How to make a passport size photo at home

A passport photo is one of those small chores that’s easy to get wrong. The size is fussy, the rules differ by country, and a rejected photo can delay your application. The good news is that a phone camera, a plain wall and a bit of care are enough for many applications.

This guide covers what to check first, how to take the photo, how to crop it to the right size, and how to print a sheet of copies cheaply.

Step 1: Check the official requirements first

Every country sets its own rules, and they change from time to time. Before you take a single picture, open the official passport or visa page for the document you’re applying for and note:

• Size of the printed photo (for example 35 × 45 mm, or 2 × 2 inches).
• Head size: how much of the photo your face should fill.
• Background color: white, off-white, light gray or cream, depending on the country.
• How recent the photo must be.
• Glasses, headwear and expression rules.
• Digital requirements if you’re applying online, such as pixel dimensions and a maximum file size.

A couple of examples show how much the rules vary. US passport photos are 2 × 2 inches, should have a white or off-white background, and should have been taken in the last six months; glasses aren’t allowed. UK passport photos are 45 mm high by 35 mm wide, and the official guidance asks for a plain cream or light gray background. Always go by the official page for your application, not a summary like this one.

Step 2: Take a good photo

You don’t need special equipment. You do need even light and a plain background.

Background

Stand in front of a plain wall in the color your country asks for, with no patterns, pictures or door frames behind you. Step a little away from the wall so your shadow doesn’t fall on it.

Treeet’s passport photo maker can’t change or remove the background, so the wall you choose is the background you’ll get.

Lighting

• Face a window during the day, so soft light falls evenly on your face.
• Avoid a single overhead bulb. It creates shadows under your eyes and nose.
• Skip the flash if it causes glare or shiny skin.
• Check for shadows on one side of your face; turn slightly toward the light if needed.

Pose and camera

• Ask someone else to take the photo. They should hold the phone at your eye level, a few feet away, rather than very close.
• Look straight at the camera with both eyes open and a neutral expression (some countries allow a natural smile; check yours).
• Keep your hair off your face and remove hats, unless worn for religious or medical reasons and allowed by the rules.
• Turn off beauty modes, filters and portrait effects. Most countries reject edited photos.
• Take several shots. It’s easier to pick the best one later.

Step 3: Crop it to the right size

Open the passport photo maker and add your best shot. It works with JPG, PNG, iPhone HEIC and other common formats, and nothing is uploaded: the photo stays on your device.

1. Choose the photo size. Built-in sizes include:
   • 35 × 45 mm: Pakistan passport and CNIC, India passport, UK passport, Schengen / EU visa
   • 2 × 2 in: US passport and visa, India visa
   • 50 × 70 mm: Canada passport
   • 33 × 48 mm: China visa
   • 43 × 55 mm: UAE visa
   • 40 × 60 mm: Saudi work permit (Saudi visa rules vary, so check the official page)
2. Pick what to download: the photo and a print sheet (default), just the photo, or just the print sheet.
3. Fit your face in the guide. Drag the frame and its corners so your head fills the oval, with your eyes near the guide line. Compare with the head-size rule on the official page.
4. Click Use this crop. The photo is processed on your device and ready to download in a moment.

The photo is saved as a JPG at 300 DPI, so a printer or photo lab knows its real size.

Applying online?

Many online applications want a digital file rather than a print, often with a maximum file size. Choose Just the photo, and set File size limit to under 20, 50, 100 or 200 KB if the form asks for one.

If the form asks for exact pixel dimensions instead, the resize tool lets you set width and height in pixels, centimeters, millimeters or inches, choose the DPI, and add a KB limit at the same time. For a size limit alone, the image compressor finds the best quality under your limit.

Step 4: Print a 4×6 sheet

Printing a single small photo is wasteful. The print sheet fits as many copies as possible onto one standard print, which you can then cut out.

What fits on a sheet

On a 4 × 6 inch print (the most common photo print size):

• 35 × 45 mm photos: 8 copies
• 2 × 2 inch photos: 6 copies
• 50 × 70 mm photos (Canada): 4 copies

On A4 paper, the same sheet holds more: for example 32 copies of a 35 × 45 mm photo, or 15 copies of a 2 × 2 inch photo.

Turn on Thin cutting border (it’s on by default) to get a light gray outline around each copy, which makes cutting easier.

Printing at a photo shop

1. Choose 4 × 6 in photo paper for the print sheet.
2. Upload or bring the sheet file to any photo printing service and order a standard 4 × 6 print.
3. If the service offers cropping or “fill” options, turn them off. The sheet is already exactly 4 × 6 inches, and any cropping or scaling will change the size of each photo.
4. When you pick up the print, measure one photo with a ruler before cutting.

Printing at home

1. Choose A4 paper for the print sheet. It keeps a 5 mm margin, since most home printers can’t print to the edge.
2. Print on photo paper at 100% / actual size. Don’t use “fit to page” or “shrink to fit”, which make every photo slightly smaller.
3. Measure one copy before you cut the rest.

Common reasons photos get rejected

• Shadows on the face or background
• Background in the wrong color, or with visible objects
• Head too small or too large in the frame
• Blurry or grainy image
• Glasses with glare, or glasses where they aren’t allowed
• Edited or filtered photo
• Wrong printed size, often from “fit to page” printing

What this tool doesn’t do

To set expectations clearly:

• It doesn’t replace or whiten the background. Take the photo against the right wall.
• It doesn’t check your photo against official rules. You need to compare it with the requirements yourself.
• It doesn’t edit your face or lighting. What you shoot is what you get, apart from the crop.

If in doubt, many post offices and photo shops will take an official photo for a fee. For many people, though, a careful phone photo and a printed 4×6 sheet do the job.