On this page
Specifications
Every measurable requirement, in the same order on every country page. Bracketed numbers point to the official source below.
| Printed photo | ||
|---|---|---|
| Photo size | 35 × 45 mm | [4] |
| Head height (chin to crown) | 32–36 mm | [3] |
| Eye position | Eyes within the marked eye area, level with each other | [4] |
| Background | Plain, light-coloured background (ideally neutral grey), contrasting with the face and hair | [3] |
| Print resolution | At least 600 dpi | [3] |
| Paper | High-quality paper | [3] |
| Copies required | Original plus one copy of each required document, including the photo | [5] |
| Digital upload | ||
| Pixel size | Not specified by the authority | |
| File format | Not specified by the authority | |
| File size | Not specified by the authority | |
| Colour | Black-and-white or colour | [3] |
| Validity | ||
| Taken within | Current | [5] |
| Also specified | ||
| Full-face format | The photo must clearly show the person's facial features from the tip of the chin to the top of the head, and both the left and right sides of the face | [3] |
| Centring | The face must be placed centred in the photo | [3] |
| Even lighting | The face must be evenly lit | [3] |
| Sharpness and contrast | The face must be sharp, high-contrast, and clear in every area | [3] |
| Colour neutrality and skin tones | The photo must be colour-neutral and reproduce skin tones naturally | [3] |
| No creases or marks | The photo must not show creases or marks | [3] |
| Only the applicant in frame | The photo may show only the person being photographed (no other people or objects in the picture) | [3] |
| Head position | A depiction of the person with a tilted or turned head (e.g. a three-quarter profile) is not permitted | [3] |
| Background tone by hair colour | A medium-grey background suits light hair; a light-grey background suits dark hair | [3] |
| No background pattern | The background must not have a pattern | [3] |
| Crown measurement excludes hairstyle | The top of the head is taken excluding the hairstyle | [3] |
| Voluminous hair | With voluminous hair, the head (including the hairstyle) should be shown as completely as possible, without shrinking the size of the face | [3] |
| Face-height tolerance (adults) | A photo is rejected only once face height falls below 27 mm or exceeds 40 mm | [3] |
| Face height (children under 10) | For children, face height must take up 50–80% of the photo, equal to 22–36 mm from the tip of the chin to the top of the head | [3] |
| Face-height tolerance (children) | A children's photo is rejected only once face height falls below 17 mm or exceeds 40 mm | [3] |
| Background (Schengen-visa documents checklist) | White background (Schengen-visa documents checklist) | [5] |
Rules
What is allowed and what is refused. Same ten rows on every page; “Conditional” means allowed only as described.
| Expression | Required | Neutral facial expression with the mouth closed, looking straight into the camera [3] |
| Eyes | Required | Eyes open and clearly visible, not covered by hair or eyeglass frames [3] |
| Glasses | Conditional | For spectacle wearers: eyes must be recognisable and not obscured [4] |
| Head covering | Conditional | Head coverings are not permitted as a rule; exceptions are allowed for religious reasons, in which case the face must be recognisable from the lower edge of the chin to the forehead [3] |
| Hair | Not allowed | Hair must not cover the eyes [3] |
| Ears | Not specified | — |
| Clothing | Not allowed | No uniform parts in the photo [3] |
| Retouching / filters | Not specified | — |
| Shadows and objects | Not allowed | No reflections or shadows on the face, and no red eyes [3] |
| Infants and children | Allowed | For infants and toddlers up to age 6, deviations in head position (though not away from a frontal shot), facial expression, eyes and gaze direction, and centring are allowed, in addition to the exceptions listed for children [3] |
Notes and common mistakes
One photo standard for passport, ID card, and visa
The Federal Foreign Office’s biometric photo template is not written just for visa applicants — the same page that introduces it says that applying for a passport, a national identity card, or a visa all call for the identical biometric passport-style photo [2].
