Who needs a printed UK passport photo
A UK passport proves your identity and British nationality when you travel, and it is also a common photo ID for banks and employers. You can apply for a UK passport or renew one on gov.uk or with a paper application form from the Post Office. This page makes the printed passport photo for the paper application: two identical photos that you send with the form. If you apply online, you upload a digital passport photo instead, so check which route you follow before you prepare your UK passport photo.
UK passport photo size explained
The official photo rules ask for a printed passport photo 35 mm wide and 45 mm high. Your face, from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head, must be between 29 mm and 34 mm high. In our template the head is 32.8 mm, with about 4.9 mm of space between the top edge and your hair, so the face sits in the middle of the allowed range. We prepare the passport photo at 600 DPI, which keeps it sharp when you print it at this size.
Background and lighting
A British passport photo needs a plain, contrasting background in cream or light grey. A white wall at home often looks grey or uneven in a passport photo, and a busy room is never accepted. Our AI replaces the background with an even light grey, but a shadow that falls across your face is much harder to fix, so take the passport photo in soft, even light. There must be no shadows on the face or behind you, and no red-eye effect.
Face, expression and glasses
Look straight at the camera with a neutral expression and your mouth closed. Your eyes must be open and visible, not covered by hair, sunglasses, tinted lenses or thick glasses frames. If you wear normal glasses, make sure there is no glare or reflection on the lenses; taking them off for the passport photo is the easiest way to avoid a rejected UK passport photo. Do not cover your head unless you do so for religious or medical reasons, and keep your full head and the top of your shoulders in the frame. You must be alone in the passport photo, with no other people or objects.
Printing your passport photo
A paper UK passport application needs two identical passport photos printed on high-quality plain white photo paper. The photos must be in colour, clear and in focus, with no tears, creases or marks on either side. The passport photo must be taken within the last month and must not be digitally changed: our tool only crops the photo to the right size, adjusts the background and checks the photo, without changing your face. Print the passport photo file from our site at a photo shop or at home on photo paper, then cut both photos to exactly 35×45 mm.
UK passport photo checklist
- Photo size: 35×45 mm, head 29–34 mm from chin to crown.
- Plain cream or light grey background with no shadows.
- Colour photo taken within the last month, not digitally changed.
- Neutral expression, mouth closed, eyes open and visible.
- No glare on glasses, no red eye, no hair over the eyes.
- Two identical photos on plain white photo paper, clean and uncreased.
Paper passport applications step by step
Before you apply, check that you can hold a British passport: British citizens, British Overseas Territories citizens, British Nationals (Overseas) and British subjects can apply, and you must be 16 or older for an adult passport. Get a paper form from the Post Office, fill it in, and send it with your two passport photos, your supporting documents and the payment to the address on the form. If this is your first adult UK passport, HM Passport Office may invite you to an interview. An adult British passport is valid for 10 years and a child passport for 5 years. Fees and processing times change, so check the current figures on the gov.uk passports page before you send the form.
Passport photos for babies and children
A child UK passport needs the same 35×45 mm passport photo and the same plain background as an adult British passport. The child must be alone in the photo, so hold a baby against a plain sheet rather than in your arms, and keep the child's eyes open and the face in full view. A baby's face must still be clear and in focus, with no hands, toys or other people in the passport photo. Our AI checks the head and the background on a child's passport photo the same way it checks an adult's passport photo, so you can take several photos at home and keep the best one.
Taking passport photos at home or in a booth
You do not need a studio for a UK passport photo. A photo booth or a photo shop prints passport photos for you, but you pay for every attempt and cannot always retake a bad passport photo. At home you can take as many photos as you like with your phone, check each passport photo online with our free tool, and print only the photo that passes. Ask a friend to take the photo from a few steps away, with the camera at the height of your eyes, so your face is not distorted. Stand a little in front of a plain wall so you do not cast a shadow on it, and look straight into the camera. A phone photo works for a UK passport photo as long as it meets the rules: our online tool crops it to the correct size, so you do not need to stand at an exact distance for the photo.
