India Passport Photo Size — You Don't Bring One

You do not bring a photo. India passport photo rules taken from the government source, with the date we checked it.

You do not bring a photo.

At a Passport Seva Kendra (PSK/POPSK) the counter photographs you. You prepare nothing.

What other sites get wrong

Each of these is repeated across commercial photo sites. We checked the authority's own page and could not confirm any of them.

“India changed its passport photo rules on 1 September 2025.”

We could not find this on any .gov.in page. Until an authority publishes it, treat it as unsourced.

“An Indian passport photo is 51 × 51 mm with a 25–35 mm head.”

That is the Indian VISA rule, word for word. It has been copied onto passport pages — including our own early prototype.

What gets a India photo rejected

Every line below is the authority's own wording. These are the reasons applications actually come back — more often than a wrong measurement.

Do not paste black and white photographs
Photograph with dark background or in uniform, or with eyes hidden under coloured or dark glasses will not be accepted
Photograph in computer print will not be accepted
Photograph is NOT to be signed
Distracting shadows on the face or on the background should not be there
Eyes must not be covered by hair. Glares on eyeglasses should be avoided with a slight upward or downward tilt of the head
Photographs cut from group photographs are not acceptable
Head coverings are not permitted except for religious reasons, but the facial features from bottom of chin to top of forehead and both edges of the face must be clearly visible
Mouth should not be open

Compare one rule across every country → glasses

Which route applies to you

Ordinary route

You do not bring a photo.

At a Passport Seva Kendra (PSK/POPSK) the counter photographs you. You prepare nothing.

There is no printed specification for this route, and none is missing from our data — the authority does not publish one, because you never supply a photo.

District/Speed Post Centre & official passports

You bring 2 printed photos, 35 × 45 mm.

Only for District/Speed Post/Citizen Service Centre submissions and for diplomatic and official passport forms. The guidance recommends shooting from about 1.5 m.

Print size	35 × 45 mmofficial wording: “4.5 cm length x 3.5 cm width”
Photos required	2
Head height	80–85 % of photo heightdoes not follow the ICAO 70–80% rule
Eye line	No official specification
Background	White
Resolution	No official specification
Digital file	min 630 × 810 px

Crop to spec and build a print sheet

You hand printed photos over the counter.

Open the tool with this standard loaded →

Can you just use the ICAO standard?

No. The rule is 80–85% of image height. ICAO's 70–80% does not fit inside that range, so an ICAO-derived crop can be rejected.

Sources and what we could not verify

Passport Seva — Application Form FAQ (Ministry of External Affairs) www.passportindia.gov.in checked 2026-08-26

also: www.passportindia.gov.in

not verified: the backdrop colour, head size and other capture settings used at the counter (no public document)

Guidelines for ICAO Compliant Photographs for Passport Applications (Passport Seva) mportal.passportindia.gov.in checked 2026-08-26

also: www.passportindia.gov.in

not verified: head height in millimetres · file format and size limit · every OCI field — ociservices.gov.in redirect-loops

Questions people actually ask

Do I need to bring a photo for a India passport application?

No. At a Passport Seva Kendra (PSK/POPSK) the counter photographs you. You prepare nothing.

What size is a India passport photo?

35 × 45 mm applies only to one track (dpc-print). For the ordinary route, you do not bring a photo.