Passport photo rules compared: the strictest countries, ranked

Tightest digital file limits

The most common technical rejection is the file gate, and it varies wildly: the strictest portal allows 50 times less data than the most permissive.

How much of the photo your head must fill

Head-size rules are the least intuitive requirement and a top rejection reason everywhere. Ranked by how much of the frame height the head must occupy (midpoint of the official range):

1. 1.
   India Passport 82% (36 to 38 mm of 45 mm)
2. 2.
   New Zealand Passport 80% (34 to 38 mm of 45 mm)
3. 3.
   Schengen Area Visa 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)
4. 4.
   Australia Passport 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)
5. 5.
   Ireland Passport 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)
6. 6.
   Germany Passport 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)
7. 7.
   France Passport 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)
8. 8.
   Italy Passport 76% (32 to 36 mm of 45 mm)

The strangest official rules

• France Passport: A white background is FORBIDDEN. France requires light grey or light blue, the exact opposite of the US rule.
• Spain Passport: The smallest format we track: 32 x 26 mm, shared by the passport and the DNI identity card.
• Brazil Passport: Adults never submit a photo at all: it is captured live at the Federal Police. Printed photos are only for children under 5.
• China Visa: Both ears must be visible and lips closed, and the digital file has a 40 KB MINIMUM: over-compressed photos fail.
• New Zealand Passport: Selfies are explicitly rejected. Someone else must take the photo from about 1.5 metres away.
• Ireland Passport: Black and white prints are officially recommended (the passport prints in B&W), yet the digital upload must be colour.
• India Passport: The online upload must be exactly 630 x 810 pixels. One pixel off and the portal rejects it.
• Australia Passport: Any retouching at all is banned, including removing moles, wrinkles or scars. Prints must be dye sublimation on 200 gsm glossy paper.
• United Kingdom Visa: You cannot reuse the photo from your current passport, and the file has a 50 KB minimum as well as a 6 MB maximum.
• United States Passport: Photos edited with AI, filters or software are rejected outright since January 2026, and glasses have been banned since 2016.