Background: the template’s flexibility versus the visa checklist’s wording
The photo template calls for a plain, light-coloured background — ideally neutral grey — that contrasts with the applicant’s face and hair [3]. A separate checklist of the documents needed for a Schengen-visa application, however, simply names a white background [5].
Two layers of exceptions for young children
For children generally, the required face-height share of the frame widens to 50–80% of the photo — about 22–36 mm from chin to crown — instead of the tighter adult figure [3]. Infants and toddlers up to age 6 get a further, wider allowance on top of that: their head position may deviate as long as the shot is still taken frontally, and their facial expression, eye and gaze direction, and how centred they are in the frame may all vary too [3].
What “top of the head” means when measuring the face
The 32–36 mm face-height figure is a target, not a hard cutoff: because the top of the head is often hard to pin down exactly, a photo is rejected only once face height falls below 27 mm or exceeds 40 mm [3].
Countries with the same photo size
35 × 45 mm Australia Canada Egypt France Ireland Italy Japan Netherlands New Zealand Pakistan Portugal Schengen area Singapore South Korea Taiwan Thailand United Kingdom
Questions
Is the visa photo requirement different from Germany's passport photo standard?
No — the page that introduces the photo rules opens by saying that applying for a passport, a national identity card, or a visa all call for the same biometric passport-style photo [2].
Does the photo background need to be white or grey?
The photo template calls for a plain, light-coloured background — ideally neutral grey — that contrasts with your face and hair [3]. A separate checklist of documents required for a Schengen-visa application instead calls for a white background [5].
Can infants and toddlers pose differently from older children in the photo?
Yes. For children generally, the required face-height share of the frame widens to 50–80% of the photo — about 22–36 mm from chin to crown — instead of the tighter adult figure [3]. Infants and toddlers up to age 6 get a further, wider allowance on top of that: their head position may deviate as long as the shot is still taken frontally, and their facial expression, eye and gaze direction, and how centred they are in the frame may all vary too [3].
Can I keep my glasses on, or wear a head covering, for the photo?
Glasses can stay on: the compliance checklist's item for spectacle wearers only requires that your eyes remain recognisable and are not obscured [4]. A head covering is not allowed as a general rule, but a religious exception applies — and even then, your face still has to be recognisable from the bottom of your chin up to your forehead [3].
Do I need to submit more than one photo?
The Schengen-visa documents checklist does not set a photo-specific quantity — it simply carries the same rule it applies to every other document in the application: submit the original along with one copy [5].
Sources
Every value above is taken from the following official documents. If a source disagrees with this page, the source is right — tell us. Report an error.
- [1] Visabestimmungen, Antragsformulare — Auswärtiges Amt (Federal Foreign Office), general visa-regulations and application-forms page
https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/service/visa-und-aufenthalt/visabestimmungen-allgemein - [2] Fotos für Pass- und Visaangelegenheiten — Auswärtiges Amt, served via the German Embassy Mexico City diplo.de mirror
https://mexiko.diplo.de/mx-de/service/foto/1032570 - [3] Merkblatt / Fotomustertafel für Passfotos (PDF) — official passport/visa photo sample template, Auswärtiges Amt
https://mexiko.diplo.de/resource/blob/882940/8f9374397909cc3fad9e62993fb4a385/merkblattfotosmustertafel-downloaddatei-data.pdf - [4] Schablone zur Prüfung der Biometrietauglichkeit von Passbildern (PDF) — biometric photo compliance checklist, Auswärtiges Amt
https://mexiko.diplo.de/resource/blob/878136/29c2f1b7ffc7d15f226b3a51cb4d496e/biometriefoto-ddatei-data.pdf - [5] Erforderliche Unterlagen für die Beantragung eines Schengen-Visums — required-documents checklist, served via the German Embassy Nouakchott diplo.de mirror
https://nouakchott.diplo.de/mr-de/service/2541104-2541104