Germany's digital passport photo code: which documents need it and where paper stays

Digital reform: why Germany split its photo requirements

European background and the Passport Act

At the European level, there are security requirements for identity documents. According to Article 1a of Council Regulation (EC) No 2252/2004, biometric identifiers must be collected by qualified and duly authorized staff of the document-issuing authority itself. Passports and travel documents must contain a highly secure storage medium containing a facial image.

In Germany, the Gesetz zur Stärkung der Sicherheit im Pass- und Ausweiswesen (Act on Strengthening Security in the Passport and Identity Card System) was adopted. As the Berlin State Office for Immigration (Landesamt für Einwanderung) points out, the law came into force on May 1, 2025. Since then, biometric passport photos may only be created digitally directly at the authorities or at photo studios that can transmit them digitally via a secure electronic channel.

End of the transition period

Any large-scale reform requires time for technical adaptation. The Stuttgart authority officially confirms that the exception, which temporarily allowed paper photos, was only valid until July 31, 2025. Starting August 1, 2025, employees of citizen service centers (Bürgerbüro) and immigration offices (Ausländerbehörde) are not authorized to accept any paper photos for electronic documents.

Which documents need a digital photo: ID card, passport and eAT

According to § 5a of the Identity Card Ordinance (Personalausweisverordnung), the same rule of electronic transmission applies to the German ID card (Personalausweis). The Residence Ordinance (Aufenthaltsverordnung) establishes in its § 60 that the provision of § 6 paragraph 2 sentence 3 of the Passport Act also applies to an eAT residence permit digital photo, uniform format residence titles, and travel documents for foreigners, refugees, and stateless persons.

Two allowed submission methods

According to § 6 para. 2 of the German Passport Act (Passgesetz), there are two submission methods in Germany; for a passport issued abroad, a 45 × 35 mm paper photo is allowed under certain conditions:

• Option 1: Through a service provider (Dienstleister). A photographer takes the picture electronically and transmits it to the passport authority in a secure manner. § 4 of the Passport Ordinance (Passverordnung) specifies that a secure manner means using a cloud provider or transmitting from a certified device connected directly to the authority's network.
• Option 2: At the authority itself. The agency takes the photo electronically using its own certified capture devices (terminals).

Exceptions: when a 35x45 mm paper photo is still required

Residence permits for Ukrainians (passport stickers)

The most critical exception applies to refugees from Ukraine. The Berlin State Office for Immigration clearly distinguishes between plastic eAT cards and paper stickers. According to their clarification, the issuance of residence permits for refugees from Ukraine, which are affixed directly into the passport (Aufenthaltserlaubnissen für Geflüchtete aus der Ukraine in den Pass), as well as Duldung and Aufenthaltsgestattung certificates, are excluded from the digital reform.

The official requirement states: persons affected by these exceptions must continue to bring non-digital biometric passport photos on photo paper.

German driving licence photo: paper or digital?

The second large category is drivers. According to the Stuttgart authority, the driving license is excluded from the new rules. If you are wondering about the German driving licence photo—paper or digital—the law has not yet provided a digital photo mechanism for it. § 21 para. 3 point 2 of the Driving Licence Ordinance (Fahrerlaubnis-Verordnung, FeV) requires a photo that complies with the provisions of the passport ordinance, but it is submitted exclusively as a paper print.

Consular submission abroad

The third case is described in § 16 para. 3 PassV. If you order a German passport from a passport authority abroad (for example, at a consulate) and electronic capture with the authority's devices is not possible there, the law allows you to submit a current 45 by 35 millimeters paper photo in a vertical format without borders. In this case, the authority makes a "nicht verifizierbar" (not verifiable) note in the passport register.

Comparison table: digital vs. paper

Why the authority rejects photos (and how to avoid paying twice)

The transition to digital biometrics has created new grounds for document rejection. Based on clarifications from German city administrations, we can highlight the most common reasons why applicants lose time and money:

