Passport photo requirements: 12 general rules.

Obtaining a foreign passport, which allows you to travel freely in different countries- an exciting moment in the life of every person.

I really do not want some trifle to spoil the long-awaited event. Often such a trifle is a photo.

No, we are not talking about bad shots (“what a terrible shot”, “who is this terrible woman”). Let's talk about how ignoring the requirements for a photo for a passport, you can punish yourself, because everything will have to be redone again.

But why complicate everything if the instructions of the Federal Migration Service are extremely clear and easy to follow?

General requirements for a passport photo

There are a number of general requirements (for clothing, hairstyle, facial expressions, etc.), as well as a number of prohibitions that you should not violate if you are taking a photo for a passport.

These requirements and prohibitions are relevant regardless of the method of application and what type of passport you are issuing (traditional or biometric).

1. We fulfill the requirements for a photo for a passport.

It would seem that everything should be simple when it comes to obtaining a document. And with a photo, there shouldn't be any problems at all.

And yet it is precisely the unsuccessful photographs that are why you have to redo the whole.

The Federal Migration Service imposes a lot of requirements for photos, and not only to technical characteristics, but also to the very image of the person being photographed.

True, all these instructions are easy to follow if you are extremely careful.

Requirements for a person who is going to take a photo for a passport:

You can do whatever hairstyle you like, the main thing is that the strands do not cover the face.

But it is desirable to opt for the usual styling, which will improve recognition.

Hats should not be worn as decoration.

The only exception to this rule is religious beliefs, and even then they are acceptable in a limited way. For example, it is impossible to cover your face, even referring to religious beliefs.

Regular glasses if you wear them Everyday life, you can leave.

But here the photographer will have to try, firstly, to take a photo so that your eyes are visible, and secondly, to avoid glare.

It is better to give preference to clothes of soothing shades, without large decorations in the neck area.

But things that match the background should not be worn, so as not to merge with it.

There are no special requirements for make-up, but it is better to make up the way you do it daily, without smokey ice and too bright lips.

But powdering your face so that it doesn’t shine will not hurt not only women, but also men.

How to take pictures correctly in order to fulfill all the requirements of the Federal Migration Service for a photo for a passport:

1. Set a light blue or light gray background.
2. Set the light so that it falls on your face, but does not blind or cast shadows.
3. Sit in a chair in front of the lens with your back straight and your head and shoulders straight.
4. Position yourself in front of the lens so that your image in the photo takes up at least 80%.
5. Look straight ahead, look straight into the lens.
6. Relax so you don't look too stressed.
7. Give your face a natural expression by choosing a neutral emotion.

Important ! When trying to look good in your passport photo, don't overdo it. You should not radically change the color of your hair, pile up a complex hairstyle, apply war paint, etc. If you look different in the photo than in ordinary life, the border guard may suspect that you are traveling with someone else's documents, and this will create unnecessary problems.

2. Prohibitions that you should not violate if you want your passport photo to be accepted.

If there are general requirements for how a person should look when taking a picture for a passport, then there should be prohibitions that should not be violated if you do not want to redo everything again.

It is unacceptable when photographed for a passport:

1. Wear clothes, hats, do hair that will at least partially cover the face.
2. Hide your eyes behind dark glasses.
3. To run to the photo shoot in uniform, no matter how beautiful it is.
4. Turn your head, convincing the photographer that you are better in profile or in ¾ than in full face.
5. Smile widely and make any other grimaces.
6. Push any objects into the frame.
7. Take pictures with your husband / girlfriend / beloved dog, etc.

Important ! If you take a photo at home, albeit with the fulfillment of all requirements, at least process it minimally (better not on your own, but with the help of a professional) to fit it to the desired specifications, remove red eyes, etc.

Requirements for photos on international passports of various samples ...

1) Photo requirements for a regular passport.

To apply for a traditional (paper book) passport, you will need 4 photographs taken taking into account the general requirements for the background, clothing, body position, etc.

