An Austrian man has won the right to be photographed wearing a pasta strainer in his driver's licence photo.

Niki Alm, a self-confessed atheist, applied for the licence back in 2008, where he discovered that headwear is only allowed for 'confessional' reasons.

Alm then petitioned to be allowed to wear the sieve as a requirement of his new religion Pastafarianism, which he claims forms a part of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. His request was granted this year, with a photo of Alm wearing the kitchen implement now featured on his licence.

"The photo was not approved on religious grounds," police spokesman Manfred Reinthaler told Metro. "The only criterion for photos in driving licence applications is that the whole face must be visible."

Alm now has plans to petition the Austrian government to allow Pastafarianism to become an officially recognised faith in the country.