About

Passport and visa photo rejection rates hover around 10 - 20% at most consulates. The primary cause is dimensional non-compliance: a photo submitted at 34×44 mm when the specification demands 35×45 mm will trigger automatic rejection by biometric scanning systems. This tool crops your image to the exact pixel dimensions required by ICAO 9303 and country-specific standards. Output resolution is fixed at 300 dpi, the minimum accepted by government printers. The face-guide overlay enforces the proportional rules: head height between 70% and 80% of the frame, eyes positioned in the upper third. All processing runs locally in your browser. No image data leaves your device.

Limitations apply. This tool handles geometry only. It does not correct lighting, remove background color, or validate expression compliance. Shadows, red-eye, and non-neutral expressions remain your responsibility. Pro tip: shoot against a white wall with diffused natural light from a window at 45° to the subject.

Formulas

Output pixel dimensions are derived from the physical print size and the target print resolution. The conversion from millimeters to pixels at a given DPI follows:

W_px = W_mm × DPI25.4

Where W_px is the output width in pixels, W_mm is the required physical width in millimeters, DPI is dots per inch (fixed at 300), and 25.4 is the conversion constant from inches to millimeters. The same formula applies to height.

The crop region within the source image is constrained by the target aspect ratio r:

r = W_pxH_px

The visible crop window dimensions cw and ch on the canvas satisfy cw = ch × r. Panning offsets dx and dy are clamped so the crop rectangle never exceeds the source image bounds. The zoom factor z scales the source image relative to the crop frame. Minimum zoom ensures the image fully covers the crop area: z_min = max(cw ÷ imgW, ch ÷ imgH).

Reference Data

Country / Document	Width mm	Height mm	Width px (@300 dpi)	Height px (@300 dpi)	Aspect Ratio
United States (Passport)	51	51	600	600	1:1
United States (Visa)	51	51	600	600	1:1
United Kingdom	35	45	413	531	7:9
European Union / Schengen	35	45	413	531	7:9
Canada	50	70	591	827	5:7
Australia	35	45	413	531	7:9
India	51	51	600	600	1:1
China	33	48	390	567	11:16
Japan	35	45	413	531	7:9
South Korea	35	45	413	531	7:9
Russia	35	45	413	531	7:9
Brazil	50	70	591	827	5:7
Mexico	35	45	413	531	7:9
Saudi Arabia	40	60	472	709	2:3
UAE	43	55	508	649	43:55
Thailand	35	45	413	531	7:9
Malaysia	35	50	413	591	7:10
Singapore	35	45	413	531	7:9
Turkey	50	60	591	709	5:6
Nigeria	35	45	413	531	7:9
South Africa	35	45	413	531	7:9
Kenya	35	45	413	531	7:9
Pakistan	35	45	413	531	7:9
Bangladesh	45	55	531	649	9:11
Philippines	35	45	413	531	7:9
Indonesia	30	40	354	472	3:4
Vietnam	40	60	472	709	2:3
Egypt	40	60	472	709	2:3
Israel	35	45	413	531	7:9
ICAO 9303 (International)	35	45	413	531	7:9

Frequently Asked Questions

The output is rendered at 300 DPI, which is the universal minimum for government-accepted passport prints. At 300 DPI, a 35×45 mm photo yields 413×531 pixels. This value is not adjustable because submissions below 300 DPI are routinely rejected by automated biometric scanning systems. If you need a higher DPI for professional printing, use the output file and set the metadata in your print driver.

The US Department of State mandates 2×2 inch (51×51 mm) photos per 22 CFR 51.20. This square format accommodates both the printed passport page and the digital submission to the DS-160 online system, which requires exactly 600×600 pixels. Most other countries follow the ICAO 9303 standard, which specifies 35×45 mm. Canada and Brazil use 50×70 mm. Always verify with the issuing authority before submission.

Per ICAO 9303, the face (measured from chin to crown of head) must occupy 70% to 80% of the vertical frame height. Eyes should sit approximately one-third from the top. The tool displays guide lines for chin, eyes, and head top. These are advisory. You must manually align your face to these guides by dragging the image. Automatic face detection is not performed.

JPEG output uses a quality setting of 0.95 (on a 0-1 scale), which produces negligible visible compression artifacts while keeping file sizes under 500 KB. PNG output is lossless and produces larger files. For government submissions that specify a maximum file size (e.g., India's 300 KB limit), use JPEG format. The multi-step downscaling algorithm prevents aliasing artifacts that occur with single-step canvas resizing.

Modern phone cameras produce images at 12+ megapixels, which far exceeds the 413×531 pixel requirement. Resolution is not the issue. The problems are geometric distortion from short focal lengths (selfie cameras are typically 24-28 mm equivalent, which distorts facial proportions) and inconsistent lighting. For compliant photos, use the rear camera at arm's length (or with a tripod at 1.5 m distance) with someone else triggering the shutter. The tool cannot correct lens distortion.

If the crop region in the source image contains fewer pixels than the target output (e.g., cropping a 400×400 area but needing 600×600 output), the tool will upscale using the browser's default bicubic interpolation. This introduces visible softness. A warning is displayed when upscaling exceeds 110%. For best results, use a source image where the face region is at least 600 pixels tall.