Lie your baby on a white sheet. Get an online-ready file or four 35×45 mm prints, checked in seconds.
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Lying down on a plain white surface, photographed from above by someone else – the way the DFA asks for babies who can't sit up.
Head to mid torso, not cropped tight. The online system's crop tool frames faces of children up to 36 months.
Four identical photos on a plain light background, laid out on a 6×4 in sheet with cut lines.
1Put a smooth white sheet on the bed, lay your baby on their back and have someone else take the photo from above in daylight. No soothers, toys or hands in the frame, and no digital zoom.
We look for shadows, a hand or arm in the photo, a soother, closed eyes, head tilt and blur, and tell you how to reshoot. We tidy the background – your baby's face is never touched.
3Applying on Passport Online? Upload the uncropped JPEG. Using a paper form? Print the 6×4 sheet on photo paper and cut out four identical 35×45 mm photos.
The DFA says infants who can't support themselves should be photographed lying on a plain, white surface. No one else may appear, so the hand or arm holding your baby must stay out of shot.
Online applicants can take the photo at home on a phone, but it must be taken by someone else – selfies are refused. Skip digital zoom; step closer instead. We check sharpness, exposure and shadows on the face.
For children up to 36 months, Passport Online has its own crop tool to frame the face. So we keep head to mid torso in a colour JPEG of at least 715×951 px, under 9 MB, saved at high quality.
Paper forms need four identical photos, at least 35×45 mm and no larger than 38×50 mm. Two are signed on the back by your witness. We lay them out on a 6×4 in sheet.
| Rule | Official requirement |
|---|---|
| Who takes it | Someone else – selfies are not accepted; no digital zoomSource |
| Digital photo size | At least 715 px wide × 951 px tallSource |
| Digital file | Colour JPEG, up to 9 MB, not scanned, no compression artefactsSource |
| Baby crop tool | Passport Online lets you frame the face for children from newborn to 36 monthsSource |
| Framing | Head to mid torso, with space between head, shoulders and the edgesSource |
| Background | Plain light grey, white or cream, no objects or shadowsSource |
| Babies who can't sit up | Lying down on a plain, white surfaceSource |
| Hands, other people, soothers | No one else in the photo, no supporting hand or arm, no soothersSource |
| Expression | Neutral as far as possible: not smiling, mouth closedSource |
| Printed photo size | Minimum 35×45 mm, maximum 38×50 mmSource |
| Printed copies | 4 identical photos; 2 signed on the back by a witness (paper form, passport book only)Source |
| Print colour and paper | Black and white recommended, colour accepted; photo paper with a white, unglazed backSource |
| How recent | Taken in the last 6 monthsSource |
| Children's applications | First and renewal child passports can be done on Passport Online with a digital photoSource |
Passport Online (first child passport or renewal) needs a colour JPEG of at least 715×951 px, up to 9 MB, showing head to mid torso — for children up to 36 months the system offers its own crop tool. (DFA photo guidelines)
A paper form needs four identical 35×45 mm prints (no larger than 38×50 mm); your witness signs the back of two.
Both must be taken by someone else, on a plain light grey, white or cream background, within the last six months. We don't issue photo codes and we're not part of the DFA — the Passport Office makes the final decision.
