Compliant Italy passport example (35 × 45 mm)
- Face centred, looking directly into the lens
- Plain background — no shadow, pattern or texture
- Neutral expression, eyes open, mouth closed
- No glasses, no hair across the face
Quick answer: A Italy passport photo must be 35 × 45 mm with ровный однотонный фон без теней. Head occupies 71–78% of photo height. Neutral expression, see glasses rule. Last verified .
No registration · result in 60 seconds
| Format | 35 × 45 mm |
|---|---|
| Head height | 71–78% of photo heightICAO 9303: 70–80% |
| Background | Ровный однотонный фон без теней. |
| Pose | Анфас, без заметного наклона; лицо направлено в объектив. |
| Expression | Neutral expression, mouth closed, eyes open. |
| Glasses | Глаза должны быть полностью видимы без сильных бликов. See full rules → |
| Lighting | Без резких теней и пересветов. |
| Attire | Сохранять исходную одежду и видимую линию плеч. |
| Digital resolution | Check the authority portal before digital upload |
| 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 | 36 (6 × 6) |
Print at 100% scale, borderless, and turn off fit-to-page so each photo keeps its exact size.
Italy passport photos go through two sequential checks. First, a human reviewer confirms physical dimensions, background and general composition. Second, an automated biometric face-match system compares the submitted image against the ICAO 9303 template — the international standard used in chip-based passports worldwide. The automated layer catches what human eyes often miss: head tilts below five degrees, eye-line offsets of a few pixels, and uneven shoulder positioning that throws off the centring algorithm.
The passport photo is embedded digitally into the travel document and stays bound to it for the full validity period — typically five or ten years depending on the applicant's age. A photo that barely passes at submission tends to produce poor biometric match scores during border-control checks years later, leading to secondary screening. Submission routes that print directly into the booklet require higher digital resolution than routes that scan a printed copy, because no interpolation can recover detail that was never captured.
| Authority | Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale |
|---|---|
| Source | Italian passport photograph requirements: 35 x 45 mm, 32-35 mm head |
| Verified | |
| Confidence | Official — exact |
One compliant example next to the six most common rejection causes for Italy passport applications. The final decision always belongs to Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale, 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 35 × 45 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.
Глаза должны быть полностью видимы без сильных бликов 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.
The required background is Ровный однотонный фон без теней. 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 Italy 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.
The Italy passport photo must be 35 × 45 mm. The head must occupy 71–78% of the photo height.
Ровный однотонный фон без теней. 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 Italy 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 Italy authority and you supply the official rejection notice. See the refund policy page for the exact process.
Глаза должны быть полностью видимы без сильных бликов. 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.