South African Passport Photo: requirements and cropper
Crop a photo to the official South Africa spec and check the head height as you go — free, and entirely in your browser.
Crop a photo to the South Africa spec
Drag the two markers. Put the blue one on the very top of the head — including hair — and the red one on the bottom of the chin. Every measurement below is calculated from that, because South Africa measures head height as 70–80% crown to chin, not the face.
Your photo
Result
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Full requirements
| Printed photo size | 35 × 45 mm (1.38 × 1.77 in) |
|---|---|
| Head height | 70–80% of image height |
| Background | Light grey or plain cream |
| How recent | Taken within the last month |
| Copies required | 2 |
| Glasses | The eyes must be clearly visible with no flash reflection. No dark-tinted lenses. Heavy frames should be avoided and frames may not cover any part of the eyes. |
| Head coverings | Not permitted except for religious reasons. When worn, facial features from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead and both edges of the face must be clearly shown. |
| Expression & pose | Neutral expression with the mouth closed, looking directly at the camera. No grinning, frowning or raised eyebrows. |
| Not published | digital dimensions, file size, file format, minimum resolution, children & infants — the official source does not state these, so nothing is shown rather than a number we made up. |
Source: Department of Home Affairs — Passport and ID Photograph Specifications — read 2026-07-26.
How to take and crop the photo
- Take or choose a photo shot straight on, from about arm's length or further, in even light with no shadow falling on the face or the wall behind it. Phone selfies taken close up distort the face and are a common rejection reason.
- Stand far enough from the wall that you cast no shadow on it. The background needs to be light grey or plain cream — the tool fills only the area outside your photo's edges, it does not replace the wall behind you.
- Drop the photo into the tool above. Nothing is uploaded; the file is read directly by your browser.
- Drag the blue marker to the very top of the head, including hair, and the red marker to the bottom of the chin. This is the measurement every official spec is written against.
- Check the head-height readout against the official 70–80% figure.
- Download the photo, or generate a print sheet if you need physical copies.
- South Africa asks for 2 identical prints. Use the print sheet option and cut along the guide lines — print at 100% scale so the millimetre sizes stay correct.
Why South Africa photos get rejected
Drawn from the official guidance rather than guesswork. Most rejections are not about dimensions at all:
- Photo more than one month old
- Background not light grey or cream
- Dark-tinted glasses or heavy frames covering the eyes
- Smiling or frowning rather than a neutral expression
- Head covering hiding the chin, forehead or edges of the face
- Ink marks, creases or physical damage
Background and other notes
A south african passport photo is 35 × 45 mm — about 1.38 × 1.77 inches. The head must fill 70–80% of the image height. The background must be light grey or plain cream. The photo must have been taken within the last month, which is stricter than most.
Two identical colour photographs are required for a passport; ID photos may be colour or black and white. Note the one-month recency window, which is far tighter than the six months most countries allow. The specification does not give head height in millimetres, only the 70–80% proportion, and does not cover the eHomeAffairs online upload spec.
File size and disclaimer
This is not official advice. img-fix is not affiliated with any government or immigration authority. The figures on this page were read from Department of Home Affairs — Passport and ID Photograph Specifications on 2026-07-26, and requirements change without notice. Check the official source before you submit.
South Africa photo questions
Is my photo uploaded anywhere?
No. The cropping, resizing and compressing all happen inside this page, using your browser's own image APIs. There is no server to upload to — the site is static files. Open your browser's network tab, use the tool, and you can watch nothing leave.
It also keeps working with your Wi-Fi switched off once the page has loaded.
What size is a south african passport photo?
35 × 45 mm (1.38 × 1.77 in), according to Department of Home Affairs — Passport and ID Photograph Specifications.
Can this tool change my background?
No, and that is deliberate. Background replacement means guessing where your hair ends, and the guess is visible — a halo or a chewed-up fringe is exactly the kind of artefact that gets a photo rejected as digitally altered. South Africa requires light grey or plain cream, so photograph yourself against a matching wall.
The fill colour setting only paints the area outside your photo's edges when the required crop is larger than the image you supplied.
How recent does the photo have to be?
Taken within the last month. Reusing the photo from your previous passport is a standard rejection reason.
Can I wear glasses?
The eyes must be clearly visible with no flash reflection. No dark-tinted lenses. Heavy frames should be avoided and frames may not cover any part of the eyes.
Are head coverings allowed?
Not permitted except for religious reasons. When worn, facial features from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead and both edges of the face must be clearly shown.
Will a photo from this tool definitely be accepted?
Nobody can promise that, and any site that does is selling you certainty it does not have. A photo is judged on framing, background, lighting, expression, sharpness and how recent it is. This tool handles the geometry and the file size precisely; the rest is down to how the photo was taken. The requirements here were read from Department of Home Affairs — Passport and ID Photograph Specifications on 2026-07-26 — check the source before you submit, because rules change.
Related specifications
Same print size — 35 × 45 mm
- French Passport & CNI Photo 35 × 45 mm · head 32–36 mm · plain light-coloured — light blue or light grey. white is explicitly not allowed.
- German Passport & ID Photo 35 × 45 mm · head 32–36 mm · solid
- Indian Passport Photo 35 × 45 mm · plain white
- Irish Passport Photo 35 × 45 mm · completely plain light grey · max 9 MB
- Italian Passport Photo 35 × 45 mm · head 70–80% · white
- Japanese Passport Photo 35 × 45 mm · head 32–36 mm · white is recommended; a plain light blue is also accepted
Comparing print sizes across every country in one place is easier on the passport photo size comparison page.