There is nothing more frustrating than having taken time off work to arrange your passport or visa application, only to find you have to go through the whole process again because your photos have been rejected

General Guidelines including some hidden rules for successful passport pictures

• Make sure that the physical dimensions or the photo and head size is accurate for your country
• Ensure that the background colour specified for your country is also acceptable
• Passport and Visa photos produced from scanned pictures will never be accepted
• Excessive makeup and jewelry are common grounds for rejecting photos
• Many countries will not accept pictures of people in uniform
• As a general rule it is wise to look as smart and as respectable as you can
• Our best advice for people who wear glasses - ALWAYS take them off
• Always wear something over your shoulders - otherwise you will look naked - Not Good
• Showing your teeth or smiling is unacceptable - because it distorts the face
• All countries state that a natural expression is necessary - however you don't have to look like you are at the dentist !
• Some people have BIG hair - our advice is not to let it go outside the edge of the photo - tie it back
• Digital retouching to alter or enhance your facial features is forbidden
• Passport photos which are creased, have staple holes or otherwise marked in any way are unacceptable

No matter what size of passport you need, or what colour background is required, the guide below is representative of common faults which are unacceptable as passport and visa photos for all countries. See our guide on unacceptable Baby Passport and Visa Photos.