Biometric Passport Photos in US

Official documents are documents that confirm the identity of the holder. The list of such documents is decided and regulated by law. It is interesting that official documents in the USA can not only be an ID card or a passport, but also e.g. a military ID or a firearms license. What connects all these documents is a photo that must be permanently connected to the document. The provisions of individual institutions and acts specify the requirements for these photographs. The current requirements for photos for official documents in the USA and the list of these documents can be found at the bottom of the page. If you need to take photos for specific documents you can use our site or a passport photo application to take a perfect passport photo around you.

The basic and most common official documents confirming your identity in the USA are your passport and your driver’s license. In addition to the driver’s license and passport your identity may be confirmed by: birth certificate, residency permit, visa, and a firearms certificate, among others.

Below are the photo requirements , which should be regarded when preparing the documents listed above. Let's start with the photo for your driver’s license and passport, because they are practically the same. Both photos are so-called biometric photos, i.e. those that enable biometric identification of their owner. These 2x2 photos show only the subject's face and upper shoulders, with the person looking straight ahead (en face). The background of the photo should be bright and neutral, and the subject’s face should not be obstructed. The face in the photo should be evenly illuminated and fully visible. The photo should be of good quality and up-to-date, i.e. taken no earlier than 6 months before the date of submission of the application for an official identity document.