Almost half the refugees in Austria that underwent an age test turned out to be adults, it has been claimed.

According to the Austrian Interior Ministry 2,252 asylum seekers had to undergo an 'age diagnosis test' as they were thought to have been lying about their age.

From that, it was found 919 turned out to be older than 18 - a rate of 41 per cent.

Speaking to the Austrian press, a police officer said: 'It is absurd for us to see grown men with beards and graying hair that claim to be 17 years of age.'

Another policeman said: 'Men are trying to get into the system as minors.'

Almost half the refugees in Austria that underwent an age test turned out to be adults

Many migrants in Austria and other countries in Europe have said they are underage because they are likely provided with better accommodation and almost impossible to deport.

If there are reasonable doubts about the age of a refugee then an 'age assessment' is arranged.

The tests involve X-rays of the subjects' teeth and fingers and cost around 900 Euros.

MP Walter Rosenkranz, of the far-right Austrian Freedom Party, said any migrant who had lied should automatically lose 'any right to protection'

MP Walter Rosenkranz, of the far-right Austrian Freedom Party, said any migrant who had lied should automatically lose 'any right to protection.'

He also said they should be made to pay for the medical test.

Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka has promised to tighten the laws and said asylum seekers would face punishment if they lied about their age.

More than 130,000 people have applied for asylum in Austria since the start of the refugee crisis, with the country sitting on the route from the Greek islands into western Europe.

Austria had hardened its stance towards refugees in recent months but this week it was revealed it had decided to join the EU relocation programme.

Mr Sobotka said he would make preparations for the country to receive refugees, with the first group expected to be around 50 unaccompanied children from Italy.

The decision to take in more refugees comes as it was revealed attacks on refugee accommodation had doubled in Austria, with homes firebombed, vandals spraying Nazi graffiti on walls and a man threatening to 'get a gun and shoot the dogs'.

Albert Steinhauser, an opposition Green party politician, said he was dismayed to find out that more than three quarters of the 49 recorded cases remain unsolved.