Canada passport photo requirements
The 50 × 70 mm photo rules set by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for the Canada passport, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Canada passport photo?
A Canadian passport photo is 50 x 70 mm (2 x 2 3/4 inches), and your face must measure 31 to 36 mm from chin to crown. It has to be taken by a commercial photographer or studio no more than 6 months before you apply, with a neutral expression on a plain white or light-coloured background. You send 2 identical, unedited prints, and one carries the studio's name, address and shoot date on the back. Online renewal uses a 3:2 JPEG file instead.
Canadian passports are issued by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). A first adult passport, a child passport and an adult renewal made in person or by mail all need 2 identical printed photos. Canada uses its own tall 50 x 70 mm format, so a print made for another country, such as a square US passport photo, will not do.
A passport photo you take yourself at home will not be accepted. IRCC requires the picture to be taken in person by a commercial photographer or photo studio and professionally printed, and its July 2026 announcement on online renewal repeats that all passport applications require commercially taken photos. The back of one print records the studio and the date it was taken, and for first-time and child applications a guarantor signs it as well.
Eligible adults living in Canada can also renew online, which uses a digital file from the photographer with its own pixel, ratio and file-size limits. In every channel, IRCC refuses applications whose photos miss its requirements, and it counts any editing, including cropping or a replaced background, as a reason to reject.
Canada passport photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada:[1]
| Print size | 50 x 70 mm (2 x 2 3/4 in) |
|---|---|
| Digital size | Online renewal: 1200 x 1800 to 3000 x 4500 pixels, 3:2 ratio, portrait |
| Head height | 31 to 36 mm (1 1/4 to 1 7/16 in), chin to crown; online renewal: 45% to 50% of image height |
| Background | Plain white or light-coloured, clearly different from your face |
| Colour | Colour or black and white |
| Photo age | Taken no more than 6 months before you submit the application |
| File size | Online renewal: 200 KB to 5 MB |
| File format | Online renewal: JPEG (.jpeg or .jpg), saved from the original camera file |
| Print quality | Professionally printed on plain, high-quality photo paper; no home prints or heavyweight paper |
| Pixels when printed | 591 × 827 px at 300 dpi · 1181 × 1654 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
In the official words
Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:
Go to a commercial photographer or photo studio to have your photo taken.
This includes photo editing software, filters, and AI tools. We’ll reject your application if the photos have been altered in any way.
We don’t accept photos printed at home or on heavyweight paper.
Key requirements
- Commercial photographer only
The photo must be taken in person at a commercial photo studio or by a commercial photographer, then professionally printed. IRCC turns away prints made at home and prints on heavyweight paper.
- Print size and face height
Each print measures 50 mm wide by 70 mm high. From the chin to the crown, meaning the top of the head, your face must take up between 31 mm (1 1/4 in) and 36 mm (1 7/16 in). Face and shoulders are centred and square to the camera, with no tilt.
- No editing at all
IRCC counts any change, by any means, as an altered photo: colour, brightness, contrast or sharpness corrections, cropping around the head and shoulders, pasting you onto a white background, removing shadows, glare or red eye, and retouching skin, hair or clothing. Filters and AI tools are named too. An altered photo leads to a rejected application.
- Studio stamp and guarantor
On the back of one print, the photographer handwrites or stamps the studio name, its complete address and the date of the shoot. When a guarantor is needed, they write "I certify this to be a true likeness of" followed by the applicant's name, and sign underneath.
- Neutral face, no smile
Look straight at the camera with both eyes open and clearly visible and your mouth closed. Do not smile or frown. IRCC explains that a neutral expression lets facial recognition systems check identity and prevent fraud.
- Contrast and even light
Lighting has to be uniform, with no shadows around the ears, across the face or shoulders, or on the background, and no glare or flash reflections. Avoid light-coloured clothing: it can merge with the background and get the photo rejected. The picture itself has to be clear, sharp and in focus, and it should show your natural skin tone.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Book a commercial photographer or photo studio.
- Give the photographer IRCC's printable requirements page.
