Grouped by what people are usually trying to settle. Where authorities genuinely differ — smiling and glasses are the two classic cases — the answer says so per country rather than giving one global rule, because a confident wrong answer here gets an application refused. Each document page carries its own authority's specification with a link to the source.
Using the tool
Is it free? Yes, entirely — every document and size, full resolution, no watermark, no account, no usage limit and no paid tier. Why that is possible.
Is my photo uploaded? No. Everything, including the background segmentation, runs in your browser on your device. It keeps working with the network disconnected once the page has loaded, which is the easiest way to confirm it. Details and how to verify.
Do I need an app? No. It runs in the browser on phones and computers alike.
Can it check my photo will be accepted? It checks what is measurable — physical size, head height against the published range, resolution, and any numeric limits the authority publishes such as file size or pixel bounds. It cannot judge expression, recency or lighting, and it does not claim an approval rate. What it does and does not check.
Sizes and measurements
What size is a passport photo? There is no single answer. The two dominant formats are 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm) for the United States and India, and 35 x 45 mm across the Schengen area, the UK, Australia, Japan and much of the world. Canada uses 50 x 70 mm, China 33 x 48 mm. The size chart lists every one.
Why does head height matter more than the photo size? Because it is the commonest mechanical refusal and it varies between countries that share an outer size. On a 35 x 45 mm photo, Germany and the Schengen standard want a 32–36 mm head, the Netherlands 26–30 mm. Same photo dimensions, visibly different crop. Always pick the document, not just the size.
A portal asked for pixels, not millimetres. Convert at the DPI the portal expects — 300 DPI is the usual assumption, so 35 x 45 mm is 413 x 531 px and 2 x 2 inches is 600 x 600 px. Choosing your document here produces a file at the right pixel count automatically. See DPI and pixel sizes.
Is 2 x 2 inches the same as 51 x 51 mm? Effectively yes — 2 inches is 50.8 mm, and both figures describe the same format. Authorities quote whichever unit they prefer.
The rules everyone asks about
Can I smile? The U.S. State Department accepts a neutral expression or a natural smile. The UK, the Schengen countries, Canada and most other biometric standards require a neutral expression with the mouth closed, and a smile showing teeth is refused. Country by country.
Can I wear glasses? Not for U.S. passport photos — prohibited since November 2016, with a narrow medical exception requiring a doctor's note. The UK and many European authorities allow them if the eyes are clearly visible with no glare, no tint and no frames across the eyes. Removing them is safer wherever it is permitted. More.
What background do I need? Plain, light and uniform — but the exact colour differs, and two cases catch people out: the UK asks for cream or light grey and does not list plain white, while France explicitly forbids white. Rules by country.
Can I wear a head covering? A religious head covering is generally permitted provided the full face is visible from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead and casts no shadow. Non-religious hats and caps are not. Details.
How old can the photo be? Most authorities require one taken within the last six months, and any photo that no longer resembles you can be refused regardless of date. For children the effective window is much shorter. More.
What should I wear? Ordinary clothes in a colour that contrasts with a light background; no uniform, and nothing that reads as clutter. More.
Editing, AI and backgrounds
Can I replace the background digitally? Often yes, but not always — and the exceptions are serious. U.S. online passport renewal rejects photos with digitally replaced backgrounds or AI retouching outright, and South Korea and Nigeria have comparable bans. On those documents, photograph yourself against a real plain wall and leave the feature off. Why the ban exists.
Is using this tool "editing" the photo? Cropping and resizing to a required format is expected of you and is not what the bans target; they target altering the content of the image — replacing the background, retouching skin, reshaping features, or generating a photo. Crop freely, and leave the content alone where the authority requires an unedited original.
Printing and submitting
How many photos do I need? Usually two prints for a paper application, or one file for a digital one — but check your form. One 4 x 6 sheet from this tool holds six.
Where can I get the sheet printed? Anywhere that prints ordinary photos, for cents rather than dollars — ask for a standard photo print, not the shop's separate passport photo service. Options by country, or print at home.
What does it cost? Nothing if you submit digitally; the price of one ordinary photo print if you need prints. Full comparison.
My file is too large for the portal. Portals commonly cap uploads in kilobytes — the DS-160 at 240 KB, U.S. online renewal accepting 54 KB to 10 MB. How to hit a KB limit without wrecking the photo.
Babies and children
Do the same rules apply? The size and background do; the expression and eye rules are relaxed for infants by most authorities, and requirements differ enough between them that it is worth reading your own. Nobody else may appear in the frame, including a supporting hand. Baby passport photos and how to take one.
Frequently asked questions
What size should a passport photo be?
It depends on the country. The two dominant formats are 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm), used by the United States and India, and 35 x 45 mm, used across the Schengen area, the UK, Australia, Japan and much of the world. Canada uses 50 x 70 mm and China 33 x 48 mm. What matters as much as the outer size is the required chin-to-crown head height, which differs between countries using the same size.
Is this passport photo tool free?
Yes — every document and size, at full print resolution, with no watermark, no account and no paid tier. It is free because the photo is processed in your browser on your own device, so there is no per-photo server cost to recover.
Is my photo uploaded to a server?
No. The image is read locally, processed in your browser — including the face segmentation for background replacement, which runs as WebAssembly on your device — and saved from memory. Once the page has loaded, the tool keeps working with your network disconnected, which is the simplest way to verify it.
Can I smile in a passport photo?
The U.S. Department of State accepts a neutral expression or a natural smile. The UK, the Schengen countries, Canada and most other biometric standards require a neutral expression with the mouth closed, and a smile showing teeth is refused. Check your own authority before smiling.
Can I replace the background of my passport photo?
For many documents yes, but U.S. online passport renewal rejects digitally replaced backgrounds and AI-edited photos outright, and South Korea and Nigeria have similar bans. For those, photograph yourself against a real plain wall instead.
How do I convert millimetres to the pixel size a portal asks for?
Multiply by the DPI and divide by 25.4. At the usual 300 DPI, 35 x 45 mm is 413 x 531 pixels and 2 x 2 inches is 600 x 600 pixels. Choosing your document in the tool produces the correct pixel count automatically.