Schengen Visa Photo (35 × 45 mm)
Crop your photo to the 35 × 45 mm format used by all 26 Schengen countries, with a guide for face size.
Drop a photo here
or click to browse — a straight-on head-and-shoulders shot works best
Your photo is processed on your device and never uploaded.
Schengen visa photo rules. 35 × 45 mm. The face should fill roughly 70% to 80% of the frame, measured from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head. Background: plain light grey or off-white. Photo must be taken within the last 6 months.
- The same 35 × 45 mm format is used by all 26 Schengen states.
- Neutral expression, mouth closed, looking straight at the camera.
- Individual consulates can add their own rules — check the one you are applying to.
This tool crops and sizes your photo correctly. It cannot judge your expression, lighting or shadows, and it does not guarantee acceptance — check the official rules at Schengen common visa photo standard (ICAO) before you submit.
How it works
- Drop in a straight-on photo taken against a plain light background.
- Drag and zoom until your face fills roughly 70–80% of the frame, between the blue guides.
- Download the photo, or the 6×4 print sheet if the consulate wants physical prints.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the photo size the same for every Schengen country?
- Yes — all 26 Schengen states use the same 35 × 45 mm format, so one photo works whether you are applying through France, Germany, Spain, Italy or any other member. What can differ is the paperwork around it: individual consulates sometimes add their own instructions about background shade, prints required or how recent the photo must be, so read the page of the consulate you are applying to.
- How much of the frame should my face fill?
- Roughly 70% to 80%, measured from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head. That is proportionally larger than a US passport photo, where the head occupies 50–69% of a square frame, so a US photo cropped to 35 × 45 mm will usually have the head too small. The guides here mark the Schengen band.
- Is a Schengen visa photo the same as a UK passport photo?
- The dimensions are identical at 35 × 45 mm, but the rules around them are not. UK passport photos require a neutral expression with the mouth closed, a cream or light grey background and a photo taken within the last month. Schengen consulates are generally satisfied with a plain light background and a photo from the last six months. The crop is interchangeable; the compliance is not.
- What background should I use?
- Plain and light — light grey or off-white, uniform, with no shadow falling on it. Avoid white walls lit from one side, since the shadow gradient reads as a patterned background. Stand a step or two away from the wall and use even, indirect light.
- Does this guarantee my visa photo will be accepted?
- No. It handles the measurable part — the 35 × 45 mm crop and face proportion — correctly. It cannot assess lighting, shadows, expression or background uniformity, and consulates apply their own judgement. Poor photos are a common cause of application delays, so compare yours against the consulate’s published examples before submitting.
About this tool
All 26 Schengen states share one photo format: 35 × 45 mm, with the face filling roughly 70 to 80 percent of the frame. That makes a single correctly prepared photo usable across the whole area, whichever country you apply through — but it also means a photo prepared for a different country is usually wrong, because the face proportion differs even when the paper size happens to match.
The clearest example is a US passport photo. It is square and the head occupies 50 to 69 percent of the height; crop that same image to 35 × 45 mm and your head ends up noticeably too small for Schengen requirements. The guides in this tool mark the Schengen band specifically, so you can position the crop against the right target rather than assuming an existing photo will do.
Background matters more than most people expect. The requirement is a plain, uniformly lit light background — light grey or off-white. The common failure is standing close to a white wall with light from one side, which produces a soft shadow gradient that reads as a patterned background. Step away from the wall and use even, indirect light; if your background is genuinely unusable, replace it before cropping rather than hoping it passes.
One caveat worth stating: the format is standard but consulates are not identical in how they apply it, and some add their own instructions about print counts or how recent the photo must be. This tool gets the dimensions and proportions right — which is the objectively checkable part — and cannot judge expression, lighting or shadow. Everything runs locally in your browser, so your photograph is never uploaded.