Quick answer: A Finland passport photo must be 36 × 47 mm with plain light neutral background without shadows. Head occupies 68–77% of photo height (32–36 mm chin to crown). Neutral expression, glasses allowed with conditions. Last verified .
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| Format | 36 × 47 mmICAO 9303: 35 × 45 mm |
|---|---|
| Head height | 68–77% of photo heightICAO 9303: 70–80% |
| Head height (mm) | 32–36 mm chin to crown |
| Background | Plain light neutral background without shadows. |
| Pose | Head straight, no tilt, face and eyes directed directly into the camera. |
| Expression | Neutral expression, mouth closed, eyes open and clearly visible. |
| Glasses | Glasses must not cover the eyes; tinted lenses permitted only for medical reasons. See full rules → |
| Lighting | Even lighting without shadows on face and background, no red eyes. |
| Head covering | Religious, traditional, or medical reasons only; must not cast shadows on the face. |
| Attire | Neutral clothing without uniform or distracting accessories. |
| Digital resolution | 500 × 653 px |
| File format | JPEG · sRGB / 24-bit |
| File size | Check the authority portal before upload |
| 10 × 15 cm · 4×6″ | 8 (4 × 2) |
|---|---|
| A4 · 21 × 29.7 cm | 32 (4 × 8) |
Print at 100% scale, borderless, and turn off fit-to-page so each photo keeps its exact size.
Finland passport photos are administered by the Finnish Police (Poliisi) and exist in two legally separate formats. The printed photo is 36×47mm — a UNIQUE non-standard Finnish size (not the ICAO 35×45mm used by most countries) — and is used only when applying at a police service point.
The electronic photo sent to the police photograph server must be exactly 500×653 pixels: the official police instructions state that deviations as small as one pixel are not accepted. The electronic file must be JPEG (not JPEG2000) and no larger than 250 kilobytes.
Millimetre dimensions apply only to paper photos and pixel dimensions only to the photograph server — the two modes must not be mixed. Head 32-36mm (445-500px) crown-to-chin, hair excluded; the same limits apply to all ages.
CRITICAL FINNISH WORKFLOW: a photography studio normally sends the photo to the police ELECTRONICALLY; you then receive a photograph retrieval code (kuvatunnus) by text message or email and enter it in the online application. Uploading your own photo to the photograph server is possible, but the police explicitly do not recommend it — many self-uploads are rejected, typically for uneven lighting or the optical distortion of phone wide-angle lenses — and photos are only evaluated when the application is processed, not at upload.
Manipulation that changes even the smallest detail of appearance is forbidden, including 'digital make-up'. Glasses are allowed only if the frames stay clear of the eyes with no reflections; tinted lenses are for medical reasons only.
Photo within last 6 months — and if your previous passport or ID card was issued recently with a photo under six months old, the police reuse it automatically.
| Authority | Finnish Police / Finland Abroad |
|---|---|
| Source | Finnish passport photograph instructions |
| Verified | |
| Confidence | Official — exact |
One compliant example next to the six most common rejection causes for Finland passport applications. The final decision always belongs to Finnish Police / Finland Abroad, but these are the differences that most often determine whether a document photo is accepted.
Upload a portrait — the tool crops, removes the background and checks compliance against the 36 × 47 mm rule automatically.
Use a blank white wall or tape a white bedsheet flat — avoid creases. Stand at least 50 cm from the surface so your shadow does not fall onto it. Patterned wallpaper or any textured surface creates a gradient that fails the automated background check, even if it looks white to the eye.
Face a large window during daylight hours. Even, frontal, diffused natural light produces the cleanest indoor result. Never use on-camera flash — it creates hard shadows on the background and washes out facial geometry. Turn off any coloured indoor light sources.
Extend your chin slightly forward and downward — this elongates the neck and sharpens the jawline. Keep your head level: the camera must be exactly at eye height. Tilting up or down distorts the biometric head-height ratio.
Keep both shoulders square to the camera. Passport standards require a straight-on stance — turned shoulders shift the perceived centre of the face and will cause the automated alignment check to fail.
Glasses must not cover the eyes; tinted lenses permitted only for medical reasons In practice, the biometric scanner flags even minor glare invisible to the naked eye. Removing glasses before shooting is the only option that eliminates the risk entirely.
Look directly into the lens. Keep a completely neutral expression — no smile, raised eyebrows or squinting. Mouth closed and relaxed. Biometric matching calibrates against the neutral reference stored in the passport chip; any muscular movement lowers the match confidence score.
