Quick answer
Passport photo size changes by country and, just as importantly, by application type. A U.S. paper passport application uses a 2 x 2 inch square photo. A UK paper passport photo is 35 x 45 mm. Canada uses 50 x 70 mm. Australia allows a print-size range rather than one exact 35 x 45 mm canvas. New Zealand's online passport service asks for a 3:4 digital image, not a 300 DPI print sheet. India is split across passport, regular visa, e-Visa, and OCI workflows.
If you only remember one rule, make it this: start from the issuing government's form, then crop from the original photo for that exact document. Do not stretch a U.S. square into a UK rectangle, do not upload a 4 x 6 print sheet to an online portal, and do not assume a visa photo uses the same size as a passport photo for the same country.
Here are the major sizes people search for most often:
| Country or workflow | Required size signal | Practical note |
|---|---|---|
| United States printed passport or visa | 2 x 2 in, 51 x 51 mm | 600 x 600 px at 300 DPI; head 25-35 mm |
| U.S. online renewal | Square 600 x 600 to 1200 x 1200 px composition range | Upload a single digital file, not a print sheet |
| United Kingdom printed passport | 35 x 45 mm | Face image 29-34 mm from crown to chin |
| United Kingdom digital passport | At least 600 x 750 px | GOV.UK crops own-device photos during the application |
| Schengen visa, common consulate checklist | 35 x 45 mm | Verify the consulate checklist for your appointment |
| Canada passport | 50 x 70 mm | Face 31-36 mm; photographer/back-of-photo rules matter |
| Australia passport | 35-40 mm wide, 45-50 mm high | Face 32-36 mm; dye-sublimation print guidance |
| New Zealand online passport | 3:4 ratio, 900-4500 px wide and 1200-6000 px high | JPEG, 250 KB to 5 MB; scans of prints are not accepted |
| India passport paper forms | 35 x 45 mm | Official booklet writes it as 4.5 cm length x 3.5 cm width |
| India regular/e-Visa upload | Square digital photo | File limits differ between regular visa and e-Visa |
| India OCI | 2 x 2 in, 51 x 51 mm | Similar outer size to U.S.; still follow OCI guidance |
| China visa | 33 x 48 mm portrait | Some visa-center pages write the values as 48 mm x 33 mm |
| Japan passport at some overseas consulates | 35 x 45 mm, sometimes 2 x 2 in accepted locally | Head 32-36 mm; local consulate instructions matter |
How to read a passport photo size table
Most bad passport photo advice comes from mixing four different things into one number:
- Outer photo size: the physical print or crop, such as 2 x 2 inches or 35 x 45 mm.
- Pixel dimensions: the number of pixels in a digital file, such as 600 x 600.
- Head size: how much of the frame the face occupies.
- Submission format: printed photo, online upload, visa-center upload, or photo booth code.
The first two are not interchangeable. A 35 x 45 mm UK photo at 300 DPI is about 413 x 531 pixels, but GOV.UK's digital passport flow asks for at least 600 x 750 pixels. Those are both true because they describe different workflows: one is print math, the other is an online upload rule.
Use the table as a planning tool, not as final legal advice. Before you submit, check the page for your exact country, document, embassy, and application route.
Verified passport and visa photo sizes by country
Pixel values below use this print formula:
pixels = inches x DPI
millimeters / 25.4 = inches
At 300 DPI, the common print sizes become:
| Country or document | Official size | Pixels at 300 DPI | Head-size or upload note |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. passport, printed | 2 x 2 in (51 x 51 mm) | 600 x 600 | Head 25-35 mm; white or off-white background |
| U.S. visa, printed/digital composition | 2 x 2 in; digital square 600-1200 px | 600 x 600 for print | Digital head height 50%-69% of image height |
| U.S. online renewal | Single digital file | Not a print-size rule | JPG/JPEG/PNG/HEIC/HEIF, 54 KB to 10 MB |
| UK passport, printed | 35 x 45 mm | 413 x 531 | Face image 29-34 mm crown to chin |
| UK passport, digital | At least 600 x 750 px | Not a 300 DPI print rule | 50 KB to 10 MB, unaltered by software |
| Schengen visa, German mission checklist | 35 x 45 mm | 413 x 531 | One recent biometric photo in the checked source |
| Canada passport | 50 x 70 mm | 591 x 827 | Face 31-36 mm chin to crown |
| Australia passport | 35-40 x 45-50 mm | 413-472 x 531-591 | Face 32-36 mm; print quality rules are strict |
| New Zealand online passport | 3:4 digital portrait | Not a 300 DPI print rule | 900-4500 px wide, 1200-6000 px high |
| India passport paper form | 35 x 45 mm | 413 x 531 | Plain white background; dark clothing advised |
| India regular visa upload | Square digital photo | Portal upload rule | JPEG, 10 KB to 300 KB in current instruction page |
| India e-Visa upload | Square digital photo | Portal upload rule | JPEG, 10 KB to 1 MB in current e-Visa page |
| India OCI | 2 x 2 in (51 x 51 mm) | 600 x 600 | Head 25-35 mm; do not retouch or soften |
| China visa | 33 x 48 mm portrait | 390 x 567 | Head width 15-22 mm; head height 28-33 mm |
| Japan passport, Japan consulate in San Francisco | 35 x 45 mm or 2 x 2 in | 413 x 531 or 600 x 600 | Head 32-36 mm; local consulate acceptance can differ |
The table deliberately separates passport, visa, OCI, and online upload rows. That makes it longer, but it prevents the exact mistake that causes delays: using one country's "passport photo size" for a different document.
