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Passport & Visa Photo Guides

Requirements by country, rejection reasons, and doing it at home.

Passport and visa photos are rejected for small things: the wrong size, a shadow on the background, glare on glasses, or a visa photo made to the country's passport spec. These guides cover country-specific requirements, the rules that apply almost everywhere, and how to take and print a photo yourself.

A visa photo is not always the same as a passport photo for the same country, and the requirement guides keep the two apart. Rules change, so confirm against the official source before you submit.

Step by step

How-to guides

Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a home desk at night: two hands hold a ruler across a small printed head-and-shoulders photo, with a printer feeding out a sheet of photo paper, an open laptop, scissors, and a dark booklet nearby, lit by a warm amber desk lamp in front of a window with a city skyline.
How to Print Passport Photos at Home

A passport photo file has no built-in print size. Here is how to get exactly 35 x 45 mm or 2 x 2 inches out of a home printer, and when not to try.

October 3, 2026 Illustration of a person photographing themselves against a plain wall for an ID photo
How to Take a Passport Photo at Home

You can absolutely take your own passport photo. Most rejections come from a handful of avoidable mistakes.

July 11, 2026 Illustration of a traveller at an airport check-in desk with documents at sunset
Visa Photos Are Not Passport Photos

Same face, same country, different rules — and the difference is what gets applications bounced.

July 6, 2026
Background

Requirements by country & tips

Flat illustration in charcoal grey of a town hall waiting room: two hands in the foreground hold a white card printed with a barcode next to a dark red passport, behind them a service counter with a boxy camera on a stand, a stack of folders, a small grid-patterned display and a desk lamp casting the only amber light, a potted plant, rows of empty waiting chairs, tall arched windows, a wall clock and a closed door
German Passport Photo Requirements

Since May 2025 a German passport or ID card photo must reach the office digitally, so a print from home no longer works inside Germany. The exception is applying at an embassy abroad.

October 14, 2026 Flat illustration in charcoal grey of a house hallway on a rainy evening: two hands in the foreground hold a phone showing a faceless head-and-shoulders silhouette, a person stands with their back turned beside a small table holding a form, an envelope and a dark booklet under a single amber ceiling lamp, with a coat on a hook, a front door with a rain-streaked glass panel, an umbrella, a staircase and a window showing a street lamp
Irish Passport Photo Requirements

Ireland sets a size range for printed photos and a pixel floor for Passport Online, and it rejects selfies outright. The full spec from the Department of Foreign Affairs.

October 13, 2026 Flat illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night: two hands hold a phone showing a faceless portrait silhouette in front of an open laptop showing the same silhouette above a form, with a dark booklet, an envelope, a pen and a coffee mug under an amber desk lamp, and a window and wall calendar behind
US Passport Renewal Photo Requirements

Renewing online means uploading an original, unedited file between 54 KB and 10 MB. Renewing by mail means a 2 x 2 inch print. Here is what the State Department lists for each.

October 11, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a bedroom at night: a dark collared shirt, a patterned scarf and a black baseball cap laid out on a bed, an open wardrobe of hanging shirts behind them, a phone on a small tripod, and a chair by a window with a city skyline, lit by a warm amber bedside lamp.
What to Wear in a Passport Photo

Clothing rules for passport photos, straight from the US State Department, HM Passport Office and IRCC - including the uniform ban and the white-shirt trap.

October 3, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a government biometric enrolment booth at night: an empty chair faces a small camera on a stand and a monitor on a dark counter, with a stack of folders, a service partition, a wall clock, and a grey city skyline through the window, lit by a single warm amber overhead lamp.
Bangladesh Passport Photo Requirements

The honest answer most sites won't give: for an adult Bangladesh e-passport, you probably don't submit a photo at all.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night: a pair of hands holds three printed portrait photos in a row above the dark desk, beside a steel ruler, a notebook, a laptop showing a plain form, and a mug, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a grey city skyline through the window.
Brazil Passport Photo Requirements

Brazil is the honest case: credible sources cite three different sizes. Check yours, then pick the match - and know the photo is often taken on-site.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night by a large window showing distant snow-capped mountains at dusk: a pair of hands lays small printed portrait photos on the dark desk beside a steel ruler, a laptop, papers, and a mug, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp.
Canada Visa Photo Requirements

The trap: a Canada visa photo is 35x45mm, not the 50x70mm passport size. One spec covers TRV, study, and work permits.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night during an online visa application: a pair of hands types at an open laptop showing a form with a portrait photo preview, lit by a warm amber desk lamp, with a mug, a phone, a wall shelf, papers, and a grey city skyline through the window.
UK Visa Photo Requirements