Technical requirements for paper photographs:

Important ! Despite the fact that if you have a camera, you can take pictures at home, it is still better to go to the studio. The specialist will accurately fulfill all the requirements of the passport office and you will receive pictures that do not have to be redone.

2) Requirements for a photo for a biometric passport.

If you are going to travel a lot and do not intend to change your last name or any other data in the near future, then it is better to immediately make a biometric passport.

Firstly, its expiration date is 10 years, which means that for a decade you will be relieved of the need to stand in queues at the passport office. Secondly, the border guards of other countries treat such documents with greater confidence than the “paper books” we are used to.

Another nice bonus is that you won’t have to take a photo in advance, because you will be filmed in a photo booth directly at the migration service.

Naturally, employees of such departments are well aware of the requirements for photographs that can be used to produce a document.

Those who have already gone through this procedure know that it is not always easy to position yourself correctly in order to get exactly into the contour indicated on the monitor. But it is necessary to do this, because the program must accurately calculate personal parameters (the size between the pupils, etc.).

This is necessary in order to minimize the chances for fraudsters to use other people's photos.

Important ! If you intend to do biometrics, it is better to apply not through the public services portal, but to appear at the passport office in person. This will reduce the risk of violating photo requirements.

Requirements for a passport photo for children

Apply for a traditional rather than a biometric passport. There are two reasons for this:

1. despite the fact that the biometrics are valid for 10 years, you will have to change the document much earlier, because the child is growing and it will be almost impossible to recognize him in the photo in 10 years;
2. a standard document requires a paper photograph, which means that it can be taken in advance in a studio with a patient photographer, rather than delaying the entire line at the passport office, persuading the child to sit upright.

The rest of the requirements for passport photos for young travelers are no different from the instructions for adults: sit up straight, keep your head straight, look forward, etc.

Here are examples of successful and unsuccessful photographs of children on a document:

Important ! Photographing young children should be approached without haste and nerves. This is the only way to make a frame that will suit the employees of the Federal Migration Service, without stress for the baby.

Preparing a photo for a foreign passport.

How to get a passport through the State Services?
Detailed consultation.

What are the requirements for a photo if you leave an online application?

Submitting an online application through the public services website https://www.gosuslugi.ru/10005?utm_source=beta&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=utility&utm_content=zagran, it is very important not only correctly, but also to fulfill the requirements put forward for the photo.

The specifications of the photo you upload should be:

And a few words about how to properly upload a photo to the portal:

If your picture does not want to be saved, then you did not take the picture according to the instructions of the FMS and you need to redo it.

Carefully study the requirements for a passport photo in order to get the desired document quickly and without red tape. Ignoring instructions will result in delays and unnecessary problems that you have artificially created.

The standard package of documents required for obtaining a foreign passport includes 4 photographs.

They must meet certain standards, otherwise the applicant may be denied a document. How to take a photo for a passport so that the documents are accepted for consideration?
In order to do everything right, you need to remember certain standards. Registration of a foreign passport will pass without problems if you familiarize yourself with the requirements for a personal photograph for Russian citizens. All of them are contained in technical requirements created by the government of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the requirements for old and new passports are the same, except for some points.
A personal photo of a Russian citizen for a foreign passport can be black and white (old-style document) or color (for a biometric passport). Its size should be 37x47 mm (+ 2mm), and after cutting out for pasting, its size should be 35x45 mm.
The photo should be taken only in full face, and it should be printed only on matte photo paper. If you are applying for a biometric passport, then the photo can be taken with or without an oval. If you are applying for an old-style international passport, then the photo should have a blurry oval at the bottom.
It is not allowed to wear headwear, accessories that cover the face (glasses, headbands, etc.), except for those that have a confirmed medical prescription. It is better to choose clothes that are not very dark, the background in the photo should be light, solid.
Please note that the application can also be submitted in electronic format, which is considered a more convenient way, because you do not have to stand in a long queue. But you need to submit it along with the uploaded photo, so you can ask the photo studio to send you a digital version of the photo on a USB flash drive. Before you take a photo for a passport, you need to warn the photographer in the photo salon in advance about the purposes for which you are taking pictures - an experienced specialist knows exactly what standards a photo in paper and digital form must meet.
By the way, you will have to use the services of a photographer only if you are applying for an old-style international passport. For a biometric passport, photos are taken by specialists of the Federal Migration Service using special equipment.
We issue a passport for a child - requirements for children's photos.
How to take a picture of a child for a passport so that there are no problems with obtaining a document? Let's say right away that they are no different from photographs that are taken for adult applicants. If you are going to make a passport for a child under the age of 14, then please note that the photo must be provided in any case, even if the baby is only a few months old. For young children, it is recommended to make old-style passports, since their validity is only 5 years, and not 10 years, like a biometric passport.