- Ask for both a print and a digital file if you may renew online.
- Check the studio name, address and date are on the back of one print.
- Wear clothing that stands out against a light background.
- Explain in writing any medical reason you cannot meet a rule.
Don't
- Do not print the photos at home.
- Do not crop, retouch, filter or change the background.
- Do not wear sunglasses or tinted lenses, even prescription ones.
- Do not use a photo taken more than 6 months before you apply.
- Do not upload a scan of a printed photo for online renewal.
- Do not smile, frown or tilt your head.
Sample photos
How a Canada passport photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 50 × 70 mm, head height and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Glasses
You can keep your glasses on for a Canadian passport photo, provided your eyes are clearly visible and the lenses show no glare. IRCC's sample photos set non-tinted glasses with no reflection as the acceptable example.
Sunglasses and tinted glasses are refused. That covers tinted prescription lenses, even when your eyes can be seen through them. A red-eye effect is also refused, and so is a photo in which red eye was corrected afterwards.
Headwear and religious dress
Hats and head coverings are accepted only if you wear them every day for religious beliefs or medical reasons. Your whole face must stay clearly visible, and the covering must not throw shadows onto it. Hair can be worn up or down, but keep it off your face so the edges of the face show.
If you wear medical headwear or a nasal cannula, your eyes must still be clearly visible, and you add a signed letter of explanation to the application; IRCC may also ask for a letter from your doctor. If you use a wheelchair, place a plain white covering behind your head and over any headrest so the outline of your face stands out.
Babies and children
Every child needs 2 identical photos from a commercial photographer, taken within 6 months, with the same 50 x 70 mm size and 31 to 36 mm face height as an adult. Neither your hands nor the child's may appear in the frame, and the plain white or light-coloured background must contrast with the child's face.
A newborn may be photographed sitting in a car seat if a white blanket covers the seat behind the head and no shadows fall on the face, shoulders, ears or background. IRCC accepts that babies rarely hold a neutral face and allows some range of expression. Child passports cannot be renewed, so every child application needs a guarantor who knows the child to sign the back of one photo. IRCC's child passport page adds that the studio details must be handwritten or stamped, because stick-on labels are not accepted.
Printed and digital photos
Paper applications, whether handed in or mailed, use 2 identical prints of 50 x 70 mm, professionally printed on plain, high-quality photo paper. Colour and black-and-white prints are both accepted. The studio details and, where needed, the guarantor's statement go on the back of one of them.
Online renewal is open to eligible adults whose home and mailing address are in Canada, and it needs a digital photo instead. The file must be a JPEG in 3:2 portrait orientation, from 1,200 pixels wide by 1,800 high up to 3,000 by 4,500, between 200 KB and 5 MB, with the chin-to-crown height at 45% to 50% of the image height. It is still taken in person by a commercial photographer within 6 months, saved directly from the original camera file and sent to you by email, USB drive or a file-sharing service. A scan of a print is refused. When uploading, you enter the studio or photographer's name and address and the date the photo was taken. IRCC suggests asking for both a print and a file, so you can switch to a paper application if online renewal is not available to you.
Where to submit the photo
Paper applications are submitted with the form in person, at a Service Canada Centre or passport office, or by mail. Online renewals are made through the IRCC Portal, where you upload the photo file. Canadians outside Canada apply by mail or at a Government of Canada office abroad. IRCC's page for applying abroad warns that Canadian photo requirements are not the same as other countries' and tells you to ask the local photographer for the right size; a square photo made for a US passport, for example, has the wrong shape and size.
A guarantor is needed for a first adult passport and for every child passport, but not for an adult renewal. For an application made in Canada, the guarantor must be 18 or older, have known you personally for at least 2 years, be a Canadian citizen, and hold a 5- or 10-year Canadian passport that is valid or expired for less than a year. Outside Canada you may also use an occupation-based guarantor, such as a lawyer, medical doctor, notary or police officer. If you cannot find anyone, IRCC can send you a Statutory Declaration in Lieu of Guarantor form.