Avoid white or very light tops — they merge with the white background and make the shoulder outline hard to detect. Deep solid tones work best: navy, dark teal, burgundy or charcoal. No uniforms, hats or accessories that cover the face or neck.
Groom your beard one or two days before shooting — a freshly trimmed beard photographs with the cleanest edge definition. If shaving completely, do so the morning of the shoot and apply a calming balm to reduce redness, which can alter the skin-tone map used by background removal.
Finnish Police / Finland Abroad publishes the following rejection codes. Knowing the exact code on your notice tells you precisely what to fix in the reshoot.
| Code | Reason | Fix |
|---|---|---|
FI-PS-01 |
Photo 35×45mm (Finland uses UNIQUE 36×47) | Reprint at Finnish-specific size |
FI-PS-02 |
Glasses frames covering the eyes, reflections on lenses, or tinted lenses without a medical reason | Re-shoot with frames clear of the eyes and no reflections — or simply take the glasses off |
FI-PS-03 |
Photo blurry or out of focus | Re-shoot in higher quality |
FI-PS-04 |
Photo older than 6 months | Re-shoot |
The required background is Plain light neutral background without shadows. Even a slightly off-white, grey or cream tone may fail the automated colour check used by passport submission systems. Shadows from the subject onto the wall behind them are the most common cause of this rejection.
The head must be straight and centred. A tilt of even 3–5 degrees is flagged by the ICAO face-alignment algorithm used in Finland passport biometric verification. Place the camera at exactly eye level and centre your face horizontally.
Both eyes must be fully visible and clearly open. Glasses glare, a fringe across one eye, or a shadow from overhead lighting across the eye area are automatic rejection triggers in the biometric check.
Biometric matching calibrates against a neutral reference stored in the passport chip. A smile or even a slightly parted mouth shifts facial geometry and lowers the match confidence score, causing the application to be returned.
The digital file must be at minimum 600 × 600 px and free of motion blur or JPEG compression artefacts. Overexposed highlights on the forehead or cheeks erase facial geometry the biometric scanner needs to read.
Most passport authorities require a recent photo taken within the last six months. Even if your appearance has not changed, the application is delayed until a new photo is provided.
The head must occupy the specified percentage of the photo height (see the spec table above). Too close (face fills the frame) or too far (head appears small) both fail at the automated dimension check.
Yes, but the police advise against it. The normal Finnish route is that a photography studio sends your photo straight to the police photograph server; you then receive a photograph retrieval code (kuvatunnus) by text message or email and enter it in your online application. You may upload your own photo to the photograph server instead, but the police state they do not recommend this because many self-uploaded photos have to be rejected — typically for uneven lighting or the optical distortion caused by phone wide-angle lenses — and photos are only evaluated when your application is processed, not at upload.
Both exist, but they are two separate submission modes that must not be mixed. The 36×47 mm print size applies only to paper photos handed in at a police service point; the 500×653 pixel size applies only to electronic photos sent to the police photograph server — and it must be exact, because deviations of even one pixel are not accepted. The electronic file must also be a JPEG of 250 kilobytes or less.
The Finland passport photo must be 36 × 47 mm. The head must occupy 68–77% of the photo height. For digital upload, use 500 × 653 px.
Plain light neutral background without shadows. No gradients, textures, shadows or objects behind the subject are permitted. The tool removes background shadows automatically, but starting with a flat, evenly lit wall gives the best result.
Yes. Stand in front of a flat white wall in good natural light, face the light source and use the rear camera of your phone with a 3-second timer. The tool handles the crop, background normalisation and compliance check against the Finland biometric standard.
Most passport authorities require the photo to be taken within the last six months. Do not reuse an older portrait even if your appearance has not changed — many submission systems check the photo timestamp against the application date.
Anfas.Pro provides a 14-day full refund if the photo is rejected by the Finland authority and you supply the official rejection notice. See the refund policy page for the exact process.
Glasses must not cover the eyes; tinted lenses permitted only for medical reasons. In practice, the biometric scanner at submission points flags even minor lens glare that looks fine to the naked eye. Removing glasses before shooting is the only option that eliminates the risk entirely.
Anfas.Pro is an independent tool and is not affiliated with any government authority. The final decision to accept or reject a document photo rests solely with the issuing authority. Requirements change — always verify on the official authority portal before submitting.