With the introduction of new types of international passports, photo requirements for documents have changed by law.

Most of the branches The FMS is equipped with professional photography equipment. They have special settings for creating a digital image that will fully meet the requirements.

Employees Migration Service on one's own take photos, and then edit them using modern editing programs. The new international passports have an embedded chip that contains biometric information, as well as in documents using digital photography.

What is worth knowing?

Old passports continue to issue, although their number is limited. These documents are usually produced in urgent and emergency cases when the applicant does not have enough time to wait.

For issuance, information about the applicant is entered into the form, a standard photo for a passport is pasted. Digital photographs are not used. Therefore, in order to draw up an old-style document, the applicant provides a paper photograph made according to the old standards (no one has canceled them).

For paper and digital version photos have their own rules. FMS inspectors demand to provide photographs even in the case of issuing biometric passports. After all, they will be needed while working with questionnaires, as well as personal cards.

New rules for issuing a foreign passport - in the following video:

What photos are needed?

To issue biometric passport (with built-in chip) with a validity period of 10 years, you need to provide two photos from one block. They must fully comply with the established rules:

• Color or black and white format;
• Dimensions - 45 mm x 35 mm;
• The face is depicted only in full face, all features are clearly visible;
• Matte image.

Photo requirements for a biometric passport are more loyal than for an old-style identity card.

The picture will be taken directly by an employee of the Migration Service during the submission of documents. However If all the indicated requirements are not strictly observed, the photo may be rejected.

Requirements for an old generation passport:

• Image parameters: 45 mm x 35 mm;
• Photo strictly on matte paper;
• There should be a blurry oval at the bottom of the image;
• The face of the applicant is strictly in the full-face position;
• The background is white, the applicant's clothes are of a different shade (this is more a wish than a requirement).

Important! For international passports of the previous generation, 3 photos are provided in one block (children under the age of 18 are allowed 2 photos).

Applicant clothing requirements:

1. Photographs in uniform are prohibited (government agencies, police, Ministry of Emergency Situations, etc.);
2. Business attire is required if documents are submitted directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
3. Free style - for other applicants.

Face, glasses and hats:

Electronic format for the State Services portal

Issuance of a passport through the portal public services from year to year getting more and more popular. The applicant, when submitting a package of documents via the Internet, must attach a file with a digital electronic photo to it. For the photo to be accepted by the system, it must fully comply with the following parameters:

1. JPEG file format.
2. Resolution - up to 450 dpi.
3. Size from 200 to 300 Kb.
4. Black and white photo - 8 bit, color - 24 bit.
5. The image parameters are equal to the paper version (35 mm x 45 mm).

We collect things on vacation: what to put in luggage, and what - in hand luggage? What can't be taken on a plane? The answer to all these questions is in the following.

Can I take a picture myself?

Allowed to do it yourself high quality photo for a passport. For this on Personal Computer installed software and the stated conditions are met. Also, the applicant can contact a specialized photo studio. The resulting photo is uploaded to a removable storage medium, after which it is sent to the FMS through the State Services portal.

Experts do not advise risking their time and effort and strongly recommend contacting specialists.

Passport will be issued only if the applicant has original documents - a civil passport, relevant photos, and other related documents.

