still be carried, as on any motor vehicle.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Riding between lanes of slow traffic
Allowed, with restrictions
You may ride forward between vehicles that have stopped, at a red light or in a jam, but only if there is enough room. Do not cross solid lines, do not use the hard shoulder or the emergency corridor, and do not ride between vehicles that are still moving.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Smallest motorbike allowed on the motorway
- Top speed at least 60 km/h
Framed as a design speed, not a vehicle class: motorways and expressways may only be used by vehicles built for at least this speed and allowed to exceed it, so a machine that tops out exactly at the threshold does not qualify. A moped is limited to 45 km/h, so it is banned; ÖAMTC's speed table marks mopeds as prohibited on both Autobahn and Autostraße. A 125 cc motorcycle is allowed. The source states the rule on its quads and trikes page as the general rule for all vehicles; there is no engine-size floor.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Headlights on a motorbike in daytime
Required at all times
Dipped beam or daytime running lights at all times, day and night. Daytime running lights alone are only allowed in good visibility.
Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source
Tolls and city charges
How you pay for motorways
- Vignette sticker
Buy the vignette before you join a motorway or expressway — there are no toll booths and no chance to pay at the entrance. Sold as a sticker at petrol stations near the border, or as a digital vignette online. Some tunnels and alpine passes charge separately on top.
Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source
More questions about driving in Austria
- What do you have to carry in your car in Austria?
- You must carry a first aid kit, a warning triangle and a high-visibility vest.
- Do you need an International Driving Permit for Austria?
- Depends on where your licence is from.
- Can you use your phone while driving in Austria?
- No. Holding a phone while driving is against the law in Austria. Hands-free: allowed.
- Can you ride a scooter or small motorbike on a car licence in Austria?
- Yes, engine up to 50 cc and top speed up to 45 km/h.
Each answer comes from the rules above, where you can also see the official source and the date it was checked.
27 rules not yet verified for Austria
These rules exist, but no value has been checked against an official source yet. Missing beats wrong.
- Which side you overtake on
- Speed limit on a dual carriageway
- Speed limit in living and residential zones
- Speed limit in rain or snow
- Speed limit for drivers who passed their test recently
- Speed limit when towing a trailer or caravan
- How long you may drive on your own licence
- What you should carry, but do not have to
- Headlights in tunnels
- Turning at a red light
- Who has priority at a roundabout
- Priority to traffic coming from the right
- Age below which a child needs a child seat
- Height below which a child needs a child seat
- Youngest age a child may sit in the front
- What the lines and painted kerbs mean
- How you pay to park
- Parking on the pavement
- Parking facing against the traffic
- How far you must park from a junction or crossing
- What happens if you park wrongly
- Snow chains
- Low-emission zones
- Congestion charges
- Emergency number
- Typical fines
- Whether police can fine you on the spot