What our passport photo check looks at
When you upload a photo to our online tool, the AI first finds your face and crops the photo to the 35×45 mm passport photo size, with the head at the right height and the eyes level. It then replaces the background with plain light grey and runs the photo check: head size, position in the frame, background, shadows, expression, open eyes, glare on glasses, sharpness and colour. Each result is shown next to your passport photo online, so you know exactly what to fix. If a photo fails, take a new photo in better light or try a different photo from your phone. When the passport photo passes, download it free and print the photo.
Photo tips for a passport photo that passes first time
- Take the photo in daylight, facing a window, never with the flash on.
- Take several photos and keep the sharpest photo with the most neutral face.
- Use the main phone camera rather than a front camera with beauty filters.
- Wear plain clothes that stand out from the light grey passport photo background.
- Tie long hair back from your face so the photo shows your eyes clearly.
- Check the photo online with our tool before you print any passport photos.
- Print the photo on photo paper and compare both photos: they must be identical.
Using your UK passport as ID
Your British passport is more than a travel document. Banks, employers and many services accept a UK passport as proof of identity, and the passport photo is what they compare with your face. A clear, recent passport photo with a neutral expression makes these checks easier for the next 10 years, so it is worth taking a little time over it.
Online or paper: which passport photo you need
The UK passport service accepts two kinds of passport photo. When you apply online on gov.uk, you upload a digital passport photo file as part of the online application. When you apply with a paper form, you send two printed passport photos by post. A printed passport photo cannot be used in an online application, and a photo file on your phone cannot be sent with a paper form until you print the photo. This page makes the printed UK passport photo; you still get the photo file online first, so you can check it on screen before you print it.
Renewing your UK passport: do you need a new photo?
Yes. Every UK passport renewal needs a new passport photo, even if you look the same as in your old passport. The passport photo must be taken within the last month, so you cannot reuse the photo from your previous passport or from an older application. You can renew online or with a paper form; the steps are similar to a first passport application. For a paper renewal, send the two new passport photos with the completed form.
Lost or stolen passports
If your UK passport is lost or stolen, report it to HM Passport Office straight away and apply for a replacement passport. A replacement passport needs a new passport photo that meets the same rules: 35×45 mm, plain light background, neutral expression and taken within the last month. If you apply for the replacement with a paper form, print two identical passport photos and send them with your replacement passport application.
Where to print your passport photos
Once you download the passport photo file, you can print the photo at a photo shop, at a self-service photo kiosk or at home. At home, use a good printer and high-quality plain white photo paper, print at 600 DPI and check that the passport photo measures exactly 35×45 mm before you cut it out. Plain office paper is not accepted for passport photos. Cut along the edges with a sharp blade or scissors, and keep the photos flat and clean until you post them, because a bent, scratched or marked passport photo can be rejected.
Why passport photos are rejected
Rejected UK passport photos often fail on simple points: shadows on the face or the background, a head that is too small or too large for the 35×45 mm frame, glare on glasses, hair over the eyes, a smile or a photo that looks edited. A rejected passport photo delays your passport, because you have to take and send a new one. Our AI checks your passport photo against these points before you print it, so you can fix the photo at home and send your passport application with photos that pass.
How many photos to send and how recent they must be
For a paper UK passport application you send two identical passport photos, so print both photos from the same photo file. Your passport photo must be taken within the last month. An older photo, even one that meets every other rule, should not be sent with a UK passport form, and you cannot reuse the photo from your old UK passport. If you took several photos on your phone, check them in our online tool and print only the newest passport photo that passes. Keep the passport photo file after you print it, so you can print the same passport photo at the correct size again if a print gets damaged before you post your UK passport application.
Other UK photos
The same 35×45 mm format is used for a disabled person's parking badge (Blue Badge) photo. For other British documents, see our UK driving licence photo, UK visa photo and UK residence card photo pages, which follow their own rules.