If the applicant wishes to take a photo exclusively on his own, professionals recommend the following:

• Use a flat white surface (wall, fabric) as a background;
• If possible, use professional equipment;
• Wear formal clothing in contrasting colors;
• Don't wear tinted glasses Sunglasses. If you always wear corrective glasses, be careful not to glare from the flash in the picture. But it is better to take pictures without glasses;
• Process the picture in a proven graphic editor;
• withstand technical specifications in strict accordance with the norms established by law.

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12/25/2018, Sasha Bukashka

Consider what should be a photo: black and white, color, oval, matte? We will explain where you can take the right picture and how to send it to the passport service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Electronic photography: pixels and megabytes

In order to be able to upload your image to the public services portal, it must be saved in the jpeg, jpg, bmp or png extension. The site simply does not recognize other image formats, unfortunately. Therefore, pay attention to how your camera saves pictures and, if necessary, resave the desired file. In addition, there are a number specifications which cannot be neglected:

• image size should not exceed 5 MB;
• resolution must be at least 300 DPI;
• black and white image must be monochrome (8 bit);
• the color image must be 24-bit.

Moreover, if the file size can be changed after its creation, then changing the resolution will be more difficult. It is better to set it immediately in the camera settings. A lower resolution will make the picture fuzzy, and it will not be accepted in public services and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Black and white images can be used for, and color images for biometric, new, issued for 10 years. We will consider the features of these cases below. In the meantime, let's figure out how to properly "upload" an already edited image to the site. There is a special window for this:

As you can see, the developers have provided for everything to maintain proportions. If you have a photo right size(35 mm by 45 mm, remember?), then the image itself must fit within the strictly specified head, eye, and shoulder levels. If something didn’t coincide with something, then you don’t need to think: “Everything is lost!” and turn off the computer. You just need to open the file in the editor and trim it slightly. For example, remove the extra background above the head. If this does not help, then the problem is in the artistic part - the proportions were violated when shooting. In this case, unfortunately, your card does not fit, you need to take a photo again. Usually, if the picture was taken in a professional studio, such problems do not arise, specialists have a hand full of all these proportions for a long time. But if you are your own photographer or have attracted a wife, brothers, sisters or friends to this, you cannot do without hints about the artistic part.

Artistic part of the requirements

1. Face profile

Rule of thumb: Take a frontal photo. Even if you are perfect in a half-turn with a slight tilt of your head, in this case you will have to be patient and sit in front of the lens, keeping your head straight and looking directly into the camera.

Right wrong:

2.background

The background behind you should just be light gray or light blue, almost white. No beautiful flower walls or picturesque ruins are allowed in this case. Leave them to share with friends on instagram.

Not right:

If there is no gray or light blue background (for example, you simply don’t have a suitable wall at home), it can be “whitened out” artificially using computer programs. The main thing is not to overdo it and not remove the hair, ears or a piece of the neck. It is best to trust experienced users of such programs in this matter.

3. Hats and other accessories

If you wear glasses in everyday life, then you can be wearing them in the photo. True, there are several important "buts":

• glasses should not cover half of the face;
• the lenses of the glasses must be transparent (not darkened);
• the eyes should be visible in the photo (section, color, features), which means that the glasses should not glare.

There should not be a headdress in the photo! There is only one exception: if you wear it for religious reasons and your beliefs do not allow you to appear in public with your head uncovered. In this case, you will also be wearing this headdress to undergo various control. Again, there is an important "but": the face must be open.

Not right:

In addition to all this, there are less significant nuances, such as, for example, how not to be photographed in a white shirt or dress. Or, on the contrary, do not perpetuate yourself in an outfit of all the colors of the rainbow. It is also not allowed to be filmed in any uniform. The image should be clear, not blurry, not overexposed. Hair, if possible, is collected in a hairstyle that does not distract attention from the face. In no case should they fall into the eyes.

4. Eyes, emotions, shadows

You need to look directly at the camera when photographing. Under no circumstances should you look away. There should be no shadows or highlights on the face. Unfortunately, a wide smile “in all 32” will have to be saved for another occasion, there should not be any special emotions in the picture, both positive and negative. Therefore, furrowing your eyebrows and wrinkling your forehead is also not recommended.