How to get your Canada passport photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Canada passport: 50 × 70 mm print, 3000 × 4500 px digital file, plain white or light-coloured background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: commercial photographer only; print size and face height; no editing at all; studio stamp and guarantor.
- Prepare a print or digital file. Paper applications, whether handed in or mailed, use 2 identical prints of 50 x 70 mm, professionally printed on plain, high-quality photo paper. Colour and black-and-white prints are both accepted.
- Submit the photo with your application. Paper applications are submitted with the form in person, at a Service Canada Centre or passport office, or by mail. Online renewals are made through the IRCC Portal, where you upload the photo file.
Canada passport photo FAQ
A printed Canadian passport photo is 50 mm wide by 70 mm high (2 x 2 3/4 inches). Your face, measured from the chin to the crown of the head, must be between 31 mm and 36 mm (1 1/4 to 1 7/16 inches). For online renewal there is no print size: the file must be 3:2 portrait, from 1,200 x 1,800 to 3,000 x 4,500 pixels, with the face filling 45% to 50% of the height.
No. IRCC requires passport photos to be taken in person by a commercial photographer or photo studio and professionally printed, and it refuses photos printed at home. Online renewal is no exception: the digital file must also come from a commercial photographer, and you give the studio's name, address and the shoot date when you upload it.
Yes, as long as your eyes are clearly visible and there is no glare on the lenses. Sunglasses and tinted glasses are not accepted, and that includes tinted prescription lenses even when your eyes show through them.
No. The expression must be neutral: eyes open and clearly visible, looking straight at the camera, mouth closed, neither smiling nor frowning. IRCC follows the International Civil Aviation Organization's recommendation, which supports facial recognition checks against fraud. Newborns are given some leeway.
On one of the 2 prints, the photographer writes or stamps the studio name, its complete address and the date the photo was taken. If your application needs a guarantor, the guarantor writes "I certify this to be a true likeness of" followed by your name, or your child's, and signs at the bottom.
Not for an adult renewal, whether in person, by mail or online. A guarantor signature on one photo is needed for a first adult passport, for adults who are not eligible to renew, and for every child passport, because child passports cannot be renewed.
No. IRCC rejects applications with altered photos, and it defines alteration broadly: corrections to colour, brightness, contrast or sharpness, cropping around the head and shoulders, cutting and pasting you onto a white background, editing facial features, removing glare, red eye, scars or birthmarks, changing clothing colours, and changing the background or removing shadows. Filters and AI tools are included.
It must be taken no more than 6 months before the date you submit the application, and it must look like you do now. The same limit applies to children's photos and to the digital photo used for online renewal.
Related photo specifications
Other Canada documents
- Visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Secure certificate of indian status photo 50 × 70 mm
- Driver's licence photo
- Permanent resident photo 50 × 70 mm
- Study and work permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Citizenship photo 50 × 70 mm
- NEXUS card photo
- Permanent resident travel document (PRTD) photo
- Firearms licence photo 45 × 57 mm
- Personnel screening photo 43 × 54 mm
- Security licence photo 50 × 70 mm
- Provincial health card photo
- Quebec health insurance card photo 50 × 70 mm
- Veteran's service card photo
Passports nearby
- Bermuda passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Greenland passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Saint Pierre and Miquelon passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- United States passport photo 2 × 2 in
- United States U.S. passport card photo 2 × 2 in
Also 50 × 70 mm
- Brazil passport photo 50 × 70 mm
- Brazil passport or visa photo 50 × 70 mm
- Comoros visa photo 50 × 70 mm
- All Canada photo specifications
- Passports: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 50 × 70 mm photo
- Photo specifications in North America
Official sources
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Passport photo requirements canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Renew your passport online canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. References and guarantors for Canadian passport and other travel document applications canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Child passport canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. New adult passport: required documents and photos canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Canada expands online passport renewal to all eligible adults canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Apply for a new passport abroad canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Passport and travel document fee changes canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Check if you can renew your passport canada.ca. Checked 3 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Canada passport photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/canada/passport-photo