What to wear for a passport photo: the actual rule
The State Department’s clothing rule fits in one sentence: wear what you wear on a typical day. Not an interview outfit, not a collar for the occasion — the clothes you would have on running errands are exactly what the rule asks for.
Three things break it, and only three: a uniform of any kind, clothing that looks like a uniform even when it is not one, and camouflage. That is the entire banned list for clothing — everything else in your closet is allowed, a plain t-shirt as compliant as a suit.
People iron shirts and buy blazers for this photo. The rule never asked for either — what actually sinks passport photos is head size, background, and light, the things the checks measure, not wardrobe.
The best color to wear for a passport photo
No color is banned, and no color fails a photo by itself — this section is advice, not regulation. But one choice makes the finished photo visibly better, and it follows from the background rule: Plain white or off-white. A white or very pale top can blend straight into that, and the line between your shoulders and the background disappears.
- Best: mid-tone and darker solid colors. Navy, charcoal, forest green, burgundy, a denim blue — anything that separates cleanly from the background behind you.
- Fine, but weaker: white, cream, pale pastels. Legal — nothing rejects a photo for a pale shirt — they just tend to melt into the background at the shoulders.
- Busy patterns: not against any rule, but they pull attention in a picture whose whole subject is your face. A solid color simply reads cleaner.
If you are choosing between two tops, take the darker, plainer one. If the white blouse is what you are wearing, the photo can still pass every check — this is about the picture looking right, not about compliance.
Glasses, jewelry, makeup, and hair in a passport photo
Eyeglasses come off. They have been banned in US passport photos since November 1, 2016, and there is no thin-frames carve-out — the one exception is rare and medical, where the glasses cannot be removed and a doctor’s statement says so.
Jewelry stays, on one condition: it must hide no part of your face. Earrings, necklaces, nose studs, other piercings — all fine. Makeup is fine too. Headphones and wireless earpieces are not — take them out before the shot.
Hair is advice rather than regulation: keep it off your face, so both eyes are clearly visible. A fringe hanging over one eye is the kind of small thing that turns a good photo into a retake.
Hats and head coverings in a passport photo: the two exceptions
Hats and caps come off — the baseball cap, the beanie, the sun hat all disqualify the photo, whatever they leave visible. Two exceptions exist, and both are narrow.
Daily religious wear can stay on. A hijab, turban, or any covering you wear every day for religious reasons is allowed — provided your full face stays visible from the bottom of your chin to the top of your forehead, with no shadow from the covering falling across it. Expect paperwork: a signed statement can be required.
Documented medical reasons are the other exception — a covering you cannot remove for medical reasons is allowed with documentation behind it.
The passport photo dress code: a quick do and don’t list
The whole guide, compressed:
- Do: your normal everyday clothes — a plain t-shirt is as compliant as a suit.
- Do: a solid, mid-tone or darker top — navy, charcoal, forest green, burgundy. (Advice, not rule.)
- Do: everyday jewelry, makeup, piercings — as long as nothing hides any part of your face.
- Do: hair off the face, so both eyes are clearly visible.
- Don’t: uniforms, anything that could be mistaken for a uniform, camouflage.
- Don’t: hats or caps — the only exceptions are daily religious wear (full face visible, chin to forehead) and documented medical reasons.
- Don’t: eyeglasses — banned since November 1, 2016 — or headphones and earpieces.
- Think twice: a white or very pale top. Legal, but it can vanish into a background of Plain white or off-white.
Wearing something borderline — a work polo that might read as a uniform, a pale shirt, a covering you want confirmed? A list can only take you so far; the finished photo settles it. Upload the shot and you see exactly that, free: background replaced with pure white, head cropped to 50–69% of the photo's height (1 to 1⅜ in / 25–35 mm), and the full check report alongside it. A top that might blend into the background stops being a guess when you are looking at the result.
Upload a selfie — see it pass free
See your finished photo and its full check report free · download it for $16.99at CVS; ours is $9 · refunded if the government rejects it