So, we figured out the shooting process, now we need to understand how the photo on the biometric passport differs from the picture on the old sample. After all, as we found out, they are exactly the same size. But there is still a difference.

Photo for an old-style passport, requirements 2019

In this case, you can take both black and white and color photographs. Most importantly, the paper on which it is printed must be matte. Glossy is not suitable here. There is also an important compositional feature of such an image: a light oval is required, outlining the body from below to the shoulders. You can make it yourself using a special template.

With the introduction of new types of international passports, photo requirements for documents have changed by law.

Most of the branches The FMS is equipped with professional photography equipment. They have special settings for creating a digital image that will fully meet the requirements.

Employees of the Migration Service independently take photos, and then edit them using modern editing programs. The new international passports have an embedded chip that contains biometric information, as well as in documents using digital photography.

• What is worth knowing?
• What photos are needed?

What is worth knowing?

Old passports continue to issue, although their number is limited. These documents are usually produced in urgent and emergency cases when the applicant does not have enough time to wait.

For issuance, information about the applicant is entered into the form, a standard photo for a passport is pasted. Digital photographs are not used. Therefore, in order to draw up an old-style document, the applicant provides a paper photograph made according to the old standards (no one has canceled them).

There are different rules for paper and digital versions of photos. FMS inspectors demand to provide photographs even in the case of issuing biometric passports. After all, they will be needed while working with questionnaires, as well as personal cards.

New rules for issuing a foreign passport - in the following video:

What photos are needed?

To apply for a biometric passport(with built-in chip) with a validity period of 10 years, you need to provide two photos from one block. They must fully comply with the established rules:

• Color or black and white format;
• Dimensions - 45 mm x 35 mm;
• The face is depicted only in full face, all features are clearly visible;
• Matte image.

Photo requirements for a biometric passport are more loyal than for an old-style identity card.

The picture will be taken directly by an employee of the Migration Service during the submission of documents. However If all the indicated requirements are not strictly observed, the photo may be rejected.

Requirements for an old generation passport:

• Image parameters: 45 mm x 35 mm;
• Photo strictly on matte paper;
• There should be a blurry oval at the bottom of the image;
• The face of the applicant is strictly in the full-face position;
• The background is white, the applicant's clothes are of a different shade (this is more a wish than a requirement).

Important! For international passports of the previous generation, 3 photos are provided in one block (children under the age of 18 are allowed 2 photos).

Applicant clothing requirements:

Where can you travel without a passport? top interesting ideas for holidays, click here.

Face, glasses and hats:

Electronic format for the State Services portal

Registration of a passport through the portal of State services every year getting more and more popular. The applicant, when submitting a package of documents via the Internet, must attach a file with a digital electronic photo to it. For the photo to be accepted by the system, it must fully comply with the following parameters:

We collect things on vacation: what to put in luggage, and what - in hand luggage? What can't be taken on a plane? The answer to all these questions in the next article.

Can I take a picture myself?

Allowed to do it yourself high quality passport photo. To do this, software is installed on a personal computer, and the stated conditions are met. Also, the applicant can contact a specialized photo studio. The resulting photo is uploaded to a removable storage medium, after which it is sent to the FMS through the State Services portal.

Experts do not advise risking their time and effort and strongly recommend contacting specialists.

Passport will be issued only if the applicant has original documents - a civil passport, relevant photos, and other related documents.

If the applicant wishes to take a photo exclusively on his own, professionals recommend the following:

• Use a flat white surface (wall, fabric) as a background;
• If possible, use professional equipment;
• Wear formal clothing in contrasting colors;
• Do not wear tinted glasses or sunglasses. If you always wear corrective glasses, be careful not to glare from the flash in the picture. But it is better to take pictures without glasses;
• Process the picture in a proven graphic editor;
• Maintain technical parameters in strict accordance with the norms established by law.

Documents for a passport are given and the question arises: where is it better to go on vacation? We will advise! Most popular places in different time years is here.