Germany visa photo size
A German visa photo is a 35 by 45 mm print, with the face 32 to 36 mm from chin to crown, printed at 600 dpi or more. You bring it to the appointment, even after applying online. The Foreign Office's guide prefers neutral grey, but the missions in India and London ask for white.
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What the authority specifies
- Photo size
- 45 mm by 35 mm
- Pixels at 600 DPI
- 827 x 1063
- Background
- one colour and bright, ideally neutral grey, contrasting with the face and hair
- File size
- No limit published
- Source
- digital.diplo.de
- Read at the source on
Each size on this page was read at the issuing authority's own website, not copied from another converter or from a search result.
The page it came from and the date it was read are printed above, so you can check the same source in one click.
Why this size?
Germany's visa photo rules come from two places, and they agree on everything except the colour behind you.
The Foreign Office's own sample photo guide, linked from its visa portal, asks for a bright background in one colour, ideally neutral grey.
Each mission also writes its own checklist. The India mission asks for a white background and a photo no older than six months. The London embassy asks for white or off-white, and no older than three months.
The mission you apply to decides your application, so follow its checklist wherever it differs from the guide.
Where the pixel figure comes from
Passport offices publish millimetres, not pixels, because the photograph is printed. Turning millimetres into pixels needs a resolution, and most authorities do not name one.
This one does. The resolution above is the authority's own published minimum, so the pixel figure is its requirement converted at the rate it names rather than at one this site picked.
The file you download records that resolution in its header, so a print dialog set to actual size uses it instead of guessing at 72 or 96 DPI and printing the photo several times too large.
That matters if you are uploading rather than printing.
An online form usually states its own pixel size or file size limit, and where an authority publishes one this page uses that instead of converting anything.
Check before you submit
Requirements change, and the only version that counts is the one on the authority's own page on the day you apply.
Every size here links to the page it came from and shows the date it was read. If that date looks old, spend a minute at the source before you print anything.
What happens to your photo?
Your selected photo is processed in your browser, without an image upload to a server. The page may download code and codecs needed for editing.
Save your result before closing the tab; unsaved edits are kept in memory rather than in an online account.
Common questions
What size is a German visa photo?
35 by 45 mm. That is the size drawn on the Foreign Office's sample photo guide, and the size the India, London and Yaounde mission checklists ask for.
The face should fill 70 to 80 percent of the height, 32 to 36 mm from chin to crown. The guide says to reject a photo only when the face is under 27 or over 40 mm.
Do I upload the photo in the Consular Services Portal?
No. The portal's own FAQ says to bring a biometric photo with you to the appointment at the mission.
The files you upload there are your supporting documents, as PDF, JPG or PNG, up to 10 MB each. At the appointment, the Foreign Office says, you also give your fingerprints and photo in person.
Should a German visa photo have a white or grey background?
The Foreign Office's guide asks for one bright colour, ideally neutral grey: medium grey for light hair, light grey for dark hair. The India mission asks for white, and London for white or off-white.
Follow the checklist of the mission you apply to. Where it names no colour, use the guide's grey.
How old can the photo be?
The India mission says no older than six months. The London embassy says no older than three months. The Foreign Office's guide gives no age at all.
A photo taken for this application meets every one of them.
What size is a German visa photo in pixels?
The guide asks for a print resolution of at least 600 dpi, so this tool makes 827 by 1063 pixels and writes 600 DPI into the file. Printed at 35 by 45 mm, that meets the guide.
This site's print sheet saves 300 DPI, below that figure, so print this single file instead.
Can a German visa photo be black and white?
Yes. The Foreign Office's guide says photos may be in black and white or in colour, and a colour photo must show natural skin tones.
None of the three mission checklists we read mentions colour either way.
Is a German visa photo the same as a German passport photo?
The size is the same, 35 by 45 mm. What differs is who makes it.
In Germany a passport photo is taken by the passport office or sent digitally by a registered provider, so you cannot bring your own. A visa photo is a print you bring yourself.
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