Have you ever been bothered by the need to take passport photos or other size photos in your life?
In my life, besides taking passport photos, there have been many other occasions where I needed photos in different sizes. For example, I have needed to provide headshots, resume photos, or full-body photos for applications to schools or jobs. Every time, I would have to take new photos, print them out, or crop them, which was really troublesome.
One time, I needed to provide a 2-inch by 2-inch headshot for an international exchange program application. I thought it would be easy to take the photo, but when I went to the photo studio, I realized my hair was too long and didn’t meet the requirements. I ended up spending a whole day getting my hair cut to meet the standards and taking a new photo at the studio. That day, I felt like I wasted too much time on such trivial matters.
Now, to avoid these troubles, I often take photos at home and use online photo editing tools to crop and adjust them. This not only saves time and effort but also ensures the quality of the photos and meets different size requirements, it is a great solution compared to my previous troubles.
Next I will talk about how and why I made an Indian passport photo in several aspects
1. Indian passport is becoming more powerful
The Indian passport, a document that provides international travel convenience for Indian citizens, has wide recognition and use around the world. Recently, Indian officials announced that holders of Indian passports can enter many countries and regions without a visa or with a visa on arrival, enjoying the convenience of free travel.
As a developing country, India has good diplomatic relations and trade links with many countries, which makes the Indian passport respected and recognized around the world. According to the global passport ranking, the Indian passport is ranked 67th, allowing holders to travel and work freely in many countries. This gives Indian passport holders access to a wide range of travel and job opportunities, gaining more development opportunities and experience.
Overall, holders of Indian passports can enjoy extensive international travel convenience and freedom, making the Indian passport very useful in India and the international community. As India’s economy and diplomacy continue to develop, the status and influence of the Indian passport are also increasing.
By opening the Passport Index website, you can find all information about the Indian passport: According to the Henley Passport Index, India has a score of 70, and the following are the ways and number of countries Indian passport holders can visit: visa-free (21), eVisa (47), pre-enrollment (2). For all other destination countries, a visa needs to be applied for in advance.
Here are the details and the number of days you can stay：
| Asia | Africa | North America | South America | Oceania | |
| visa-free | Bhutan (14 d.) Kazakhstan (14 d.) Macao(30 d.) Nepal Palestinian Territories | Gambia (90 d.) Cambodia Mauritius Senegal (90 d.) | Barbados (90 d.) Dominica (180 d.) El Salvador(90 d.) Grenada (90 d.) Haiti (90 d.) St. Vincent and the Grenadines (90 d.) | Saint Kitts and Nevis (90 d.) Suriname (90 d.) Trinidad and Tobago (90 d.) | Fiji(120 d.) Micronesia Vanuatu (30 d.) |
| eVisa | Armenia(120 d.) Azerbaijan (30 d.) Cambodia (30 d.) Iran (30 d.) Malaysia (30 d.) Thailand (30 d.) Uzbekistan (30 d.) Viet Nam (30 d.) | Congo/Dem. Rep.(90 d.) Djibouti Ethiopia (90 d.) Gabon (90 d.) Guinea-Bissau (90 d.) Kenya (90 d.) Lesotho (14 d.) Malawi (90 d.) Seychelles (90 d.) South Sudan Tanzania Uganda | Bolivia(90-days) | Guinea (90 d.) Papua New Guinea (30 d.) | |
| pre-visa on arrival | Jordan Laos (30 d.) Maldives (30 d.) Mongolia (30 d.) Qatar (30 d.) Timor-Leste (30 d.) | Angola Burundi (30 d.) Cape Verde (EASE) Comoros (45 d.) Madagascar (90 d.) Mauritania Nigeria Rwanda (30days) Sierra Leone (30 d.) Somalia (30 d.) Zimbabwe (90 d.) | Saint Lucia (42 d.) | Indonesia (30 d.) Marshall Islands (90 d.) Samoa (90 d.) Tuvalu (30 d.) | |
| pre-enrollment | Sri Lanka (30 d.) | Cote d’Ivoire/Ivory Coast(90 d.) |
2. Indian passport photo requirements
The requirements are similar from country to country, but there are some nuances regarding size, clothing, and background. Here are the most specific requirements for Indian passport photos (पासपोर्ट / वीजा फोटो आवश्यकताएँ और आकार), from the official government website.
- The photograph should be in colour and of the size of 2 inch x 2 inch (51 mm x 51 mm).
- The photo‐print should be clear and with a continuous‐tone quality.
- It should have full face, front view, eyes open.
- Photo should present full head from top of hair to bottom of chin.
- Center head within frame.
- The background should be a plain white or off‐white.
- There should not be any distracting shadows on the face or on the background.
- Head coverings are not permitted except for religious reasons, but the facial
- features from bottom of chin to top of forehead and both edges of the face must be
- clearly shown.
- The expression on the face should look natural
3. Create passport photos using the app
1. Click on the download link (Apple Store/ Google Play), install
2. Open the app
3. Click the “True Me” button to take a selfie or upload an existing photo from an album
4. You can choose as needed
a. Different photo background colors (white/transparent, blue, gray)
b. Different dress (male/female/child, suit, shirt, tie)
c. Different paper sizes (one photo, four photos, six photos)
5. Without changing any clothes, you can get a satisfactory official ID photo (Indian male/female passport size photo), see the result
A perfectly conforming Indian passport photo is complete.
This app is completely free, and it is very convenient to use with a cell phone nearby. But if you have more time you can also try the online passport size photo maker to handle more details.
4. Other size photos
Here are some other common ID photo size requirements (including passport photos)
India Passport / VISA / OCI: 51×51 mm (2×2 inch)
India driving licence: 35×45 mm (1.4×1.75 inch)
Indian Voter ID card: 51×51 mm (2×2 inch)
India PAN Card: 25×35 mm
Indian Aadhar card: 4.41×12.91 cms
It should be noted that different documents may have different photo requirements, so it is best to check the specific requirements of local agencies before applying for documents.
To learn more about passport and document size photo requirements for other countries, please read this article.
