How the passport photo maker works
Passport and visa offices care about three numbers: the size of the photo, the size of your head in it (measured from the chin to the top of the head) and, for some countries, where the head sits. The tool draws those rules on top of your photo:
- the solid line is where the top of your head should touch;
- the shaded band shows where your chin must land for the head to be within the allowed range;
- the dashed oval and the centre line help you keep your face upright and centred.
When you download, the tool cuts out exactly the area inside the frame and saves it at 300 dots per inch (DPI), the standard for photo prints. It also writes the 300 DPI value into the JPG file, so photo-printing apps print it at the right physical size.
The pixel size follows from a simple sum:
Example: a UK photo is 35 × 45 mm. 35 ÷ 25.4 × 300 = 413.4, and 45 ÷ 25.4 × 300 = 531.5, so the file is 413 × 531 pixels. A US photo is 2 × 2 inches, which is simply 2 × 300 = 600 × 600 pixels.
Official photo sizes
| Document | Photo size | Head (chin to crown) | Background |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States passport | 2 × 2 in (51 × 51 mm) | 25–35 mm (1–1⅜ in) | White or off-white |
| United Kingdom passport | 35 × 45 mm | 29–34 mm | Cream or light grey |
| Schengen visa | 35 × 45 mm | 32–36 mm (70–80%) | Light, ideally light grey |
| India passport | 35 × 45 mm | 80–85% of the photo | White |
| India visa | 2 × 2 in (51 × 51 mm) | 25–35 mm | White or light |
| Pakistan passport | 35 × 45 mm | 70–80% of the photo | White |
| Canada passport | 50 × 70 mm | 31–36 mm | White or light-coloured |
| China visa | 33 × 48 mm | 28–33 mm | White |
| UAE passport | 35 × 45 mm | ICAO guideline | White |
| Australia passport | 35 × 45 mm | 32–36 mm | White or light grey |
We checked these against the government sources listed at the bottom of this page in October 2026. Rules change, so look at the official page for your application before printing, especially for visas. Saudi visa photo sizes are not published on an official page we could access; the tool uses the common 2 × 2 in size and warns you to confirm it.
Printing several copies
Photo shops charge little for a 4 × 6 inch (10 × 15 cm) print, so the cheapest way to get passport photos is to print a sheet of copies. The tool fits as many photos as possible, with a 2 mm gap and thin grey cut lines:
| Photo size | Copies on 4 × 6 in | Copies on A4 |
|---|---|---|
| 35 × 45 mm | 8 | 30 |
| 2 × 2 in | 2 | 15 |
| 50 × 70 mm (Canada) | 2 | 10 |
| 33 × 48 mm (China) | 6 | 32 |
Order the 4 × 6 sheet as a normal photo print, or print the A4 sheet on glossy photo paper at home. In the print dialog choose 100% or actual size. “Fit to page” shrinks the photos and makes them the wrong size. Measure one photo with a ruler before you cut the rest.
Taking a photo that passes
Most rejections come from the photo itself, not the size:
- Light. Face a window in daylight or use two lamps either side. Avoid shadows on your face and behind your head, and switch off the flash.
- Distance. Ask someone to take the photo from 1 to 1.5 metres away at eye level. Selfies at arm’s length make the nose look bigger and can get rejected.
- Pose. Look straight at the camera, keep your mouth closed and your expression neutral, and keep your hair away from your eyes.
- Glasses. The US, India, Pakistan and Australia want them off. The UK asks you to avoid them. Elsewhere, they are allowed only with no glare and no tinted lenses.
- Background. Stand in front of a plain white or light wall. The tool can replace a messy background with AI (the same engine as our background remover), but some offices reject edited photos, so a real plain wall is safer.
Digital photos for online applications
Many countries now accept or require a digital photo instead of a print. Requirements vary: the UK asks for at least 600 × 750 pixels taken from your original photo, India’s e-Visa wants a square JPEG between 350 and 1,000 pixels, and Pakistan’s online portal asks for 350 × 467 pixels on white. If the portal also has a file-size limit, use compress image to KB, or resize the image to the exact pixels it asks for.
Your photo is processed entirely in your browser and is never uploaded. The size and position checks follow the published rules, but only the issuing authority decides whether a photo is accepted.