Almost every site gives you the UK passport spec by mistake. The gov.uk visa photo is digital-only, with no millimetre size at all.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a self-service photo print counter at night: a pair of hands places a small printed portrait photo and a steel ruler on a dark counter beside a glowing kiosk screen showing a grid of blank photo-size rectangles and a small photo printer, lit by a warm amber overhead lamp, with supply shelves and a grey city skyline through the window.
China Passport Photo Requirements

The unusual 33x48mm size Western photo labs cannot produce, plus the 80KB file cap and the both-ears rule that catch people out.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night: a propped-up smartphone shows an approved application with a large checkmark and no photo, beside a printed document with a small portrait photo, a passport, a mug, and a folded map, lit by a warm amber desk lamp, with a framed domed skyline on the wall and a grey city skyline through the window.
Türkiye Visa Photo Requirements

The Türkiye e-Visa asks for no photo at all. Only the in-person consular sticker visa needs one - 50x60mm on white.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night: a pair of hands holds a tall portrait print of a person in formal attire on a white background, with a pair of eyeglasses folded and set aside on the dark desk beside a phone showing a form and a mug, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, and a faint grey skyline through the window.
Vietnam Visa Photo Requirements

The official e-visa spec: 4x6cm, under 2MB, no glasses. Not 35x45mm, and not the 1024KB limit third-party sites keep repeating.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a desk at night: a pair of hands holds two printed portrait photo proofs side by side - one slightly taller and narrower than the other - beside a steel ruler, a laptop, and a mug, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a faint grey skyline through the window.
New Zealand Visa Photo Requirements

A geometric trap: Immigration NZ's online photo (3:4) and paper photo (35x45mm) are not the same shape. Use the one for how you are applying.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a traveller's desk at night: a pair of hands holds a smartphone showing a visa application form with a small square photo, a passport on the dark desk beside a warm amber lamp, an open suitcase of folded clothes, a mug, and a faint grey city skyline through the window.
Saudi Arabia Visa Photo Requirements

Almost every guide gives you the wrong photo. The Visit Saudi portal wants a small 200x200px square, not a 2x2in print.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a home desk at night during an online passport application: an open laptop shows a form with an ID portrait thumbnail, a printed application form and a small ID photo lie on the dark desk beside a mug and a phone, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a wall calendar and a grey city skyline through the window.
Pakistan Passport Photo Requirements

The size is the easy part. The thing that stops Pakistani passport and e-visa uploads is a ~60KB file-size cap.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal grey of a quiet consular visa office at night: a pair of hands holds a visa application form with a small ID photo beside a passport and a steel ruler on a dark counter, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a frosted-glass service partition, a wall clock, a framed map, empty grey waiting chairs, and tall windows showing a faint grey city skyline at dusk.
South Korea Visa Photo Requirements

The size most of the world uses, with two catches: your consulate has the final word, and a K-ETA is not a visa.

September 17, 2026 Flat vector illustration in near-neutral charcoal and slate of a dim passport office at dusk: a single warm amber desk lamp lights a hand filling in a paper application form that has two small printed ID portrait photos clipped to it, a small webcam on a short stand and an ink stamp and a card-reader printer sit on the grey counter, a row of empty waiting chairs stands in shadow to the left, and a tall window on the right shows a fading sunset street with a bare flagpole silhouette.
Mexico Passport Photo Requirements

Mexico asks for two 35 x 45 mm photos, no glasses, no earrings, and taken within the last 30 days - a freshness rule most countries skip. The full spec from the SRE, and why a US 2 x 2 inch photo will not do.

September 16, 2026 Flat vector illustration in near-neutral charcoal grey of a quiet embassy visa counter in the evening: a pair of hands fills in an application form beside a passport and a thin ruler on a dark counter, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a frosted glass service partition and a numbered ticket dispenser to one side, rows of empty grey waiting chairs behind, a wall clock, a framed world map, and tall dark windows showing a faint grey city skyline at dusk.
Japan Visa Photo Requirements

Japan is the country with no national visa photo size: its foreign ministry delegates it to the mission handling your case. The sizes in play, and why 45x45mm is not the standard.

September 15, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a passport office capture booth at sunrise: a seated applicant, seen from behind, faces a small camera on a tripod in front of a lit backdrop screen, beside a clerk's counter with a monitor, a desk lamp casting a warm amber glow, a small plant and a coffee cup, with a row of empty waiting chairs and tall windows showing a peach dawn sky.
Philippines Passport Photo Requirements

For a Philippine passport the DFA captures your photo at the appointment — you do not bring one. Here is the 35 x 45 mm standard, when it still matters, and the appearance rules that actually decide whether your capture passes.

