Cameroon passport photo requirements
The 40 × 40 mm photo rules set by Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC for the Cameroon passport, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Cameroon passport photo?
You do not supply a photo for the Cameroonian biometric passport itself. After pre-enrolling and paying on the PassCam portal, you attend an enrolment centre in Cameroon or at an embassy, where your photo, fingerprints and signature are captured. No passport print size is published. Prints are still asked for related documents: 4 x 4 cm (40 x 40 mm) for the emergency travel document in London and the laissez-passer in Marseille, and white-background colour prints for a consular card in Washington.
Cameroonian passports are issued by the Délégation Générale à la Sûreté Nationale (DGSN), the General Delegation for National Security, and produced in Yaoundé. Every application, first passport or renewal, starts on PassCam, the online portal that AUGENTIC PassCam SA runs as the DGSN's agent. You enter your personal details, pay the stamp fee online and book an enrolment appointment. The embassy in Washington says the biometric process has been operational there since 1 July 2021.
The second step is in person. In Cameroon, enrolment takes place at the regional EMI-Immigration offices in nine cities and at the National Production Centre in Yaoundé. Abroad, PassCam lists more than 40 embassies, high commissions and consulates as enrolment centres, among them Washington, Ottawa, London, Paris, Berlin, Moscow and Tokyo. At the appointment your documents are checked against the originals and your biometric data, including the photo, is captured.
This is why no print size exists for the passport. Some missions still ask for prints for their own files: Tokyo lists an ID photo among the enrolment documents, and The Hague's checklist for a lost passport asks for one set of four 4 x 4 cm photos and one set of four 4 x 5 cm photos. If your passport has expired or been lost and you must travel urgently, a mission can issue a laissez-passer for a one-way trip to Cameroon, and that document does take printed photos.
Cameroon passport photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC:[1]
| Print size | No print for the passport: the photo is captured at enrolment. Laissez-passer in London and Marseille: 4 x 4 cm |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No upload: PassCam pre-enrolment covers your details, payment and appointment, not a photo |
| Background | Passport: captured on site. Washington travel document and consular card prints: white background |
| Colour | Washington travel document and consular card prints: colour |
| Photo age | Passport: taken live at enrolment. Washington travel document prints: less than 3 months old |
| Print quality | London emergency travel document: photocopies, instant photos and scanned photos are not accepted |
| Pixels when printed | 472 × 472 px at 300 dpi · 945 × 945 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
In the official words
Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:
Photos and biometrics (fingerprints and height) for the passport are taken on-site.
Key requirements
- Pre-enrol on PassCam first
All applications begin online at PassCam, where you complete the form, pay the stamp fee to the DGSN and book an appointment. London warns that an appointment can be changed only once and is cancelled after ten days; PassCam keeps an unbooked pre-enrolment for one year.
- Photo, fingerprints and signature on site
The London High Commission collects your photo, fingerprints and signature at enrolment. Washington states that photos and biometrics, fingerprints and height included, are taken on site, so no passport photo is brought.
- Everyone attends in person
Washington requires every applicant, including children of all ages, to come in person for physical enrolment. Applications by post or email are not possible, and only pre-enrolled applicants with an appointment are let in.
- Prints only for other files
Where a mission still asks for photos, they serve other papers. Washington wants two passport-size colour photos on white only from applicants who need a consular card; Tokyo lists an ID photo; The Hague's lost-passport list asks for 4 x 4 cm and 4 x 5 cm sets.
- Collect where you enrolled
A new passport is activated electronically at the place of enrolment, so Washington says it can only be collected there. Passports not collected within six months are sent back to Cameroon.
- Renew, do not extend
A Cameroonian biometric passport cannot be extended, only renewed. The London High Commission advises applying at least six months before your passport expires.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Pre-enrol and pay on PassCam before you go.
- Print the pre-enrolment form with its barcode and bring it.
- Bring the originals and photocopies of every document.
- Attend on the date you booked, at the centre you chose.
- Bring white-background colour prints if your mission asks for a consular card.
Don't
- Do not post or email a passport application; enrolment is in person.
- Do not take a phone, tablet or large bag to the Washington embassy.
- Do not buy a flight before the new passport is in your hands.
- Do not wear glasses or a headscarf in prints for a travel document.
- Do not hand in photocopied, instant or scanned photos where prints are asked for.
Sample photos
How a Cameroon passport photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 40 × 40 mm and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Glasses
Neither the DGSN nor PassCam publishes a glasses rule for the photo taken at enrolment; the centre captures it in person during your appointment.
Where a mission asks for printed photos, its rules are strict. Washington's requirements for travel document photos prohibit eyeglasses, face coverings, headscarves and other accessories, and ask for a natural expression with the mouth closed, no smiling or frowning, and the forehead and both ears clearly visible.
Headwear and religious dress
The Hague's checklist for a lost passport asks for photos with the head directly facing the camera, without a hat or headscarf. Washington's travel document rules also prohibit headscarves and face coverings.
No official page read for this page sets a religious exception for the enrolment photo. If you cover your head, ask your enrolment centre before the appointment.
Babies and children
For a Cameroonian passport, anyone under 21 counts as a minor. Washington requires children of all ages to attend enrolment in person, accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, and asks for a legalised parental authorisation with the parent's ID and proof of residence. A parent who cannot come can sign the authorisation in advance or give a legalised power of attorney to a Cameroonian adult who brings the child. London asks for a certified parental or legal guardian authorisation for every applicant under 21. PassCam's document lists differ for children under 15 and for those aged 15 to 21.
The child's picture is captured at the centre like an adult's. The Tokyo embassy warns that a minor's file could still be rejected because of the photo, even when it was accepted during the physical enrolment.
