Aug 12

“One after the other is closing down”: Citizen services are threatening their existence

schwaebische.de/regional/tuttlingen/trossingen/einer-nach-dem-anderen-macht-zu-buergerservice-bringt-sie-in-existenznot-4775550

Photo: schwaebische.de · view article

Digital Passport Photos Squeeze Local Studios

Since May 1, 2025, photos for passports may be created only digitally; municipal offices can offer them onsite for six euros.

Key FactsAug 12, 2026 · Reading time: ~45 sec.
Summary created with AI assistance · Source: schwaebische.de

The Federal Printing Office offered municipal offices free passport-photo machines, while each city could decide whether to install them.

Michael Weber fears falling revenue could force the closure of Setzinger, his Tuttlingen photo shop, which has existed for 65 years.

Since a machine was installed at Spaichingen’s citizens’ office in August 2025, Uwe Kukla has recorded a 30-to-50-percent drop in passport-photo revenue.

In Trossingen, Alexander Jug offers home appointments for people with limited mobility and highlights flexible hours and the broader uses of professional photographs.

If the town hall keeps taking our work away, I have no chance left.
— Michael Weber, owner of the Setzinger photography shop in Tuttlingen; commenting on the impact of the new pass-photo rule and the shift of work away from photographers to Bürgerämter.