The Australian share market is a great place to generate a passive income thanks to the many dividend-paying ASX shares that trade on the local bourse.

But which shares should you consider buying? Let's take a look at three buy-rated picks that could be could destinations for a $30,000 investment. They are as follows:

GDI Property Group Ltd (ASX: GDI)

Bell Potter thinks that GDI Property could be a great ASX share to buy for passive income. It is a fully integrated, internally managed property and funds management group with capabilities in ownership, management, refurbishment, leasing, and syndication of properties.

The broker is forecasting dividends per share of 5 cents across FY 2025 and FY 2026. Based on the current GDI Property share price of 67 cents, this implies dividend yields of 7.5% for the next two years.

This means a $10,000 investment would pull in dividend income of approximately $750 based on Bell Potter's forecasts.

The broker has a buy rating and 80 cents price target on its shares.

GQG Partners Inc (ASX: GQG)

GQG Partners could be an ASX share to buy for passive income. It is global investment company that manages US$153 billion on behalf of large investors.

Goldman Sachs is a big fan of the company, highlighting its strong investment performance and " attractive valuation vs. peers in context of strong earnings growth."

The broker is also expecting some rather large dividend yields in the near term. It has pencilled in dividends per share of 15 US cents (23.6 Australian cents) in FY 2025 and then 17 US cents (26.8 Australian cents) in FY 2026. Based on its current share price of $2.31, this would mean yields of 10.2% and 11.6%, respectively.

As a result, a $10,000 investment in GQG shares could generate passive income of $1,000 over the next 12 months.

Goldman also sees plenty of upside for its shares with its buy rating and $3.00 price target.

IPH Ltd (ASX: IPH)

A third ASX share to consider for passive income is IPH. It is a leading intellectual property (IP) services company that operates across the globe through a variety of businesses.

This includes leading IP firms AJ Park, Griffith Hack, Pizzeys, ROBIC, Smart & Biggar, and Spruson & Ferguson, as well as IP business Applied Marks, which is an online automated trademark application platform.

The team at Macquarie is positive on the company and expects some generous dividend yields in the near term. It is forecasting partially franked dividends of 35 cents per share in FY 2025 and then 36.5 cents per share in FY 2026. Based on its current share price of $4.89, this equates to dividend yields of 7.2% and 7.5%, respectively.

This means that a $10,000 investment would pull in dividend income of approximately $720 over the next 12 months.

There's also potential for major capital gains with Macquarie putting an outperform rating and $6.75 price target on IPH's shares.

Foolish takeaway

Overall, from a $30,000 investment across these three ASX shares, investors would generate passive income of just under $2,500 based on analyst forecasts.

And with brokers predicting their payouts to increase in the years to come and seeing major upside potential for their shares, this income stream could grow along with the value of your holdings.