A US passport photo is 2×2 in (51×51 mm) · 600×600 to 1200×1200 pixels, square, head at 50–69% of the photo's height (1 to 1⅜ in / 25–35 mm), eyes 56–69% up from the bottom of the photo, background: Plain white or off-white. That's the whole specification, transcribed from the State Department's own requirements page — read it, check it at the source, then let the maker hit the numbers for you.
WHAT WE HAND YOU: 600×600 JPEG · 2×2 in at 300 dpi · pure white background
Make my photo → Free compliance check · download for $16.99at CVS; ours is $9.99 if it passes · refunded if the government rejects it
The specification
These are the numbers your photo is measured against, transcribed from Official US passport photo requirements (travel.state.gov) — verifiable at the source, which is linked under the table:
| Photo size | 2×2 in (51×51 mm) · 600×600 to 1200×1200 pixels, square |
|---|---|
| File size | 54 KB to 10 MB |
| Format | JPEG |
| Head height | 50–69% of the photo's height (1 to 1⅜ in / 25–35 mm) |
| Eye height | 56–69% up from the bottom of the photo |
| Background | Plain white or off-white |
Already have a photo? Check it against the spec — free
Applying as a family? Check the whole family's photos at once — the official requirements linked below ask for a photo of each applicant.
Who does what
Everything on the left is measurement and file work, which is what the maker is for. Everything on the right happens before the photo exists.
Make my photo →When Online Passport Renewal says no
The State Department’s online renewal flow at opr.travel.state.gov. The paper forms, DS-11 and DS-82, use a printed photo and separate rules.
When it appears. At the photo step of the online renewal application, right after you upload a file.
What it means. The uploader turned your photo down without saying which check it failed. It is a catch-all message. State’s own guidance says the system will tell you what to change; here it does not, so you are left guessing.
What to do. Change one thing at a time and upload again, rather than reshooting everything at once. Worth trying: a plainer white wall, even daylight with no shadow behind your head, more space between you and the wall, shoulders square to the camera. Upload the original camera file, not a texted copy.
When it appears. After you upload, when the application tries to save the photo to your form.
What it means. This is the portal failing, not your photo failing. Nothing about your file has been judged yet, so retaking it will not change the outcome.
What to do. Stop retaking photos. Check travel.state.gov for a service notice, then try again in a few hours or the next day. If it keeps happening only to you, try a different browser or a private window. The National Passport Information Center line is 877-487-2778.
The paper routes want a printed 2 x 2 in photo. Online renewal wants the opposite: a wider original its own tool crops. State tells online applicants the bottom of the frame sits at the edge of your shoulders.
What to do. Upload the wider original with your head and shoulders in frame, then use the crop control inside the application. Keep the tight 2 x 2 print for a paper form.
That tool tells you not to use it if you are renewing online. It is for cropping when you apply in person or by mail, and it only crops. It cannot tell you whether a photo will pass.
What to do. Upload the wider original with your head and shoulders in frame, and crop inside the renewal application instead.
The online renewal page tells you not to photograph a printed photo or scan a physical one to make a digital file. The paper routes take the print itself, so this failure exists only in the online route.
What to do. Ask whoever took the photo for the digital file, or take a fresh one on a phone. Move it by cable or cloud storage rather than by text message.
Software reads the wall before any person sees it. State’s own rejected example is a background with texture and lines, so panelling, a door frame, or a skirting board is enough to fail.
What to do. Use a flat stretch of plain white or off-white wall with nothing else in shot, or hang a white sheet flat. Stand two to three feet clear of it so your shadow falls behind you, not on it.
State publishes a rejected example where there is too much light on one side of the face and shadows on the other. A single overhead lamp or a window off to one side produces exactly that.
What to do. Face a window so daylight reaches you evenly from the front. Step out from under a single ceiling light, and keep the light on your face rather than on the wall.
Online renewal asks you to remove anything covering your face, eyeglasses included, unless you have a documented religious or medical reason. The upload flow has no step for sending an explanation with it.
What to do. Take the glasses off and do not rest them on your head. Remove any hat, badge, or lanyard, and clear your hair away from your eyes.
State says it checks all photos to make sure artificial intelligence tools were not used, and publishes an AI-made example that looks correct and is refused anyway. Uploading a file tempts you to edit; a print does not.
