Schengen area passport photo requirements

A Schengen area passport or visa photo is 35 × 45 mm (413 × 531 pixels at 300 DPI) on a light grey or cream background. The head must measure 29–34 mm from chin to crown, which is the part most photo tools ignore — a photo can be exactly the right size and still be rejected for a head that fills too much or too little of the frame.

Schengen area photo specification
Photo size35 × 45 mm
At 300 DPI413 × 531 pixels
Head height (chin to crown)29–34 mm
BackgroundLight grey or cream
ExpressionNeutral, mouth closed, both eyes open and visible
NotesThe shared standard for Schengen visas and most EU passports.

How to make one

  1. Choose a well-lit, front-facing photo of yourself — a phone photo is fine.
  2. The head is measured and framed to the Schengen area rule automatically.
  3. The background is replaced with light grey or cream by a matting model.
  4. Download one photo for an online application, or a print sheet with cut lines.

Is my photo uploaded anywhere?

No. There is no server to upload it to — the cropping, face detection and background removal all run inside this browser tab, and nothing is stored. Turn off your Wi-Fi once the page has loaded and it still works.

Other Europe requirements

Requirements change, and the issuing authority's own guidance is always the authority. These figures are transcriptions of published requirements, offered as a convenience and not as legal advice.