8 guides
Passport Photo Guides
Most passport photos are refused for one of a small number of reasons, and almost all of them are decided before the shutter goes — where you stand, what is behind you, where the light comes from. These guides cover each one, and every rule quoted is taken from the issuing authority that publishes it rather than from another website.
- Why passport photos get rejectedThe ten reasons passport applications get put on hold, from the wrong head size to shadows behind the head, what each one looks like, and how to avoid it.Read the guide
- How to take a passport photo at home with your phoneA repeatable ten-minute setup for a passport photo at home using a phone, a plain wall and a window, why selfies fail, and which countries refuse home photos.Read the guide
- Passport photo lighting: avoiding shadows on the backgroundWhy the shadow behind your head is the hardest part of a home passport photo, the two-metre rule that removes it, and why flash and side light make it worse.Read the guide
- Can you smile in a passport photo?Almost always no: nearly every country requires a neutral expression and a closed mouth. The one exception is the United States, quoted from its own guidance.Read the guide
- Glasses in passport photos: the rules by countryWho bans glasses in passport photos outright, who allows them with conditions on glare, tint and frames, and why the safest answer is to take them off.Read the guide
- Passport photo size chartPublished passport photo sizes and head-height rules for every country in this tool, including the exceptions to 35 × 45 mm, with the official source for each.Read the guide
- Baby and infant passport photosWhich passport photo rules are relaxed for babies and young children, which are not, and the car seat method for getting the shot with no one else in frame.Read the guide
- Printing passport photos at home vs at a pharmacyWhat goes wrong when printing passport photos at home, the one scaling setting that fixes it, the resolution you need, and when a pharmacy is the only option.Read the guide
Looking for one country’s rules?
The guides cover the parts that are the same everywhere. The published photo size, head height and background rule differ by country, and each of the 12 countries in this tool has its own page with the authority’s own figures.
Browse requirements by countryThis site is not affiliated with any government. Always check the issuing authority’s own guidance before you apply.