U.S. photo size: square print, square upload, different workflows
For U.S. printed passport photos, the outer size is 2 x 2 inches, or 51 x 51 mm. At 300 DPI, that is a 600 x 600 pixel print area. The State Department says the head must be between 1 inch and 1 3/8 inches, about 25 to 35 mm, from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head.
For U.S. visa photo composition, the same 2 x 2 inch square applies, and the digital template gives a 600 x 600 to 1200 x 1200 pixel square range. That does not mean every online passport service wants a 600 x 600 file exported from a print sheet. The U.S. online renewal flow asks for a single digital image file and checks it during upload.
Use PhotoTools' U.S. preset when you need a 2 x 2 crop or a printable sheet. For online renewal, keep the original digital photo and upload it through the official application flow.
UK, Schengen, and the 35 x 45 mm rectangle
UK printed passport photos are 35 mm wide by 45 mm high. GOV.UK also gives a face-image range of 29 to 34 mm from crown to chin. A 2 x 2 inch U.S. square is wider and shorter in shape, so cropping a U.S. photo down to 35 x 45 mm usually cuts too much from the sides or changes the head position.
Schengen visa photo checklists commonly use the same 35 x 45 mm outer size, but the authority is the consulate or visa application center that handles your appointment. The German Missions checklist reviewed for this guide asks for one recent biometric passport photo at 35 x 45 mm. Other Schengen posts can describe head size, background, or document count differently.
The practical workflow:
- Start with a wider original photo that includes shoulders and space around the head.
- Crop a 35 x 45 mm portrait version for UK or Schengen use.
- Check head height after the crop; do not only check the outer rectangle.
- Print or upload according to the specific government or visa-center page.
Canada: the size is bigger, and the back matters
Canada is not a 35 x 45 mm country and it is not a U.S.-style 2 x 2 square. Canadian passport photos are 50 mm wide by 70 mm high, with face height from chin to crown between 31 mm and 36 mm.
The part people miss is not the rectangle. It is the printed-photo process. Canada expects commercial-photographer style handling, and the back of one photo normally needs the photographer or studio information and the date taken. A home-cropped image that looks fine on screen can still be the wrong submission if the back-of-photo requirements are missing.
Australia and New Zealand do not fit the simple 35 x 45 story
Australia's official page gives a print-size range: 35-40 mm wide and 45-50 mm high. The face should measure 32-36 mm from chin to crown. The same page is also unusually specific about print production: it calls for good-quality colour prints produced using dye sublimation, heavy-weight glossy paper, and no retouching.
New Zealand is even more clearly digital-first for online applications. The official page asks for a colour portrait photo with a 3:4 aspect ratio, JPEG format, 250 KB to 5 MB file size, and 900-4500 pixels wide by 1200-6000 pixels high. It also says scans of printed photos are not accepted.
That is why a country-size article should not reduce every row to "35 x 45 mm at 300 DPI." For Australia, the print range and production method matter. For New Zealand, the upload ratio and file limits matter.
India: passport, regular visa, e-Visa, and OCI are not the same row
India is a good example of why "passport photo size by country" can be misleading. Different Indian document workflows use different photo rules.