September 11, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and dark slate of a home desk at night: a person seen from behind rests both hands on a laptop keyboard, its glowing screen showing a square portrait photo inside an upload form panel; a warm amber desk lamp lights the scene, with a dark passport booklet beside the laptop, a small framed square ID portrait, a coffee mug, a face-down smartphone, a pen and a sheet of paper on the desk, and a dark window with a faint city skyline, a wall calendar and a book shelf on the wall behind.
US Visa Photo Requirements (DS-160)

The DS-160 upload wants an exact square, 600 to 1200 pixels, under 240KB - numbers a printed passport photo misses. Here is the real State Department spec.

September 9, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a dim immigration enrolment desk lit by a warm amber lamp: a hand places two small white-background portrait photo prints onto a paper application form on a dark timber counter, beside a fingerprint scanner, a monitor, a coffee cup and stacked folders, with a camera on a stand, a potted plant, a row of waiting-room chairs, and a tall window showing a charcoal dusk skyline
Nigeria Passport Photo Requirements

The Nigeria Immigration Service asks for two white-background prints endorsed by a guarantor, then captures your biometric photo in person - and publishes no mm, DPI, or file-size number. What that means for the photo you bring.

September 5, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of an Australia Post counter in warm morning light: a hand holds a clear ruler upright beside a paper passport application form and a strip of printed photos on a timber counter, with a card reader and a small potted plant, a curtained self-serve photo booth and stool against the wall, and a shopfront window showing a sunlit street and a distant arched harbour bridge
Australia Passport Photo Requirements

Australia publishes a size range, not a single 35 x 45 mm number, and the 35x45 everyone quotes is only its low corner. The full spec from the Australian Passport Office, and the rules that get photos knocked back.

August 27, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a home photo studio at dusk: a person sits on a stool seen from behind, facing a camera on a tripod and a lit softbox lamp; a side table holds a pair of eyeglasses and a printed portrait, and a monitor on the desk shows a face inside alignment brackets beside a night window
Smiling and Glasses in Passport Photos

Smiling is out almost everywhere, but the glasses rule genuinely differs country to country. What the US, UK, Canada and Australia each require, from source.

August 25, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a passport photo studio at dusk: a person seated on a stool, seen from behind, faces a camera on a tripod and a large plain light backdrop screen; a softbox lamp on a stand casts warm amber light across the scene, and a monitor on the desk shows a face inside alignment brackets beside a printed portrait photo
Passport Photo Background Colour Rules

White is the common answer, not the only one — off-white, cream and light grey are each named by a specific authority. The exact background wording for four countries, traced to source.

August 24, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a British post office at dusk: a pair of hands on the counter slides a small strip of printed ID photos beside a paper application form, a pen and a ruler, with a curtained photo booth and stool against the wall, a service window with a bell and ticket dispenser, and a rain-streaked shopfront window showing a red pillar postbox and a double-decker bus, all lit by a single warm amber counter lamp
UK Passport Photo Size and Requirements

The UK prints at 45 x 35 mm, but the online upload wants pixels, not millimetres, and both must be under a month old. The full spec from GOV.UK, and where it trips people.

August 24, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a visa application counter at dusk: a pair of hands slides a passport and a small printed portrait photo across a dark counter beside a thin ruler, with a rubber stamp, a stack of forms, a numbered ticket dispenser behind a glass partition, empty waiting chairs, a wall clock and tall windows showing a faint skyline, all lit by one warm amber desk lamp
China Visa Photo Requirements

China is one of the few countries that does not use 35 x 45 mm. The real 33 x 48 mm spec, the both-ears rule, and why the file-size numbers everyone quotes are not official.

August 22, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a consulate service counter at dusk: a pair of hands slides a passport and a small printed portrait photo across a dark wooden counter beside a thin ruler, with a rubber stamp, a stack of paperwork, a numbered ticket dispenser behind a glass partition, empty waiting chairs, a wall clock, and tall windows showing a faint city skyline, all lit by a single warm amber desk lamp
Schengen Visa Photo Requirements

The 35 x 45 mm size every site quotes is a convergence, not an EU rule - the European Commission asks only for an ICAO-compliant photo. What that means in practice, and whether you can reuse a passport photo.

August 21, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a photo studio at dusk: a photographer's hands slide a printed portrait ID photo across a wooden counter beside a metal ruler and a rubber date stamp, with a camera on a tripod, a lit white backdrop, a stack of small printed photos and a clipboard form, a dark window with a faint city skyline and a framed sample photo on the wall, lit by a single warm amber lamp
Canada Passport Photo Requirements

Canada's 50 x 70 mm size is unlike the US square or the 35 x 45 mm most countries use, and IRCC requires a commercial studio to take and print the photo, unedited. The full spec, and where it trips people.

