US Passport Photo Requirements: The Complete Rulebook

Every US passport photo, printed or uploaded, has to meet the same core rules from the U.S. Department of State. The table below lists each rule, the official limit and a common mistake to avoid.

The rules come from the State Department passport photo page and the Foreign Affairs Manual (8 FAM 402.1), the internal rulebook passport staff use. Where the two are worded differently, the manual is the more detailed source. These rules apply to the passport book and the passport card alike, for Form DS-11 (in person) and Form DS-82 (renewal by mail or online).

The photo must be exactly 2 x 2 inches, and your head must fill 50% to 69% of its height. That works out to 1 to 1 3/8 inches from the bottom of your chin to the top of your head.

How the head is measured

Measure from the bottom of the chin, not the bottom of a beard, to the top of the head. If your hair is full or styled up, the top of the hair counts as the top of the head, so your face may need to sit a little smaller in the frame.

Where the eyes go

The eye line should sit 1 1/8 to 1 3/8 inches from the bottom of the photo. State Department visa rules and USCIS form instructions give this range, and passport photos use the same 2 x 2 layout. When the head size is right and the head is centered, the eyes usually land in this band on their own.

Size in pixels

A 2 x 2 inch photo at 300 DPI is 600 x 600 pixels. The State Department gives no pixel minimum for online renewal, so a larger square such as 1200 x 1200 keeps more detail. See passport photo size in pixels for every number, or make a correctly sized file with the 2x2 photo tool.

The background must be plain white or off-white with no texture, pattern, objects or shadows. The DS-11 instructions use the same words: a plain white or off-white background.

A smooth white wall or door works well. Stand 2 to 3 feet in front of it so your body does not cast a shadow on it. Light gray walls, cream walls under yellow light, tiles, wallpaper, door frames and light switches are the usual problems.

If you do not have a white wall, tape a white poster board or a smooth white sheet behind you. Start with the plainest, lightest background you can find: a clean original always gives the best final photo, whether you crop it yourself or use a service like PhotoForPass, which replaces the background with plain white.

Look straight at the camera with both eyes open and a neutral face or a natural, unexaggerated smile. Keep your head centered and level, with your shoulders square to the camera.

• Smiling: a relaxed, closed-mouth smile is the safest. A wide grin, laugh or squint can get the photo rejected. More in can you smile in a passport photo.
• Eyes: both fully open and visible, with no hair, glare or shadow over them.
• Head position: face the camera directly. Do not raise or lower your chin or turn your head.
• Mouth: closed or naturally relaxed.
• Babies: newborns and infants may have their eyes partly or fully closed. See baby passport photo.

Glasses are not allowed in US passport photos. The rule took effect on November 1, 2016, and covers prescription glasses, reading glasses, sunglasses and tinted lenses. Do not leave them pushed up on your head either.

The only exception is when glasses cannot be removed for a medical reason, for example right after eye surgery. In that rare case you send a signed statement from a medical professional, the frames cannot cover your eyes, and there can be no glare or shadow on them. Tinted lenses are allowed only if the medical statement says they are required. Full details are in our guide to glasses in passport photos.

Hats and head coverings are not allowed unless you wear them daily for religious or medical reasons. In that case you include a signed statement with your application.

• Religious: a signed statement that the covering is religious attire you wear daily in public.
• Medical: a signed statement from a doctor or other medical professional that you wear it daily for medical purposes.

The covering must not hide any part of your face, directly or by shadow, and your full face must be visible. Under the Foreign Affairs Manual, a permitted covering must be one uniform color with no pattern and no visible perforations. Hijabs, turbans, yarmulkes and similar coverings are accepted under these conditions.

There is no rule on hairstyle, facial hair or makeup, as long as your full face is visible and the photo shows how you normally look.

• Hair: wear it up or down. Keep it off your eyes and away from casting shadows on your face. Your ears do not have to show.
• Beards and mustaches: fine. If you usually wear a beard, keep it. Head height is measured to the chin, not the end of the beard.
• Makeup: everyday makeup is fine. Skip anything that makes you look very different from how you look day to day.
• Jewelry and piercings: allowed as long as they do not hide your face.
• Tattoos: permanent tattoos are part of your appearance and can show.

If your look changes a lot later, such as major facial surgery or adding or removing large facial piercings or tattoos, the State Department may ask you to apply for a new passport.

Wear normal everyday clothes. Uniforms, clothing that looks like a uniform, and camouflage are not allowed, and that includes military and work uniforms.

A top in a mid or dark color stands out against the white background. White or cream tops are not banned, but they can blend into the background and make your shoulders hard to see. Choose a visible neckline or sleeves so the photo does not look like you are wearing nothing. Our guide on what to wear for a passport photo covers colors, necklines and hats.

Light must be even, with no shadows on your face or on the background. Uneven light is one of the easiest problems to see and to fix.

• Face a window with soft daylight. Overcast days are ideal.
• Turn off the flash. It causes glare, red-eye and a hard shadow behind you.
• Do not rely on a single overhead light, which shades the eyes, or strong side light, which darkens half of the face.
• Avoid overexposed, washed-out skin and underexposed, grainy faces.
• No red-eye.