• An envelope with prints for a plastic document. The most expensive mistake is showing up for an electronic residence permit appointment with classic paper photos. As of August 1, 2025, the clerk has no discretionary power to accept them. As the Stuttgart city hall puts it: employees "dürfen ab diesem Zeitpunkt keine Papierfotos mehr akzeptieren" (from this point on, they are no longer allowed to accept paper photos).
• A digital file on a flash drive or phone. The "if you won't take paper, take the file" logic does not work in Germany. It is not just the digital format that matters, but exclusively the transmission channel. Stuttgart explicitly states that self-taken and printed photos, as well as digital photos on your own storage media, cannot be used. The file must arrive via a secure procedure—through a cloud provider or from a certified device connected directly to the authority's network.
• A photo from a photographer without a code. Not every photo studio complies with the new rules. You only need a service provider connected to the system that issues a DataMatrix code. If the studio gave you a picture without such a code, they are not integrated into the network, and their work is useless.
• Assuming one format fits two documents. This is exactly where people pay twice: paper is banned for the electronic permit, but paper is still mandatory for the driving license. A single trip to the photographer does not cover both needs. If you are applying for both documents on the same day, you will need both a DataMatrix code and an envelope with 35x45 mm paper prints.
• Reverse logic for Ukrainians. A person who read in the news that "paper is no longer accepted" goes to the authority without it for an Aufenthaltserlaubnis sticker, and comes back empty-handed. For a sticker, paper is mandatory.
• Expecting a printout "just in case". Photographers' clients often expect to receive a printout along with the digital code. However, the Munich Kreisverwaltungsreferat directly answers the question "will I also get a printed photo": No, the image is used exclusively digitally for your document.

Step-by-step procedure: how to submit a photo under the new rules

Depending on the type of document, the preparation procedure is divided into several steps.

1. Determine the document type: Check exactly which document is being produced. If it is an electronic card (eAT) or passport—proceed to step 2. If it is a driving license, Duldung, or sticker—you need a regular paper photo.
2. Choose the path for the digital photo: You can take a photo at the authority's terminal (PointID-Geräte). According to § 48 para. 1 point 16 AufenthV, the authority charges a nationwide uniform fee of 6.00 euros for producing the photo. Munich advises setting aside an extra 5–10 minutes before the appointment to work with the machine. Munich also recommends contacting a photo studio or service provider in advance for infants and small children.
3. Get a DataMatrix code: If you choose a studio, ensure that it supports the TR-03121 technical standard of the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). After taking the photo, the studio issues you a DataMatrix code.
4. Procedure at the appointment: If you come with a code, you provide it to the clerk (a printout of the face itself is not needed). If you took your photo in the authority's terminal, the clerk pulls your image from the internal database. According to § 9 PassV, the photo is deleted from the authority's device immediately after retrieval, but is stored for a maximum of 96 hours.
5. Payment of fees: The 6 euro fee for a photo in the terminal is added to the total bill. For example, reissuing a document with a chip costs 67 euros, and express production of a title will cost an additional 35 euros.

Frame requirements for paper photos (Anlage 8 PassV)

Although the photo delivery method for most documents has become digital, the biometric frame composition requirements themselves have not changed. They are fixed in Annex 8 to the Passport Ordinance (Anlage 8 PassV) and are critical for those submitting paper photos for driving licenses or stickers.

• Face percentage: The photo must show the face from the tip of the chin to the top of the head. Both halves of the face must be clearly recognizable. The face must take up 70–80% of the photo height. Note that the law specifies the percentage, without indicating specific millimeters for the head height of drivers.
• Background: The law requires the background to be plain, without shadows, and to form a clear contrast with the face and hair. In practice, this means a light, neutral color that does not blend in with your clothing or skin tone.
• Facial expression: The expression must be completely neutral. The gaze must be directed straight into the camera, and the mouth must be closed.
• Image quality: Colors, and especially skin tone, must be rendered realistically. The use of retouching and filters is prohibited.
• Headgear: These are permitted exclusively for religious reasons. The authority can make exceptions for medical reasons that are not merely temporary in nature.

Photo size and age statistics in global practice

The German 35x45 mm paper photo standard is classic for Europe, but not the only one possible globally. In our database of 241 document profiles, 229 have a fixed print size, using 17 different sizes. The German 35x45 mm format is the most common (148 profiles). For comparison, the next most popular are 51x51 mm (16 profiles), 30x40 mm (14), and 40x60 mm (11).

Regarding the background, 52 out of 241 profiles in our database strictly require a white background, 23 require a specific non-white shade (e.g., light gray), and the rest limit themselves to requiring a plain light background without specifying an exact color, which matches the German approach from Anlage 8. As for the photo's age, according to the database, 30 profiles set a limit of 6 months, and 2 profiles set 3 months. German legislation phrases this requirement with the word "aktuell" (current).