UK passport photo requirements
A UK passport photo is 35 × 45 mm with a light gray or cream background. The head measures 29–34 mm from chin to crown. The UK online passport application takes the uncropped photo, at least 600 × 750 px and 50 KB to 10 MB; HM Passport Office crops it. Source: HM Passport Office, checked September 28, 2026.
Sources: gov.uk and passport.service.gov.uk, checked September 28, 2026.
The rule
| Rule | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Digital file | Uncropped, at least 600 × 750 px, 50 KB to 10 MB |
| Photos needed | Two identical printed prints, for a paper application |
| Head height | 29–34 mm, chin to crown; hair inclusion is not specified |
| Print size | 35 × 45 mm |
| Background | Light gray or creamCan you change the background of a passport photo? |
| Glasses | Only if you have to wear them; no tinted lenses, glare or frames over the eyes |
| Expression | Neutral |
| Head coverings | No head coverings unless for religious or medical reasons; nothing may cover the face. |
| Editing | Photos must not be altered by software. Never add borders or bars. |
| Other rules |
|
Sources: Get a passport photo: Digital photos, GOV.UK (opens in a new tab) (gov.uk); Head height, print size and background: Get a passport photo: Printed photos, GOV.UK (opens in a new tab) (gov.uk). Checked .
Notes
Online, the photo stays uncropped
For an online application, gov.uk says: “Do not crop your photo.” HM Passport Office crops it itself. The file you download for the online form is your checked photo, uncropped, at least 600 × 750 px.
A paper application needs 2 identical printed photos at 35 × 45 mm, taken in the last month.
Source: Get a passport photo, GOV.UK, checked September 30, 2026.
What we check, and what we can’t
On your device, we measure the head size and where it sits, the eye line, the wall behind you, the light on your face, the pose and the sharpness against this rule, and we crop the photo to its size. We level, resize and crop it, and nothing else.
We can’t tell how recent the photo is, whether it still looks like you, or what the office’s own reviewer will see on the day. The passport office decides whether to accept it.
Why a real photo matters
The UK passport rule on editing, in short
Photos must not be altered by software. Never add borders or bars.
Our summary of Get a passport photo: Digital photos, GOV.UK.
Start with your original camera photo. Check the document’s rules, including whether your head matches this rule: 29–34 mm, chin to crown; hair inclusion is not specified.
We don’t generate your photo. We level, scale and crop your original pixels to 35 × 45 mm, then show you the head height and the margins before you pay.
Our guides cover AI and passport photos and changing a photo’s background.
The files
studioless-uk-passport-digital
.jpg Online applications: upload the uncropped photo (head, shoulders and upper body); the Passport Office crops it. At least 600 × 750 px, 50 KB–10 MB.
Your original pixels, at least 600 × 750 px
studioless-uk-passport-print-4x6
.jpg Print it as a regular 4 × 6 in photo at any drugstore kiosk, then cut on the lines.
1800 × 1200 px at 300 dpi, 6 photos at 35 × 45 mm
studioless-uk-passport-print-5x7
.jpg The same photos on a 5 × 7 in sheet, printed and cut the same way.
1500 × 2100 px at 300 dpi, 9 photos at 35 × 45 mm
A paper application asks for 2 identical photos. Paper: matte or low-gloss photo paper (not glossy). Your check results come with the files, and everything is deleted 7 days after your order.
Sources
Changes to this page’s rule
- Shortened the Korean and Chinese visa summaries and clarified the Saudi eVisa face measurement, keeping every document’s answer summary within 40–60 words.
- Document pages now show a short list of key facts, each naming its source authority and record date, before the complete rule table.
- U.S. visa photo: the baby rule now says what our September 28 record of the State Department’s visa photo pages (read from archived copies) says: no other person in the photo, and eyes open. The page had carried the passport rule’s line that a baby’s eyes don’t have to be fully open.
- Checked 10 documents against official pages. U.S. State Department pages were read from Wayback snapshots because the live site blocked automated access.
Every document’s rules in one table: passport and visa photo sizesEvery change to the rules we check
Questions
Can I use ChatGPT or an AI app for my UK passport photo?
For a generated or retouched photo, follow the document’s editing rule. Photos must not be altered by software. Never add borders or bars. That is our summary of the rule, from HM Passport Office. Reading or checking rules with a chatbot is a separate use; verify its answer against the authority’s source. We only level, scale and crop your photo.
Can I wear glasses in a UK passport photo?
Only if you have to. GOV.UK says “Do not wear glasses in your photo unless you have to do so.” If you do wear them, no sunglasses or tinted lenses, and no glare, reflection or frames over your eyes. Taking them off is the safest choice.
What do I get for $9.95?
You get a digital file sized for the online form (uncropped, at least 600 × 750 px JPEG, 50 KB–10 MB), plus printable 4 × 6 in and 5 × 7 in sheets you can print at any drugstore. A paper application asks for 2 identical photos.
Where do I get my files?
On your order page after you pay, with no account to make.
