Schengen Visa Photo: Size, Background & Online Maker
Schengen visa photo maker: crop to 35×45 mm and replace the background in one click. Upload any photo, free preview, no signup.
Make a Schengen visa photo online
Upload any portrait — the Schengen 35×45 mm preset is already selected. Free preview, no signup.
This tool only replaces the background with a solid colour and crops and resizes the photo — it never retouches, reshapes or regenerates your face. Whether any editing is allowed is decided by the authority you apply to, and the answer differs by country. Always confirm the current rules with the agency you are applying to before you submit.
| Photo size | 35 × 45 mm |
|---|---|
| Head size | Face width 16–20 mm (ear to ear); face length from chin to crown 26–30 mm for ages 11 and over, 19–30 mm for ages 10 and under. |
| Background | Plain, even light grey, light blue or white, with enough contrast against the head. Some missions ask for white — check the checklist of the mission you submit to. |
| Digital file | Colour, printed at 400 dpi, unaltered by computer software. |
| How it is submitted | German missions ask for two biometric photos with the visa application; the number is set by the mission you submit to. |
| Photo age | Not older than six months when you submit. |
Can the photo be edited?
No — editing the photo is prohibited
“…unaltered by computer software.” — the Dutch government photo requirements, which Schengen visa checklists (e.g. VFS Netherlands) point to as the reference.
No competitor publishes this, and it decides whether a tool like ours is usable at all for your application. The quote below is the official text.
Most common reasons for rejection
- •The reference requirements state the photo must be “unaltered by computer software” — a background swap is still an alteration, and whether the receiving mission accepts it is that mission’s decision, not ours.
- •Head bare; a head covering is allowed only for religious reasons and only if plain and of a single colour. Glasses: eyes fully visible, lenses transparent, no reflections.
- •Background rules differ by mission: German missions ask for white, while France forbids white for its passport photos — the checklist of the mission handling your application wins.
Official source: Netherlands Worldwide — photo requirements
Last checked by us:
This page states what the official source says. It is not legal advice and rules change — check the source link before you submit.
Schengen visa photo size
The Schengen visa photo is 35×45 mm (width × height) — the biometric passport format used across Europe. Schengen has no single photo authority, so the practical reference is the Dutch government’s photo requirements, which the visa checklists of application centres such as VFS point to (the Netherlands checklist states the photo “meets Dutch passport requirements”). German missions state the same format as 45×35 mm and ask for two biometric photos.
On the 35×45 mm print the face must be 16–20 mm wide, measured ear to ear. The face length from chin to crown must be 26–30 mm for applicants aged 11 and over, and 19–30 mm for children aged 10 and under. The photo must be in colour, printed at 400 dpi, and no more than six months old when you submit.
In the tool above, the “Schengen visa — 35×45 mm” preset is pre-selected, so the crop is already the right shape. Head width and length still depend on how your original is framed — leave some space around your head when you take the photo.
Schengen visa photo background color
The Dutch reference requirements accept a plain, even background in light grey, light blue or white, with enough contrast against your head and no shadows. German missions are stricter on paper: their visa document checklist asks for a white background specifically.
Whether white is safe therefore depends on which mission handles your application. France is the cautionary case in the opposite direction: for French passport photos a white background is forbidden outright — light blue or light grey instead (see our France page, checked against the official Service-Public page). For a Schengen visa, read the checklist of the embassy or application centre you will actually submit to, and pick that colour in the tool above.
Requirements checklist: clothes, glasses, expression
From the Dutch government photo requirements — the reference the Schengen visa checklists point to — checked by us on 2026-10-14:
- •Head bare and facing straight, eyes level — no tilt, no turned shoulders.
- •A head covering is allowed only for religious reasons, and only if it is plain and of a single colour.
- •Glasses: the eyes must be fully visible, the lenses transparent and free of reflections.
- •Neutral expression, mouth closed, looking straight at the camera.
- •Even lighting, with no shadows on the face or the background.
- •Colour photo, no more than six months old, printed at 400 dpi, and “unaltered by computer software”.
- •Clothes: the official page sets no dress code at all — no rule about uniforms, collars or colours. Wear what you would normally wear.
The last point surprises people because many photo guides invent a dress code. We checked the source: it simply does not mention clothing.
Does it differ by country — and what about VFS?
VFS Global is a collection centre, not a rule-maker: it receives your application and checks it against the destination country’s requirements. Its photo checklists point back to those official rules — the Netherlands checklist, for example, states the photo “meets Dutch passport requirements”. So the answer to “the VFS photo size” is: the photo size of the country you are applying to.
The 35×45 mm size itself is shared across Schengen. What differs is the background colour and how strictly editing is viewed: German missions ask for a white background and two biometric photos, while some national rules reject white outright. If the checklist your mission publishes conflicts with anything you read anywhere else — including this page — the checklist wins.
Preset to pick in the tool: Schengen visa — 35×45 mm