Passport Seva's paper application booklet describes a recent colour photograph sized 4.5 cm length by 3.5 cm width, which is the familiar 35 x 45 mm portrait layout. Current India Visa Online instructions for regular visas describe a square JPEG upload with a 10 KB to 300 KB file-size range. The e-Visa page also requires a square JPEG photo, but its maximum file size is 1 MB. OCI photo specifications use a 2 x 2 inch, 51 x 51 mm photo.
So the question is not simply "What is India passport photo size?" The better question is:
- Are you applying for an Indian passport?
- Are you uploading a regular visa photo?
- Are you applying for an e-Visa?
- Are you preparing an OCI photo?
- Are you submitting to a particular mission or service provider?
Once you know the workflow, crop from the original photo. Do not reuse the same 35 x 45 mm file for OCI, and do not reuse a 2 x 2 OCI crop for a Passport Seva paper application.
China and Japan: watch the order of width and height
Chinese visa photo guidance is a common source of confusion because some official visa-center pages write the values as "48 mm x 33 mm" while the practical paper photo is a 33 mm wide by 48 mm high portrait. One visa-center FAQ reviewed for this guide lists a recent colour photo, a 48 mm x 33 mm size statement, head width of 15 to 22 mm, and head height of 28 to 33 mm. Other visa-center pages may phrase it as 33 mm x 48 mm.
The safe way to prepare it is to think in orientation, not just number order: a China visa photo is a small portrait photo, not a landscape photo.
For Japan, the Consulate-General of Japan in San Francisco lists one photo taken within the past six months, 35 x 45 mm or U.S. 2 x 2 inches for that consulate workflow, with the head from top to chin between 32 mm and 36 mm. That "or U.S. passport photo size" wording is local-consulate guidance, not permission to assume every Japanese passport or visa workflow accepts a U.S. square.
Pixels and DPI for common printed sizes
When the country gives a physical print size, you can calculate pixels for a 300 DPI print layout. These are useful export sizes for a photo sheet or home print workflow:
| Physical size | 300 DPI pixels | Common use |
|---|---|---|
| 2 x 2 in | 600 x 600 | U.S. passport/visa, India OCI |
| 35 x 45 mm | 413 x 531 | UK printed photo, many Schengen-style checklists, India paper passport |
| 33 x 48 mm | 390 x 567 | China visa portrait |
| 50 x 70 mm | 591 x 827 | Canada passport |
| 35 x 50 mm | 413 x 591 | Lower-width, upper-height edge of Australia range |
| 40 x 50 mm | 472 x 591 | Upper edge of Australia range |
Do not use DPI metadata as a shortcut. A file can say "300 DPI" and still be blurry, over-cropped, retouched, too small, or printed at the wrong physical size. The real checks are the actual pixels, the printed inches or millimeters, and the head position inside the frame.
Can one photo work for multiple countries?
Sometimes the same source photo can work. The same finished crop often cannot.
For example, a clean original photo taken from a few feet away, against a plain light background, with shoulders visible, may be cropped into a U.S. 2 x 2 square, a UK 35 x 45 mm rectangle, and a Canada 50 x 70 mm rectangle. But those should be separate exports. The head height, eye position, and margins change with each crop.
Avoid these shortcuts:
- Stretching a square file into a rectangle.
- Cropping from an already cropped passport photo.
- Scanning a printed passport photo for an online application.
- Sending a compressed messaging-app copy to yourself and uploading that.
- Using AI face enhancement, skin smoothing, or background replacement.
- Assuming a photo-booth print from one country is sized for another country.
If the background or lighting is wrong, retake the photo. Passport and visa photos are identity documents, so "fixing" a bad source image with heavy editing is usually the wrong move.
A practical workflow for making country-specific photos
Use this order when preparing photos at home:
- Check the official page for the exact country, document, and submission route.
- Take a wider original photo with shoulders visible and a plain background.
- Crop the outer size: 2 x 2 in, 35 x 45 mm, 50 x 70 mm, 33 x 48 mm, or the portal's digital ratio.
- Measure head size after the crop.
- Export the exact file type or print layout required.
- For printed photos, print at actual size and measure with a ruler.
- For online portals, upload the original-quality file rather than a scanned print.
PhotoTools can help create country-size crops and print sheets locally in your browser. It is useful for layout, pixel math, and privacy because your photo does not need to be uploaded to our server. The issuing government, embassy, or visa center still makes the final decision.
Official sources checked
Use official pages before you submit, especially when an appointment, visa center, or online portal is involved: