Digital Photo for Passport Applications

Two Ways to Get a Digital Photo for Your UK Passport

You need a digital photo to apply for a UK passport online, including renewals. GOV.UK gives you two options:

Option	How it works	Good to know
Photo code from a booth or shop	Get a digital passport photo from a photo booth or shop and choose the option to get a code. Enter the code during your application and your photo is added for you.	GOV.UK says these photos are more likely to be approved than photos taken on your own device.
Take a photo on your own device	Take the photo during your application on a phone, tablet or camera.	You need someone to help you take it. Include your head, shoulders and upper body, and do not crop it, because the service crops it for you.

Either way, the photo must have been taken in the last month, and you need a new photo every time you get a new passport, even if your appearance has not changed.

GOV.UK Rules for Digital Passport Photos

Quality

Your digital photo must be:

• clear and in focus
• in colour
• unaltered by computer software
• at least 600 pixels wide and 750 pixels tall
• at least 50KB and no more than 10MB

What the Photo Must Show

The photo must contain no other objects or people, be taken against a plain light-coloured background, be in clear contrast to the background, and not have red eye.

In the photo, you must:

• face forwards and look straight at the camera
• have a plain expression and your mouth closed
• have your eyes open and visible
• not have hair in front of your eyes
• not wear a head covering, unless it is for religious or medical reasons
• not have anything covering your face
• not have any shadows on your face or behind you

Glasses: do not wear glasses unless you have to. If you must, they cannot be sunglasses or tinted, and your eyes must not be covered by the frames or any glare, reflection or shadow.

Digital vs Printed Passport Photos

	Digital photo	Printed photos
Used for	Online applications on GOV.UK	Paper application forms
How many	One	2 identical photos
Size	At least 600 × 750 px, 50KB to 10MB	45 mm high by 35 mm wide, head 29 mm to 34 mm
Background	Plain, light-coloured	Plain cream or light grey
Printing	Not needed	Printed to a professional standard on plain white photographic paper

Need prints for a paper form? See our UK passport photo size and requirements guide or generate a print sheet with our passport photo print template generator.

Common Digital Photo Problems

Problem ❌	Fix ✅
Taking a selfie at arm's length	Ask someone to take the photo, as GOV.UK requires
Cropping tightly around your face	Include your head, shoulders and upper body for an own-device photo
Shadows on your face or the wall	Face a window in soft daylight, and stand away from the wall
Patterned or dark background	Stand in front of a plain, light-coloured wall
Filters, beauty mode or retouching	Turn them off. The photo must be unaltered by software
Hair over your eyes, or glare on glasses	Move hair away and take glasses off if you can
An old photo	Use one taken in the last month

How to Take a Good Digital Photo at Home

• Ask someone to help. GOV.UK says you need someone to help you take a photo on your own device.
• Face a window. Soft, even daylight keeps shadows off your face.
• Use a plain, light wall. Stand a step or two away from it so you do not cast a shadow.
• Hold the camera at eye level, about an arm's length or more away, and keep it straight.
• Frame your head, shoulders and upper body. Leave space around you rather than zooming in.
• Keep a plain expression, with your mouth closed and your eyes open.

For full shooting instructions, see our guides on how to take a passport photo on iPhone and how to take a passport photo at home.

Check Your Photo Before You Submit

Upload your picture to our UK passport photo checker and it checks your background, head position and framing against these rules, so you can spot problems before GOV.UK does. If you are applying on paper instead, you can download a 6×4″ print sheet to take to a photo shop using our print template generator.

• Renewing? Read our passport renewal photo guide.
• Applying for a child? See the UK baby passport photo guide.
• Need a driving licence photo? Check the UK driving licence photo guide.
• Need a photo for another country? Use the passport size photo maker or check the 35×45 mm photo size guide.