Passport and visa photos have strict size and composition requirements, and a photo that doesn’t meet them can delay an application. Here’s what to know before you submit one.
Common size requirements
Requirements vary by country, but two of the most common standards are:
- United States: 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm), with the head sized between 1 inch and 1 3/8 inches from chin to top of head
- UK, EU, and many other countries: 35 × 45 mm, with the face taking up 70–80% of the photo height
Always check your specific country’s current government guidelines before submitting, since requirements do change and vary by document type (passport vs. visa vs. ID card).
Composition rules that apply almost everywhere
- Plain white or off-white background, no patterns or shadows
- Neutral facial expression, mouth closed, eyes open and clearly visible
- No glasses in most current guidelines (this rule has tightened in recent years)
- Recent photo, typically taken within the last 6 months
- Even lighting with no harsh shadows on the face or background
Taking the photo yourself
Many people now take passport photos at home with a smartphone against a plain wall, then resize and crop the result to the exact required dimensions rather than paying for an in-person photo service. This works well as long as the lighting is even and the background is genuinely plain.
Getting the exact pixel dimensions right
Government photo requirements are given in physical measurements (inches or millimeters), but digital photos need to be sized in pixels at an appropriate resolution (typically 300 DPI) to print correctly at that physical size. For a US passport photo at 2 × 2 inches and 300 DPI, that works out to exactly 600 × 600 pixels.
A simple workflow
- Take the photo against a plain background with even lighting.
- Crop it square, centering the face according to your country’s guidelines.
- Resize to the exact pixel dimensions required (600 × 600 for US, or the equivalent for your country).
- Check the final image against your government’s official requirements checklist before printing or uploading.
Our resizer includes a passport photo preset that handles the exact pixel dimensions automatically — try it here — though you’re still responsible for confirming your specific country’s current composition requirements.