Taking Your Own Passport Photo at Home

How to take an upload-ready photo with your own phone for Indian passport applications abroad, OCI, the e-Visa and other Indian forms.

Based on official sources · last checked

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Quick answer

Can I take my Indian passport photo at home?

Yes, for uploads such as Global Passport Seva 2.0, OCI and e-Visa applications. Ask someone to photograph you from 1.5 metres in even light against a plain white wall, with glasses off, eyes open and mouth closed, then crop it to the size the portal asks for, such as 630 × 810 pixels.

You can take an upload-ready photo at home with a phone. Ask someone to stand about 1.5 metres away, stand in front of a plain white wall in even daylight, take glasses off, keep your eyes open and mouth closed, then crop so your face fills 80–85% of the frame and save it at the size your portal asks for, such as 630 × 810 pixels under 250 KB for passports abroad.

These tips follow the ICAO guidelines and error messages on the Global Passport Seva portal, the Embassy of India in Paris' practical guide to uploading a photo, and the e-Visa and OCI photo rules.

Set up the shot

Do

  • Stand in front of a plain white wall, a little away from it so no shadow falls on it
  • Face a window so soft daylight lights your face evenly
  • Have someone hold the phone at your eye level, about 1.5 metres away
  • Wear clothes that contrast with white and keep hair away from your eyes

Don't

  • Use the flash, which causes glare, shadows and red eye
  • Stand with a window or lamp behind you
  • Take a selfie at arm's length
  • Use portrait mode, beauty filters or zoom

No helper? Use the timer

Prop the phone on a shelf or stack of books at eye level about 1.5 metres away and use the self-timer or a voice shutter. Take several shots and keep the sharpest one with your eyes fully open.

Pose and expression

  • Look straight at the lens, with your head level, not tilted or turned.
  • Natural expression, mouth closed. The passport portal flags an open mouth.
  • Eyes open and clearly visible, with no hair across them.
  • Glasses off. The missions' ICAO guidelines ask you to remove them to avoid reflections, and the e-Visa photo must be without spectacles.
  • Head coverings only for religious reasons, with your face visible from chin to forehead and both edges showing.

Crop and save for each portal

Passport abroad (GPSP 2.0) 630 × 810 px colour JPG, up to 250 KB, white background, face 80–85%
Child under 4 (print, India) 4.5 × 3.5 cm colour print, white background
India e-Visa Square JPEG, 10 KB–1 MB, plain light or white background, no spectacles
OCI card Square, 200 × 200 to 900 × 900 px, JPEG up to 200 KB, plain light background
e-FRRO JPG up to 1 MB, 3.5 × 3.5 or 3.5 × 4.5 cm, no edits

Signature uploads are separate: sign in black or dark blue ink on plain white paper, as the Paris guide suggests, then crop so the signature fills most of the box.

Make my photo

Sample photos

Correct photo example
Correct
Rejected photo example: close-up selfie
Close-up selfie
Rejected photo example: shadows on face
Shadows on face
Rejected photo example: glare on glasses
Glare on glasses

How to take an ICAO passport photo at home

  1. Find a white wall and soft light. Stand a little in front of a plain white wall, facing a window, with the flash and filters switched off.
    A man stands a little in front of a plain white wall while a friend photographs him with a phone held at eye level
    A little in front of a plain white wall
    A man faces a large window so soft daylight falls evenly on his face, with a white wall behind him
    Facing a window, flash off
  2. Have someone take it from 1.5 metres. The helper holds the phone at your eye level. Take your glasses off, look straight at the lens, eyes open, mouth closed.
    A helper holds a phone upright at eye level about 1.5 metres from a man standing in front of a white wall
    Phone at eye level, about 1.5 metres away
    Rejected photo example: wearing glasses
    Glasses on
    Rejected photo example: close-up selfie
    Selfie
  3. Crop to the right size. Crop so the face, from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin, fills about 80–85% of the frame, then resize to the portal's size, such as 630 × 810 pixels.
    A man photographed from the waist up in front of a white wall, before the photo is cropped
    Straight from the camera
    Correct photo example
    Face fills about 80–85%
  4. Save and check the file. Save as a JPG within the portal's KB limit, compare it with the sample photos, and retake it if anything fails. If the file is not a JPG, such as a HEIC photo from an iPhone, convert it with the free 123PhotoTool JPEG converter.

Taking your own photo: FAQ

It is better not to. The Global Passport Seva portal's error messages say you need to stand about 1.5 metres from the camera, and a selfie at arm's length is too close and distorts your face. Ask someone to take it, or use a timer with the phone on a stand.

Only for a child under 4, who brings a 4.5 × 3.5 cm photo with a white background. Adults and children aged 4 and over are photographed at the PSK or POPSK.

It depends on the application: 630 × 810 pixels for Indian passports through missions abroad, a square of 200 × 200 to 900 × 900 pixels for OCI, a square JPEG of 10 KB to 1 MB for the e-Visa. See the India photo size chart.

The passport portal and the e-FRRO portal ask for unaltered photos, although some missions, such as Bern and Paris, allow you to make the background white. A plain white wall avoids the question. Never change your face, skin or features.

Any photo shop or studio can print a JPG at 4.5 × 3.5 cm on photo paper. Ask for a colour print and check the size with a ruler before you leave.

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Official sources

Last checked . Requirements and fees can change, so always confirm with the issuing agency before you apply. This site is independent and not affiliated with any government agency.