UK passport photo — 35×45 mm , free.
35 × 45 mm printed, or 600 × 750 px digital for the GOV.UK online application. Background must be plain light grey or cream — pure white is rejected.
35 × 45 mm @ 300 DPI = 413 × 531 px · UK requires light grey or cream — not pure white
Drop a photo
PNG, JPG, WebP, BMP, HEIC · or paste with Ctrl+V
How it works
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Drop a photo — JPG, PNG, WebP, BMP, or iPhone HEIC.
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United Kingdom is pre-selected. Drag the crop box if you want to fine-tune.
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Download the JPG at 35 × 45 mm (600 × 750 px).
Official United Kingdom passport photo spec
- Print size
- 35 × 45 mm
- Digital portal
- 600 × 750 px max 10240 KB
- Background
- light grey
- Head share
- 70% of frame
- Photo age
- Taken within the last month
- Glasses
- Banned since June 2018. No prescription, no clear-lens, no sunglasses.
Source: gov.uk — always double-check the latest requirements before applying.
Where to print in United Kingdom
Typical cost: £6–10 for four prints
- Boots Photo — most high-street branches, ~£10 for four prints
- Snappy Snaps — same-day, ~£10 for four prints, 250+ branches
- Max Spielmann — instore booth, ~£8
- ASDA Photo / Tesco Photo Kiosk — supermarket print stations
- Photo-Me booth — train stations and supermarkets, ~£6
- Print at home: 6×4 inch glossy paper holds two 35×45 mm photos with margin
Common reasons United Kingdom passport photos get rejected
- Pure white background (HMPO requires plain light grey or cream)
- Head outside the 29–34 mm chin-to-crown range
- Smiling, mouth open, or visible teeth
- Glasses (banned since June 2018)
- Hair covering the face or eyes
- Photo more than 1 month old (HMPO rule, often misquoted as 6 months)
- Visible shadows on the face or behind the head
How to take your United Kingdom passport photo at home
- Light grey or cream — never white. HMPO rejects pure white backgrounds outright. Shoot against a light grey or cream wall with no texture, pattern, or shadow.
- The photo must be under one month old. The UK is unusually strict on freshness: taken within the last month, not the six months most countries allow. Don't reuse an older photo.
- Even, shadow-free light. Use two light sources or open shade outdoors. A single window casts one side of the face dark and a shadow on the background — both common HMPO rejections.
- No glasses, neutral expression. All eyewear banned since June 2018 — no prescription, clear-lens, or sunglasses. Mouth closed, eyes open and clear of hair.
- Crop to 35 × 45 mm. Crown-to-chin must be 29–34 mm of the 45 mm height. Drop the photo above and the UK preset fits this automatically.
New to this? Read the full guide to taking a passport photo at home that won't get rejected .
United Kingdom visa photo
UK visas use the same 35 × 45 mm format. UK Visas & Immigration accepts photos prepared to UK passport spec. Note: the visa background rule is more flexible (plain light background) than the passport's strict light-grey/cream requirement.
Baby and infant photos
Babies and children under 6 don't need a neutral expression and don't need to look at the camera. The light grey/cream background and 29–34 mm head height still apply. No hands or other people may be visible in the shot.
Privacy: why no upload matters
Most online passport-photo tools (PhotoGov, PhotoAID, Snap2Pass, 123PassportPhoto) upload your photo to their servers, run cropping there, and send back the result. Even when they're trustworthy, your face is sitting on someone else's infrastructure for some period of time. This tool runs the crop entirely in your browser — your United Kingdom passport photo never leaves your device.
Frequently asked
Why is my UK passport photo rejected for a white background?
Because pure white is not what HMPO asks for. The official rule is 'plain light grey or cream'. White against the printer paper makes the photo edges hard to detect during scanning. Use the tool's auto-replace background option set to light grey, or take the source photo against a beige or pale grey wall.
What's the exact UK passport photo size?
35 mm wide × 45 mm tall printed, or for the GOV.UK digital application: 600 × 750 px minimum, JPEG only, max 10 MB. Head height (chin to top of crown) must measure 29–34 mm — that's roughly 64–76% of the frame height.
Are glasses allowed in UK passport photos?
No. HMPO banned all eyewear in June 2018, including prescription, reading, and clear-lens glasses. Take them off for the photo. There's no doctor's-letter exception in the UK rule.
Where can I print a UK passport photo on the high street?
Boots and Snappy Snaps both offer same-day passport photo printing at most branches for around £10 for four prints. Photo-Me booths in train stations and supermarkets are cheaper (~£6) but slightly variable on quality. ASDA, Tesco, and Max Spielmann all run photo kiosks too.
Can I use this for a UK visa application?
Yes — UK Visas & Immigration accepts the same 35 × 45 mm format as the passport. The background rule is slightly more relaxed for visas (any plain light colour works), but passport spec is always safe.
How recent must my UK passport photo be?
Within the last month. This is HMPO's actual rule and is stricter than most countries (most use 6 months). It's a common cause of rejection for renewals where the applicant uses an older photo.