India Passport Photo Maker, 35x45 mm

The official requirements

The headline is the shape: India is now a 35x45 mm portrait rectangle, not the old 2x2 inch square, and the change is mandatory rather than recommended. The full ICAO spec the Passport Seva guidelines enforce:

• Size: 35x45 mm (width x height), portrait
• Background: plain white only, no patterns, shadows, or off-white tones
• Head size: the face fills 80-85% of the photo height, chin to crown
• Expression: neutral, mouth closed, both eyes open, looking straight ahead
• Glasses: not allowed, unless you have a documented medical condition
• Recency: taken within the last 6 months
• Color: color photo only

For a Passport Seva online upload, the digital file is a JPEG, 630x810 pixels, under 250 KB, on the same plain white background.

What the September 2025 ICAO switch changed

The reason an old photo that always worked now gets bounced: from September 1, 2025, Indian passport offices and overseas missions stopped accepting non-ICAO photos. The change is not cosmetic; three things flipped at once:

• The format. The old 2x2 inch (51x51 mm) square is gone. A 35x45 mm rectangle is the only accepted shape, so a photo cut to the old square is now an automatic reject, not a borderline pass.
• The head share went up. ICAO wants the face at 80-85% of the frame height, tighter than the old square encouraged. A photo cropped to the old proportions reads as a face that is too small, even if everything else is fine.
• Glasses came off the table. Where applicants once kept thin frames on, the ICAO standard now treats glasses as a rejection unless a medical condition is documented.

If you have a photo from before September 2025, assume it needs re-shooting or at least re-cropping to 35x45 mm at the higher head share, not reusing.

The studio-then-PSK flow (and the 630x810 upload)

India does not capture your photo for you the way some countries do at the counter. The realistic flow has two steps, and which one bites depends on your application route:

• Studio first. You get the photo made at a private studio (most near a Passport Seva Kendra know the 35x45 mm ICAO format on sight) or produce a compliant file yourself. The Kendra does not run a photo booth for you.
• PSK verification. At your Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) appointment, the officer checks the photo against the ICAO standard. For an in-person application you may be asked to bring two printed 35x45 mm photos on matte paper, so carry a pair even if you also uploaded one.
• Online upload. Some categories upload the 630x810 px JPEG (under 250 KB) directly through the Passport Seva portal during the application. Shoot with that file in mind, because a head sized for a print can still fail the portal’s ratio check at upload.

The trap is treating the PSK as a fallback that will fix a bad photo. It will not; it verifies, it does not re-take. Arrive with a compliant photo either printed or uploaded.

How to take a compliant photo

A phone camera is enough if you set up for the higher ICAO head share:

1. Stand 4-6 feet from a plain white wall, far enough back that no shadow falls on it.
2. Light yourself from the front. Face a window; overhead light drops shadows under the eyes and nose.
3. Have someone else shoot it from chest height, straight on. A selfie distorts the face and frames the head wrong.
4. Neutral expression, mouth closed, hair clear of the eyebrows and ears, glasses off.
5. Crop to 35x45 mm with the head filling 80-85% of the height, or upload the shot to a tool that crops and checks the ICAO ratio for you.

Why photos get rejected

Since the September 2025 switch, the PSK and the portal bounce a predictable list. Each one and the fix:

• Old 2x2 inch square photo. The most common rejection since the rule changed. Re-shoot or re-crop to 35x45 mm.
• Face too small in the frame. The ICAO spec wants 80-85% fill; an old-format crop reads as too small. Crop tighter or shoot closer.
• Glasses left on. No longer allowed without medical documentation. Take them off.
• Off-white or shadowed background. A cream wall or a cast shadow reads as non-white. Use a true white wall.
• Upload rejected on file rules. Over 250 KB, wrong pixel size, or not a JPEG. Export to 630x810 px and compress under 250 KB.
• Filters or beauty mode. AI smoothing is grounds for rejection. Turn it off.
• Photo older than 6 months. It must reflect your current appearance.

Where to get your photo

Because the PSK does not shoot the photo, “where to get it” means where you produce the print and the upload file. The honest comparison:

A studio near a PSK is convenient and knows the ICAO format, but check it has switched to 35x45 mm and not the old square. An online tool gives you the 630x810 JPEG for the upload plus a print sheet for the two photos the counter may ask for. Whichever route, the photo only counts if it clears every rule in the first section.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still use my old 2x2 inch passport photo? No. Since September 1, 2025 only the 35x45 mm ICAO format is accepted. The old square is an automatic rejection, even if the photo is recent.

Does the Passport Seva Kendra take my photo there? No. India is a studio-supplied flow. You bring a compliant photo (and often two printed 35x45 mm copies); the PSK verifies it against the ICAO standard but does not shoot it for you.

What file does the Passport Seva upload need? A JPEG at 630x810 pixels, under 250 KB, plain white background. A file sized only for printing can still fail the portal’s ratio or size check, so export specifically to those numbers.

Are glasses ever allowed now? Only with a documented medical condition, and even then the eyes must be fully visible with no glare. For everyone else the ICAO change made glasses an automatic rejection.

How much of the frame should my face fill? 80-85% of the photo height, chin to crown. This is higher than the old square format encouraged, so a photo cropped to the old proportions usually reads as too small now.