Rear Window Stickers in Austria: What Matters Legally

In a traffic jam, the driver behind has nothing to do but read what is in front of them. The rear window is advertising space nobody pays extra for. It is already there.

With a rear window sticker, though, checking the rules still comes before the design. What goes on a metal tailgate is a separate topic. What is allowed on the glass is set out in the Austrian Motor Vehicles Act and its implementing regulation, whether it is company lettering or a car sticker on a motorhome.

What the law says about visibility from the vehicle

Two provisions of the Austrian Motor Vehicles Act 1967 (Kraftfahrgesetz, KFG) concern visibility. § 4 (1) refers to the vehicle: “The view from the driver's seat must be sufficient for driving the vehicle safely.” § 102 (2) puts the obligation on the driver. The driver must make sure that the view is sufficient for safe driving and that the number plates remain visible. Stickers are not mentioned there. Both provisions apply to anything that blocks the view: snow, cargo, film. Add to that § 23 (1) KFG: rear-view mirrors must be fitted so that the driver “can adequately see the road beside and behind the vehicle”. For the rear window, this turns straight into a concrete requirement.

Rear window stickers, side windows, windscreen: what is allowed in Austria

Films on vehicle windows are parts that require approval: § 2 (1) (n) of the Motor Vehicles Implementing Regulation 1967 (Kraftfahrgesetz-Durchführungsverordnung, KDV) expressly names “films applied to the windows of motor vehicles”. An Austrian approval is no longer needed; a type approval from an EU member state is enough. That is what the “Scheibenfolien” (window films) page of the Austrian Ministry of Infrastructure (BMIMI) states, accessed on 18 September 2026.

The details are in § 7a KDV, unchanged since December 2010. Paragraph 1 divides films into anti-shatter, tinting and perforated films and requires: “Where films are applied, the approval mark must be visible.” This is also where the often-quoted figure of 85 % light transmission comes from, but it expressly applies only to anti-shatter films. For tinting and perforated films, the regulation sets no minimum value.

Which side of the window is permitted is governed by paragraph 2: anti-shatter and tinting films “may only be applied to the inside of the windows”, perforated films “either on the outside or on the inside”. Two films on the same window are not allowed, and neither is applying films to the windscreen after the fact. Which windows may be covered at all is set out in paragraph 3: tinting and perforated films are permitted “on side windows from the second row of seats backwards, on the rear window and on roof windows”.

On installation, paragraph 3 says the coating may extend “only up to the window mounting”, any trapping in the frame or seal must be ruled out, and the risk of injury from glass splinters must not increase.

Paragraph 4 is the one that surprises people most often. With a tinting or perforated film on the rear window or on side windows from the second row of seats back, “the vehicle must have two main rear-view mirrors of class III or II in accordance with Directive 2003/97/EC”. This means two exterior mirrors; the interior mirror is not taken into account for this requirement. The “Scheibenfolien” decree of the then Ministry of Transport (BMVIT), ref. BMVIT-179.324/0001-IV/ST4/2011 of 2 November 2011, additionally cites UNECE Regulation No. 46.

A decree of this kind is an instruction to the authorities and so ranks below the law. The inspection stations do work by it, though. It sets three requirements for practice. Above 1 m², the film must be divided so that each section stays below 1 m². Lighting and reflectors must not be impaired, so nothing is stuck over the high-level brake light. And the film must be permanently marked with the manufacturer's brand, type designation and approval mark. According to the decree, the test report for the film does not have to be carried in the vehicle.

How big can a sticker on the rear window be?

There is no statutory percentage limit for the rear window. Neither the KFG nor the KDV names an area above which a rear window sticker would be unlawful. The 10 per cent mark comes from two other contexts: the 2011 decree, and the defect catalogue, where it applies to the windscreen and front side windows.

The decree only uses it to define when we are talking about applying window films at all: when “the window in question is coated over more than 10% of its area” and the coating does not come from the window manufacturer. According to the decree, small stickers covering less than 10 %, such as the motorway vignette or the inspection sticker, do not count. The sentence marks the point from which § 7a KDV applies in the first place.

One question remains open: whether a single advertising sticker covering less than 10 % of the rear window area counts as a film within the meaning of § 7a KDV, or is only to be measured against § 102 (2) KFG, is not stated in the legal texts. If you want to be certain, ask the authority or a vehicle inspection station beforehand.

Does the change have to be reported?

§ 33 (1) KFG requires changes to a registered vehicle “that may affect the road safety, operational safety or environmental compatibility of the vehicle” to be reported to the provincial governor (Landeshauptmann). For films, the implementing regulation takes this back. § 22a (1) no. 8 KDV lists “the application of type-approved window films” as a change that does not have to be reported. Under § 33 (6) KFG, changes that may reduce road or operational safety remain unlawful.

