UK passport photo rules
| Requirement | UK rule |
|---|---|
| Printed size | 45 mm high × 35 mm wide |
| Head size | 29–34 mm from chin to crown |
| Background | Plain cream or light grey, in clear contrast with you |
| Age of photo | Taken within the last month |
| Expression | Plain expression, mouth closed, eyes open and visible |
| Glasses | Don’t wear them unless you have to; no sunglasses or tinted lenses |
| Editing | Unaltered by computer software |
| Paper application | 2 identical printed photos |
The one-month rule catches many people out: a photo you had taken for a visa last year won’t do, and you need a new photo for every new passport, even if you look the same. Check the current guidance on GOV.UK before you apply.
Applying online? Use a digital photo, not a cropped one
The online passport service works differently from the paper form. It asks for a digital photo of at least 600 × 750 pixels and between 50 KB and 10 MB, showing your head, shoulders and upper body. The service crops the photo itself, so GOV.UK asks you not to crop it first.
You can buy a photo with a code from a photo booth or shop that offers this, or take a photo with your own phone during the application, with someone helping you. If you take it yourself, upload the original, uncropped photo. You can still use this page beforehand to check your lighting and how your head fits the UK guide, but the 35 × 45 mm crop it produces is meant for printing.
Printing UK passport photos
A paper application needs two identical colour photos, printed to a professional standard on plain white photographic paper with no border. The rules also say the photos must not be a cut-down version of a larger picture, so print each copy at its exact 35 × 45 mm size rather than trimming a bigger print.
Download the 4×6 in sheet (a standard 6×4 print) and order it at a photo kiosk or high-street print shop, with cropping and auto-enhance switched off. Cut neatly along the guides so each photo has clean edges and no white border. Printing at home on A4 photo paper is possible, but the result must be sharp and true to colour: an ordinary inkjet print on plain paper won’t meet the standard.
Keep the photos loose rather than attaching them to the form. If your application needs a countersignatory, they’ll sign one of the photos. Follow the instructions that come with the form.
Common reasons UK photos are rejected
- Shadows behind you or across your face: step away from the wall and face a window.
- The wrong background: a coloured, patterned or textured wall instead of plain cream or light grey.
- Glare on glasses: take them off if you can.
- Hair covering your eyes, or a head covering worn for reasons other than religious or medical ones.
- An old photo taken more than a month ago.
- Edited photos: filters, skin smoothing or heavy brightness changes. Get the lighting right when you take the picture rather than fixing it afterwards.
- Children’s photos with toys, dummies or another person in the frame.