New Zealand passport photo requirements
A New Zealand passport photo is a colour JPEG in a 3:4 shape, 900 to 4500 pixels wide and 1200 to 6000 high, between 250KB and 5MB. Drop a photo here and it comes out at 900 by 1200, with the file size in range. A photo from your own device is allowed.
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What the authority specifies
- Photo size
- 900 x 1200 to 4500 x 6000 pixels
- Background
- plain light-coloured
- File size
- 250 KB to 5 MB
- Source
- www.passports.govt.nz
- 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?
New Zealand is one of the few countries that tells you to take your own photo if you like, as long as someone else takes it. Selfies are rejected, and so are scans of printed photos.
The page even suggests stepping back, taking a wider shot and cropping it to the right head size. That is what this tool does.
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 publishes pixels directly, because the photo is uploaded rather than printed, so no resolution was needed and the pixel figure above is the authority's own.
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 New Zealand passport photo in pixels?
Anything from 900 by 1200 to 4500 by 6000 pixels, as long as the shape is 3:4. The file must be a JPEG between 250KB and 5MB.
This tool starts at 900 by 1200, the smallest size the range allows.
Can I take my own passport photo in New Zealand?
Yes. The passport office says you can use a photo service or your own device. Someone else has to take it, because selfies are rejected.
They should stand about 1.5 metres away, at your eye level, with you half a metre in front of a plain light wall.
Why does my photo need to be at least 250KB?
The passport office sets a minimum as well as a maximum. If the file comes out under 250KB, this tool raises the quality until it clears, and the meter says which quality it used.
It reads 250KB as 250,000 bytes. For a margin, set 1200 by 1600: our three test photos then came out between 259KB and 368KB on the meter.
Can I edit my passport photo?
Cropping to the right head size is fine: the passport office suggests it. What it forbids is editing how you look, with filters, retouching or AI tools.
This tool crops, resizes and saves a JPEG, and changes nothing about your face.
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