What to do. Submit the file as the camera saved it. No background removal, no skin smoothing, no beauty mode, no AI photo app. Fix the wall and the light in the room instead.
State publishes a rejected example of an applicant who is far away from the camera. Its framing rule for this route is that the bottom edge of the photo sits at the edge of your shoulders, where they meet your arms.
What to do. Move the camera closer and upload again. Keep the top of your head and the tops of your shoulders in shot so the crop control still has room to work.
Online renewal takes JPG, JPEG, PNG, HEIC or HEIF, between 54 KB and 10 MB. This failure exists only in the digital route, and a photo shop may hand you a PDF or only a print.
What to do. Check what you were actually given. If it is a PDF, ask for a JPEG. If the file is under 54 KB it has been compressed too hard, so export it again at higher quality from the original.
The online page is worded more tightly than the paper one. It asks for a neutral expression or a natural smile and says to avoid showing teeth. The paper page only asks that your eyes are open and your mouth is closed.
What to do. Keep a neutral expression or a closed-mouth smile, eyes open, looking straight at the camera.
Renewing tempts you to reuse a file you already have. State requires a colour photo taken within the last six months, and only the online route makes an old file this easy to send.
What to do. Take a new photo, even if your face has not changed since the last one. Use the original camera file, not a copy saved from a message.
The upload tool checks basic requirements only. An employee reviews the photo again after your application arrives, and State says unacceptable photos are the number one reason applications are put on hold.
What to do. Treat the green light as a file check, not approval. If a letter or email arrives asking for a new photo, follow its instructions and reply by the date it gives you.
Rejected by the portal? We refund you.
Email us with your order id and the full amount goes back to your card. No screenshots, no proof — just tell us it was rejected.
30 DAYS FROM PURCHASE · NO PROOF UPLOADS · EVERY MEASUREMENT CHECKED AGAINST THE PUBLISHED GOVERNMENT SPEC BEFORE YOU PAY
Questions
No. We're an independent service that makes and checks passport photos — not affiliated with the U.S. government or the State Department. Their own free photo requirements page is linked below if you'd rather do it yourself.
Both. Every order includes the 600×600 JPEG that the online passport-renewal upload accepts, and for the in-person or mail-in paper form you can add a print-ready 4×6 sheet of six 2×2 in photos at checkout. Print the sheet on photo-quality paper for the paper form, or upload the file for online renewal.
2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm) in print, and 600 x 600 to 1200 x 1200 pixels square for the online renewal upload.
Both. It crops your photo to the official 2 x 2 inch frame, resizes it to 600 x 600 pixels, and replaces the background with plain white — maker, editor and cropper in one step.
Yes, the same photo in different units. A 2 x 2 inch photo at 300 dpi is exactly 600 x 600 pixels, which is why the State Department's print and digital specs line up.
For the online upload, between 54 KB and 10 MB, in JPG, JPEG, PNG, HEIC or HEIF. Yours arrives as a JPEG.
50 to 69% of the photo height, which is 1 to 1 and 3/8 inches (25 to 35 mm) from chin to crown, with the eyes 56 to 69% up from the bottom.
The digital file comes with every order. Add the print-ready 4 x 6 sheet at checkout and it holds six 2 x 2 inch photos.
Yes. There is a separate family flow that covers up to 10 people in one session.
Taken within the last six months and reflecting your current appearance.
No. The compliance checker is free and measures your existing file as-is against the spec without altering it. You only pay for the finished, submit-ready file.
Yes. Lay your baby on their back on a plain white or light blanket and photograph from above in daylight, with no hands or other people in the frame. Upload the result and we crop it to 2 x 2 inches and replace the background with pure white. Tick "baby under 1" at upload and the check applies the official infant relaxations instead of the adult rules.
No — for babies under 1 the official rules allow eyes partially or fully closed and a relaxed expression, so a sleeping newborn can pass. Declare the baby at upload and we check against those infant allowances.
You won't be charged. We show you exactly which check failed and how to fix it — move closer, find better light, use a plainer background — so you can retake and try again for free.
We refund you. Email info@readyvisaphoto.com with your order id (it is in your receipt, and on the page your refund link opens) and tell us it was rejected — the full amount goes back to your original card. No screenshots, no forms, no proof. Covers 30 days from purchase.
It’s used only to run the checks, downloadable by you for 30 days, then deleted automatically. No account, no photo library, no reuse.
Your download link stays active for 30 days after purchase.