Vehicle inspection and penalties

At the periodic vehicle inspection (the “Pickerl” test), the inspection station works with the defect catalogue, Annex 6 to the Austrian regulation on inspection stations (Prüf- und Begutachtungsstellenverordnung, PBStV) in the version in force since February 2023. Three items concern windows:

• Windscreen and front side windows: “severely obstructive stickers” covering more than 10 % of the window area, or less than 10 % if they sit in the driver's main field of vision: major defect.
• Rear window and rear side windows: “view impaired and second exterior mirror not present”: minor defect. Both conditions must apply together.
• Windscreen covered with film or film strips: major defect, imminent danger.

With a major defect, “no inspection sticker can be affixed or issued”, and the vehicle may then be used for no more than two months and not beyond the validity of the previous sticker (§ 57a (5a) KFG). A minor defect does not have this consequence: under this provision, the rear window situation therefore does not stop the sticker from being issued. If you are stopped in traffic, however, it is the law itself that counts, not the defect catalogue.

And the penalty? § 134 (1) KFG makes breaches of the Act and its regulations administrative offences: a fine of up to EUR 10,000 or, if it cannot be collected, a custodial sentence of up to six weeks. That is the maximum range for the whole Act. There is no fixed amount for window stickers.

Note: This text reflects the situation as of 18 September 2026. We summarise the legal texts and put them into practical context; this is not legal advice or a binding interpretation. Quotations from Austrian legal texts are our own unofficial translations. Whether a particular vehicle may carry a given sticker or film is decided by the authority or the vehicle inspection station.

Rear window sticker inside or outside? What it means for the file and the film

If the rear window sticker counts as a film within the meaning of the regulation, the side is prescribed: tinting film only on the inside, perforated film inside or outside (§ 7a (2) KDV). Applied on the outside, it is printed normally. If it is to go on the inside and be readable from behind, the design has to be mirrored onto clear film and backed with white, otherwise the driver behind reads mirror writing.

So supply the file the right way round and state “inside”; we mirror it before we print. In the free file check, we go through the file technically: format, resolution, bleed, cut line, white layer and print orientation. We do not check content or spelling.

Perforated window film is made for full-coverage designs that you can see through from the inside; for lettering without a background, cut vinyl letters are enough. Whether a film carries the approval mark required under § 7a (1) KDV is stated in its data sheet.

Then there is the application. On a curved window, a large sheet won't lie flat by itself. It is squeegeed from the centre outwards in overlapping strokes, with the edges gone over once more at the end. According to the film manufacturers' application guidelines, film is not applied below 10 degrees air and glass temperature. And from experience we leave a strip free along the path of the rear wiper, otherwise the wiper works at the edge of the film with every stroke.

When the whole rear window is meant to carry advertising

A common case: a trade business wants lettering on the back of its small van: logo, services, phone number, ideally across the whole rear window. Before we talk about the design, we go through the points set by § 7a KDV and the decree. The two main rear-view mirrors of class III or II are usually ticked off quickly.

After that it gets tighter. The rear window of a panel van quickly exceeds 1 m², and then the division requirement from the decree applies. The projection area of the high-level brake light stays clear, as does the strip along the wiper path.

The end result is often a different design from the one at the start: logo and phone number large on the bodywork, only lettering on the window. That stays below the division threshold, keeps the brake light and wiper path clear and reads better. If in doubt, clear the design with the inspection station before printing. What works on the bodywork is shown on our page on vehicle graphics and wrapping.

The second print is the expensive one

The rear window is the surface where the question “Am I allowed to?” is most likely to come before “What should it look like?” Start the other way round and you end up paying for a second print.

What really counts is what can still be read from a moving car. A large phone number beats a full-coverage design with small type. More on that in Stickers you can't overlook.

Conclusion: what has to be settled before printing

A rear window sticker is regulated in Austria, in the KFG, in the KDV and in the defect catalogue of the PBStV.

• Which window? The KDV treats the rear window and rear side windows differently from the front.
• Inside or outside? This determines the type of film, the white ink and the orientation of the file.
• Full coverage or lettering? Full coverage means perforated film, an approval mark, two exterior mirrors and, above 1 m², division into sections.

If in doubt, the authority or the vehicle inspection station decides. You'll find which films are an option under Foil technology. Talk the case through with us beforehand via Contact.

Frequently asked questions

Are rear window stickers allowed in Austria?

If the sticker counts as a film within the meaning of § 7a KDV 1967, paragraph 3 expressly names the rear window, provided the film is type-approved, the approval mark remains visible and the vehicle has two main rear-view mirrors of class III or II. Whether a single small advertising sticker already falls under this is not expressly regulated. In individual cases, the authority or the vehicle inspection station decides.

May the whole rear window be covered?

§ 7a KDV 1967 permits perforated window film on the rear window if the film is type-approved and the approval mark is visible, only one film is on the window, the film extends no further than the window mounting (§ 7a (3) KDV) and the vehicle has two main rear-view mirrors of class III or II. Above 1 m², the 2011 decree requires the film to be divided into sections.

Should the sticker go on the inside or the outside of the rear window?

Under § 7a (2) KDV, tinting films may only be applied on the inside, perforated films on the inside or outside. On the inside, the design is protected from the weather; this requires clear film with white ink, and the design is mirrored. Supply the file the right way round and state “inside”; we do the mirroring.