August 20, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a baby lying on its back on a plain white sheet on a nursery floor, photographed from above by a phone held in two hands at the top of the frame, with a folded blanket, a soft toy, and a diaper bag around the edges, lit by a single warm amber light
Baby and Infant Passport Photo Rules

What the US and UK accept for an infant's passport photo: which pose rules relax for a baby, which don't, and how to take one at home without a studio.

August 19, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a person standing against a plain light wall at night, holding a phone up at arm's length to take a self-portrait, a floor lamp casting a warm amber glow beside them, a dark passport booklet, a printed ID photo and a paper form on a low table in front, and a window on the right showing a small pharmacy storefront across a dim street
Passport Photo Near Me vs. at Home

A local shop photographs you and prints a compliant photo for a fee; your own phone does the same for free if it meets the spec. When each option is the right call.

August 19, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a desk at night: two hands hold a phone showing a blank white portrait frame, beside a paper form and pen, a stack of small printed ID photos, a passport booklet, an open laptop, a glass of tea on a saucer, a stapler and a spiral notebook, lit by a warm amber desk lamp, with a shuttered window, a wall calendar, a shelf of binders and a plant, and an open doorway to a lit corridor behind
India Passport Photo Size: 630 x 810 px

The Indian passport photo upload is 630 x 810 pixels and under 250 KB, on a 7:9 rectangle. The 2 x 2 inch square everyone publishes is the visa spec, and mixing them up costs an application.

August 16, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of a home desk at night: a dark passport booklet, a small ruler, a printed portrait ID photo, a paper application form, a stack of small ID photos, a pen and a coffee mug, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a dark window showing a faint city skyline and a wall calendar behind
US Passport Photo Requirements

The full US passport photo spec, straight from the State Department: 2x2 inch square, head height, background, glasses and recency rules, plus the separate online-upload limits.

August 14, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal and slate of an airport check-in desk at dusk: hands holding a printed portrait photo beside an open passport and a ruler, a monitor showing a face inside alignment brackets, a rubber stamp and a stack of ID photos, lit by a single warm amber desk lamp, with a silhouetted queue and departure-hall windows behind
Passport Photo Requirements Explained

Every passport photo has to satisfy the same handful of rules; only the exact numbers change by country. Here is the full requirement list, with US, UK and Canada figures traced to source.

August 13, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal of a passport application desk at night: a world map on the wall, a desk lamp casting warm amber light over printed portrait photos in different sizes laid out beside a ruler, a stack of passport folders and a coffee mug by a dark window
Passport Photo Size by Country

There's no single worldwide passport photo size. Most countries use 35x45mm, but several major ones don't — here's each size, traced to the government that sets it.

August 12, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal of a passport office desk at dusk: a monitor showing a face centred inside alignment brackets, an amber desk lamp, a rubber stamp and a document, with a rope divider and empty chairs behind
What Makes a Passport Photo "Biometric"?

The word doesn't mean a chip or a fingerprint. It means a photo a computer can match your face against — which is why the rules are so specific.

July 26, 2026 Flat vector illustration in charcoal of a kitchen table at night under a desk lamp: a printed portrait photo set aside, a phone, and a stack of application paperwork with an envelope and pen
Why Passport Photos Get Rejected

The specific things that get a passport photo rejected, drawn from what the US, UK and Canada actually publish — and the rule they quietly disagree on.

July 23, 2026 Illustration of a traveller with a suitcase and phone walking past an empty, lit photo booth in a dim airport terminal at dusk
Visas That Need No Photo at All

Some e-visa applications have no photo field at all. Every photo site still publishes a size for them, because a photo site is what they are.

July 12, 2026
Try it yourself

Tools for this

Passport Photo Maker Online — Free, by Country

Crop and size a passport or ID photo to your country's exact specification — right in your browser, with nothing ever uploaded.
Visa Photo Maker Online — Free, by Country

Crop and size a photo to your country's exact visa specification — including the strict digital file limits that differ from passport photos — right in your browser.
35x45mm Passport Photo Maker — Standard Size

Make a 35x45mm passport photo online free — the size used by most countries incl. Germany, France, Japan. Check yours with the country checker. No uploads.
US Passport Photo Maker — 2x2 Inch Photo Online

Make a US passport photo online for free — crops and resizes to the exact 2x2 inch, 600x600px, 300 DPI spec. Private, browser-based, no uploads.
UK Passport Photo Maker — 35x45mm Photo Online

Make a UK passport photo online for free — crops and resizes to the exact 35x45mm, 413x531px, 300 DPI spec. Private, browser-based, no uploads.
Indian Passport Photo Maker — 630x810px, Under 250KB

Make an Indian passport photo free — 630 x 810 pixels, under 250KB, white background, per Passport Seva's ICAO photo guidelines. Not the 2x2in square. No uploads.
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