Our passport photo at home guide has a full lighting setup for phones.

Your photo must be taken within the last 6 months and must look like you do today. A photo can be recent and still fail if you have changed your look since it was taken.

Retake the photo if you shaved or grew a beard, changed your hair a lot, gained or lost a noticeable amount of weight, or had facial surgery. Do not reuse the photo from a previous passport, ID or visa. Passport staff compare your face with the photo, and TSA and border officers do the same when you travel.

Your face must look exactly as it does in real life. The State Department tells applicants not to change their photo with computer software, phone apps, filters or artificial intelligence, says it checks photos for this, and does not accept edited or filtered photos.

That rules out beauty modes, skin smoothing, face slimming, blemish removal and any reshaping of your features. Before you take the photo, turn off portrait mode, beauty filters and any automatic face enhancement on your phone.

Cropping to the right size is a normal step: the State Department's own online renewal tool includes a crop step. PhotoForPass fixes the lighting, replaces the background with plain white and crops to the official size, keeping your face exactly as it is. Final acceptance is always up to the State Department.

A printed passport photo must be sharp, undamaged and printed on matte or glossy photo-quality paper. Blurry, grainy or pixelated prints are rejected.

• Print at exactly 2 x 2 inches. Set the printer or store order to actual size (100%), never fit to page.
• Use photo paper, not plain paper. Matte and glossy are both fine for passports.
• No creases, scratches, ink smears or holes. Do not bend the photo.
• Attach the photo to the DS-11 or DS-82 as the form instructions say, and do not sign or write on the front.

The cheap and fast route is to put six 2 x 2 photos on one 4 x 6 sheet and print it at CVS, Walgreens or Walmart. Step-by-step instructions are in how to print passport photos.

If you renew online, you upload a digital photo instead of mailing a print. The file rules are simple, but the photo itself must meet every rule on this page.

Upload the photo straight from your phone or computer. Texting or messaging the file to yourself compresses it and lowers the quality. The online renewal photo tool checks basic requirements when you upload and tells you what to change. Learn more on our online passport renewal photo and digital passport photo pages.

Children follow the same rules, with a few allowances for babies. Children under 16 apply in person with Form DS-11 and a printed photo.

• Newborns and infants may have their eyes partly or fully closed.
• No parent, hands or toys in the photo. Lay the baby on a plain white sheet, or cover a car seat with a white or off-white blanket.
• Older children need open eyes and a neutral face or natural smile.

Tips for getting a usable shot are in our baby passport photo guide.

Most US government photos use the same 2 x 2 inch format, but the details around them differ. One photo covers both a passport book and a passport card if you apply for both at the same time.

See the full rules on our US visa photo, DV lottery photo, green card photo and USCIS photo pages. REAL ID, Global Entry and TWIC photos are taken in person, as explained on the REAL ID photo page.

Other countries use different sizes, head sizes and expression rules, so a US 2 x 2 photo usually will not work abroad. Many follow the 35 x 45 mm format used across Europe.

Open the country page for the full rules: UK, Schengen visa, India, Chinese visa, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Mexico and Philippines.

Two honest notes. Canada requires photos taken by a commercial photographer with no editing, and Australia's Passport Office advises against online photo services and apps. Our pages for those countries explain the rules but do not sell a photo for them.

Run through this list before you print, upload or mail your application. If every line is a yes, your photo meets the core rules.

• The photo is exactly 2 x 2 inches, or a square digital file for online renewal.
• The head is 1 to 1 3/8 inches from chin to top of head.
• The background is plain white or off-white with no shadows or objects.
• It was taken in the last 6 months and looks like you today.
• You face the camera, eyes open, with a neutral face or natural smile.
• No glasses, hat, headphones or earbuds.
• Everyday clothes, no uniform or camouflage.
• No filters, beauty mode or retouching of your face.
• The photo is sharp, evenly lit and free of red-eye.
• The print is on matte or glossy photo paper with no creases or marks.

Want a second opinion? The PhotoForPass photo checker is free and runs in your browser, so your photo never leaves your device.

PhotoForPass turns a phone photo into a passport photo that follows the rules above. We fix the lighting, replace the background with plain white, size and crop it to the official 2 x 2 inch layout, and check it against the requirements, in about 30 to 60 seconds after payment. It is built to meet the official requirements, and final acceptance is up to the issuing agency.

• Digital photo, $16.95: an official-size JPG for online renewal or other uploads.
• Photo + print sheet, $18.95: the JPG plus a 4 x 6 print sheet (JPG and PDF) to print at home, CVS, Walgreens or Walmart.
• Family packs: $29.95 for 2 people, $39.95 for 3.

Every order includes up to 5 photo checks and 3 free redos per person, plus a 14-day money-back guarantee. If an agency rejects the photo, you get a full refund. Before you pay, the checks and preview run in your browser and your photo stays on your device.