300,000 ID Austria certificates will expire in summer 2026 - check and renew now

Between May and August 2026, over 300,000 ID Austria certificates and former Handy-Signatur (mobile phone signatures) will expire across Austria. If the certificate is not renewed in time, important digital services may suddenly become unavailable.

ID Austria certificates are valid for up to 5 years. Anyone who activated or renewed their ID Austria several years ago should therefore pay particular attention now.

If you have a fully functional ID Austria, you can renew your certificate online free of charge. Step-by-step instructions for checking your version and all the details on renewal can be found in our detailed blog post.

Note: Individuals without Austrian citizenship cannot currently renew their ID Austria online. In this case, the ID Austria must be reissued at a registration authority.

Check your expiration date now

You can easily check the expiration date of your ID Austria:

• online via the A-Trust website
• in the A-Trust Signatur app (homepage)
• in the ID Austria app in the "Konto" section

It is no longer possible to extend the ID Austria after the certificate has expired - in this case, re-registration with an authority is required.

What happens when a certificate expires?

After expiration, key digital functions are no longer available:

• Qualified electronic signatures
• Digital administrative procedures
• Use of digital evidence
• Login to numerous services from the private sector

As a particularly large number of certificates will expire at the same time in the summer of 2026, increased demand and possible bottlenecks at registration offices are to be expected.

Therefore, check and renew your ID Austria now - online, in just a few minutes, and without having to visit the authorities.