How to Resize a Photo for a Passport or Visa Application

Start with the official specification

Photo rules are set by each government and they do change, so the single most important step is reading the requirements on the official site you’re applying through — not a third-party summary. Look for four things:

• Shape and size — for example 2×2 inches, or 35×45 mm.
• Pixel dimensions for digital uploads — often a minimum, sometimes an exact size or a range.
• File limits — the format (almost always JPG) and a minimum or maximum file size in KB or MB.
• Head size and position — how much of the frame your head should fill, measured from chin to the top of the head.

For reference, these are the most common printed photo sizes. Treat them as a starting point and confirm the current rules before you submit.

Take a photo that will pass

No amount of resizing will rescue a photo that breaks the content rules. Most countries ask for broadly the same things:

• A plain, light background (white or off-white is safest) with no shadows behind you.
• Even lighting on your face — stand facing a window rather than with it behind you.
• A neutral expression, mouth closed, eyes open and looking straight at the camera.
• No glasses for many countries (including the US and UK), and nothing covering your face except religious head coverings where allowed.
• The camera held at eye level about 1–1.5 m away. Too close and a phone lens will distort your nose and face.

Step 1: Crop to the right shape

Open the Image Cropper and load your photo. The photo stays in your browser — it isn’t uploaded anywhere.

• For a 2×2 inch (square) photo, choose the 1:1 preset. Position the box so your head is centered and your face fills roughly half to two-thirds of the height of the frame.
• For a 35×45 mm photo, choose Free and drag the box into a portrait rectangle that’s a little taller than it is wide. You’ll set the exact proportions in the next step, so get it close — about 7 units wide for every 9 units tall.

Leave a small gap above your head and include the top of your shoulders. Then download the cropped image.

Step 2: Resize to the required pixels

Load the cropped image into the Image Resizer and enter the pixel dimensions from the official spec. If the spec only gives a printed size, calculate pixels at 300 DPI (dots per inch), which is the standard for photo printing:

• For a square photo, keep Keep aspect ratio switched on and type the width — the height will match.
• For a 35×45 mm photo cropped by eye, switch Keep aspect ratio off and enter both numbers. Because your crop was already close to 7:9, the tiny adjustment won’t visibly stretch your face.
• Never scale a small photo up to meet a minimum. If your original is smaller than the required pixels, retake it with a better camera.

Step 3: Hit the file size limit

Many portals cap uploads at a specific size — sometimes as low as 240 KB — and some also set a minimum so that heavily compressed photos are rejected. If your resized photo is too large, open the Image Compressor, lower the quality slider gradually and watch the estimated size. Stop as soon as you’re under the limit; going lower only adds blocky artefacts around your face.

If the portal only accepts JPG and your file is a PNG or WebP, convert it first with the Image Converter. iPhones save photos as HEIC by default; Safari usually converts them to JPG when you pick a photo for upload, and choosing Settings → Camera → Formats → Most Compatible makes the camera save JPGs from the start.