Printed and digital photos
The passport needs neither a print nor a photo file: PassCam takes your details, payment and appointment, and the picture is captured at enrolment. Prints matter only for related documents. In the US, Washington wants two passport-size colour photos on a white background for a consular card, and two identical ones under 3 months old for a laissez-passer, without stating dimensions.
London's emergency travel document and the Marseille consulate general's laissez-passer ask for 4 x 4 cm (40 x 40 mm) prints, and The Hague's lost-passport checklist adds a set at 4 x 5 cm (40 x 50 mm). No current official page asks for 2 x 2 inch (51 x 51 mm) prints for a Cameroonian passport. A digital photo can be printed on a 4x6 inch sheet at a photo counter, but London refuses photocopies, instant photos and scanned photos.
Where to submit the photo
In Cameroon, book enrolment at a regional EMI-Immigration office in Douala, Buea, Bafoussam, Bamenda, Ngaoundéré, Maroua, Garoua, Bertoua or Ebolowa, or at the National Production Centre in Yaoundé. Abroad, choose the mission that covers your country of residence: Washington, for example, serves Cameroonians in the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Bahamas, and cannot receive you if the appointment was booked at another location.
Collection differs by mission. Washington returns passports by mail only and asks for prepaid tracked envelopes, while London hands them over at the High Commission against your original receipt and ID, or to a proxy with a certified letter of authorisation. If an application is rejected, PassCam notifies you by email and the case is handled with the DGSN directly, not through the embassy.
How to get your Cameroon passport photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Cameroon passport: 40 × 40 mm print, passport: captured on site. Washington… background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: pre-enrol on PassCam first; photo, fingerprints and signature on site; everyone attends in person; prints only for other files.
- Prepare a print or digital file. The passport needs neither a print nor a photo file: PassCam takes your details, payment and appointment, and the picture is captured at enrolment. Prints matter only for related documents.
- Submit the photo with your application. In Cameroon, book enrolment at a regional EMI-Immigration office in Douala, Buea, Bafoussam, Bamenda, Ngaoundéré, Maroua, Garoua, Bertoua or Ebolowa, or at the National Production Centre in Yaoundé.
Cameroon passport photo FAQ
None is published for the passport itself, because the photo is captured at your biometric enrolment appointment. The 4 x 4 cm (40 x 40 mm) size applies to prints for an emergency travel document in London or a laissez-passer in Marseille.
Usually not for the passport. Washington says photos and biometrics are taken on site, and asks for two white-background colour prints only from applicants who also need a consular card. Some missions differ: Tokyo lists an ID photo, so check your mission's list.
No step for it is described. Washington's guide to PassCam covers logging in with your email, entering your details and NIC number, paying and choosing an appointment. Your photo, fingerprints and signature are then captured at the enrolment centre.
No rule is published for the enrolment photo, which the centre takes itself. For printed travel document photos, Washington prohibits eyeglasses, face coverings and headscarves, so remove them for any prints a mission asks for.
Yes. Washington requires all applicants, children of all ages included, to come in person, and anyone under 21 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. A legalised parental authorisation is also needed.
London asks for two recent 4 x 4 cm photos and refuses photocopies, instant photos and scanned photos. Marseille asks for two recent 4 x 4 identity photos. Washington wants two identical colour photos on white, under 3 months old, without glasses or headscarves. Tokyo has taken laissez-passer applications only online since 5 January 2026.
No. The biometric passport can only be renewed, through a new PassCam application and enrolment. London advises applying at least six months before your current passport expires.
Only where you enrolled, because the passport is activated electronically at that location. Washington sends it by mail only; London hands it over at the High Commission against your original receipt. Uncollected passports go back to Cameroon after six months.
Related photo specifications
Other Cameroon documents
Passports nearby
Also 40 × 40 mm
- Argentina visa photo 40 × 40 mm
- Argentina DNI (national identity card) photo 40 × 40 mm
- Bolivia visa photo 40 × 40 mm
- Central African Republic passport photo 40 × 40 mm
- Chad passport photo 40 × 40 mm
- Côte d'Ivoire assport photo 40 × 40 mm
- Rwanda visa photo 40 × 40 mm
- Syria passport photo 40 × 40 mm
- All Cameroon photo specifications
- Passports: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 40 × 40 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Africa
Official sources
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC. Cameroonian Biometric Passports (January 2026) cameroonembassyusa.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC. Cameroonian Travel Document (Laissez-Passer) (January 2026) cameroonembassyusa.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC. Consular Services cameroonembassyusa.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Cameroon High Commission, London. Biometric Passport Application cameroonhighcommission.co.uk. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Cameroon High Commission, London. Emergency Travel Document cameroonhighcommission.co.uk. Checked 2 November 2026.
- PassCam, for the Délégation Générale à la Sûreté Nationale. Passeports passcam.cm. Checked 2 November 2026.
- PassCam, for the Délégation Générale à la Sûreté Nationale. Centres d'enrôlement locaux passcam.cm. Checked 2 November 2026.
- PassCam, for the Délégation Générale à la Sûreté Nationale. Missions diplomatiques et consulats du Cameroun passcam.cm. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Tokyo. Information on Passport Enrolment for Cameroonian Residents in Japan cameroonemb-jp.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Tokyo. Laissez-passer cameroonemb-jp.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, The Hague. Loss of Passport cameroon-embassy.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Consulat général du Cameroun à Marseille. Liste des pièces à fournir pour la délivrance d'un laissez-passer consulacam-marseille.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- High Commission of the Republic of Cameroon, Ottawa. Apply for a Passport cameroon-high-commission.ca. Checked 2 November 2026.
- U.S. Department of State. Cameroon Reciprocity Schedule: Passports and Other Travel Documents travel.state.gov. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon, Washington DC before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Cameroon passport photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/cameroon/passport-photo