France passport photo
You cannot supply this photo yourself
France accepts a passport photo only from an approved or commercial photographer, or an approved booth. A photo you take and prepare yourself is refused however exactly it measures, and editing software, filters and AI tools are named in the rule.
The editor below still earns its place. It is correct for consular and visa applications, which this rule does not cover, and it will tell you whether a photographer's file actually meets the measurements before you pay for prints.
Drop a photo here
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Your photo is processed on this device and never uploaded.
The requirements
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm |
|---|---|
| Head height, chin to crown | 32-36 mm Taille du visage 3,2 to 3,6 cm, measured from the bottom of the chin to the top of the skull excluding hair, which is 70-80% of the photo height. |
| Background | Plain light-coloured background, for example light grey or light blue. A white background is explicitly forbidden. |
| Glasses | Allowed, as long as the eyes are fully visible with no glare and no tint. |
| Expression | Neutral, mouth closed, both eyes open. |
| Head covering | Not allowed. |
| Ears | Yes |
| Photo age | 6 months |
| Also required |
|
France is the important exception to the self-service model: for a passport or national identity card the photo must come from an approved photographer or an approved booth, so a phone photo cannot be submitted even when it meets every measurement. The country page must say this plainly. A white background is forbidden, which also differs from most of the world.
Applying in France
France is the country where we have to tell you not to use this tool, at least for the document you are probably here for. For a French passport or a carte nationale d'identite, the photograph must be taken by an approved photographer or in a booth running a system approved by the Ministry of the Interior. A photo taken on a phone cannot be submitted, even when every measurement is correct, because what is being certified is where the photo came from and not how well it was cropped.
That rule is worth understanding rather than resenting. The approved booth or photographer is part of the identity chain: the equipment is registered, the conditions are controlled, and the result carries provenance the authority can rely on. No amount of accuracy on your own camera substitutes for that, and any site that implies otherwise is selling you a file you cannot use.
France also breaks the pattern in a way that surprises people who have applied elsewhere: a white background is explicitly forbidden. The requirement is a plain light background, light grey or light blue, and the head must be bare with the ears uncovered. The face must measure 32 to 36 from the bottom of the chin to the top of the skull, excluding hair, on a 35 by 45 print. So the reflex of standing against a white wall, which is right in most of the world, is wrong here.
Why photos get rejected here
A white background
The specification forbids white outright and asks for a plain light background such as light grey or light blue. This is the single most common mistake made by applicants who have previously applied in a country that requires white.
The photo did not come from an approved source
A photo taken at home or by an unapproved photographer is refused regardless of its quality, because the approval, not the image, is what is being checked.
Anything on the head
The head must be bare. Hats, scarves and headbands are all excluded, and the rule is worded without the religious exception that many other countries provide.
Ears covered by hair
The ears have to be uncovered, which is stricter than the British or Canadian rules and means hair has to be pushed back rather than merely kept off the eyes.
Reflections or thick frames on glasses
Glasses are permitted, but the frame must be thin, must not hide the eyes, and the lenses must be neither tinted nor reflective. A thick fashionable frame fails on its own.
Shadow on the face or on the background
The specification names shadow in both places, and also excludes over- and under-exposure. Booth lighting is designed to avoid this, which is part of why the booth requirement exists.
What helps
Check before you pay, not after
The useful thing this tool can do for a French application is tell you in advance whether a photo you already have satisfies the head height, the eye line and the framing. Take that knowledge to the booth or the photographer rather than a file.
Do not go looking for a white wall
White is forbidden. If you are checking a photo against the French template here, the background we render is the light tone in #E3E3E3, not white.
Push your hair behind your ears
Ears must be visible. This is easy to arrange and easy to forget, and a booth will not tell you.
The same photo covers both documents
The identity card and the passport share one photo standard, so a single approved photo works for either. If you are renewing both, one sitting is enough.
A photo stays valid for six months
The photo age limit is 6 months, so an approved photo taken for one application can usually be used for the other if the applications are close together.
Budget for the photo separately from the fee
An adult passport costs EUR 86 as of September 2026, EUR 42 for ages 15 to 17 and EUR 17 under 15. The carte nationale d identite is free unless it was lost or stolen, when it is EUR 25. The approved photograph is a separate cost on top, which is easy to forget when comparing France with countries where a photo is optional.
Babies and young children
France publishes no relaxation for babies that we could find in the official specification, which is a genuine difference from the United Kingdom and Canada. The requirements as written ask for eyes open and visible, a gaze directed at the lens, and a neutral expression with the mouth closed, without an exception for infants. In practice the approved photographer handles this, which is another consequence of the booth requirement: the responsibility for getting an acceptable photo of a baby sits with the professional rather than with you. If you are told a photo of your child has been refused, ask the photographer to retake it, since the approval is theirs.
Glasses
Glasses are allowed, which is less common than it used to be internationally. The conditions are specific: the frame must be thin, it must not hide the eyes, and the lenses must not be tinted or reflective. Because reflection is a lighting effect rather than a property of the glasses, it is the condition most often failed, and it is one the booth's controlled lighting is designed to prevent. Removing them remains the simplest way to satisfy all three conditions at once.
Head covering
The specification requires the head to be bare, and names hats, scarves and headbands. Unlike the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States, the wording we read does not publish a religious or medical exception, and France's approach to religious dress in official documents is a distinct legal matter rather than a photographic one. If this affects your application, ask the prefecture or the approved photographer directly rather than relying on a photographic guide, including this one.
Applying online
Applications are prepared online through ANTS, but the photograph itself does not come from you. It is produced by an approved photographer or an approved booth, and the approved equipment is what links the image to the application. There is therefore no route by which a file made on your own device becomes an acceptable French passport or identity card photo.
Questions about France photos
Can I take my own photo for a French passport?
No. The photograph must be taken by an approved photographer or in a booth using a system approved by the Ministry of the Interior. A phone photo is not acceptable however accurate it is, because the approval is part of what is being verified.
Why is a white background not allowed in France?
The specification asks for a plain light background such as light grey or light blue and forbids white. A light tone separates the outline of the head and hair from the background, which pure white does not do as reliably.
Is the photo the same for the identity card and the passport?
Yes. One standard covers both the carte nationale d'identite and the passport, so a single approved photo can serve either application.
Do my ears have to be visible?
Yes. The requirement is that the ears are uncovered, which is stricter than in several neighbouring countries and means hair has to be tucked back rather than just kept clear of the eyes.
What is this page useful for if I cannot use my own photo?
For checking one. If you already hold a photo and want to know whether the head height, eye line and framing match the French requirement before you submit it, the template on this page measures it. For producing a submittable photo, go to an approved photographer.
What are the current French processing averages?
France Titres published average figures for 2025 of about 15 days to process the application plus 9 days for production and delivery, and 17 plus 8 days for an identity card. You then have three months to collect it, and a pre-demande stays valid for twelve months.
Where these numbers come from
Official sourceEvery measurement on this page comes from the issuing authority's own published requirements.
- Quelle photo fournir pour un titre d'identite (passeport, carte d'identite...) ?checked September 2, 2026
- Arrete du 5 fevrier 2009 relatif aux photographies d'identite exigees pour le passeportchecked September 2, 2026
Reviewed by Editorial teamHow we check our numbers