Airbag dash lights are an MoT failure, not to mention failing to comply with Type Approval. Both will mean you'll invalidate your insurance.
Legal spiel clarified, now tecchy info - if the airbag light is on, then ALL SRS components are disabled - so ALL airbags wont work, and your seatbelt pre-tensioners wont work either.
So for the sake of hooking up VCDS, it's well worth doing the job correctly. 
....You'll only fail your MOT if your airbag light stays on. Even with VCDS you won't be able to totally disable the airbag light: It'll come on as part of the initial systems check (probably the wrong term) and then disappear like the others normally do when all is well. If the airbag light stays on, then it means you've got a problem with those airbags present and hence a MOT fail.
OK smarty pants - you know that's what I meant!
But yes, you are correct - many lights will come on when you turn on the ignition - as part of the check, and then go out very shortly after. And you can't remove the bulb either - the MoT will test that the airbag light specifically illuminates, and then goes off (and the same for the ABS light too).
The system behaves according to the seating option which the VW factory fitted to your chassis number. No VW dealer is willing to change that because of potential legal implications.
Not really correct. Yes, the programming of all the control modules should be done according to what was factory fitted - however, VW garages (and all VAG garages) have a specific ability to link the car directly back to VW Germany to alter the base settings (technically known as 'PR' codes) when the car has been altered with genuine VW parts. Some specific examples are retro-fitment of genuine towbars, and retro-fitment of Audi ceramic brake systems. Retro-fitting of genuine Recaro seats should follow the same procedure.
The real problem is that many stealer 'technicians' just cant think outside the box. On my own GTI, I had repeated problems with the airbag light, from their incompetence to correctly carry out a TSB on underseat wiring. I specifically repeatedly asked them to temporarily disable the individual airbag (from when I poped into the stealer to show them the prob - to when the car was actually booked in to do the job), so that the airbag light would go out, and I would be able to have the remainder of the airbags and pre-tensioners fully functioning - and they refused. They also REFUSED to clear the fault codes - meaning that the car had NO SRS functions for upto two weeks whilst they waited to book in.
This resulted in a formal complaint to VW UK.
