France visa photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by France-Visas, official visa website of the French government for the France visa, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the France visa photo?
France-Visas asks for two recent ICAO-format photos with a visa application. The print must be 35 to 40 mm wide, with the face 32 to 36 mm from chin to crown (hair excluded), filling 70 to 80% of the photo, on a plain light background and no more than 6 months old. The visa centre or consulate then scans the print or takes a live photo with your fingerprints. Long-stay (D) visas follow the same rule.
Visas for France, both short-stay Schengen (C) and long-stay national (D) visas, are applied for through France-Visas, the official visa website of the French government. You fill in the form online, then lodge the file in the country where you legally live, either at the French consulate or at the external service provider it uses: TLScontact in the United Kingdom, VFS Global in Russia and Canada, and Capago in Algeria and Togo, for example. Applicants over 12 lodge their first application in person, because a photograph and ten fingerprints are recorded.
The photo rule for visas is ICAO conformity, checked by the visa section, rather than the French identity-document regime: France-Visas does not say who must take the picture, and its sample sheet allows religious head coverings that French passports refuse. The general Schengen rules are covered on the Schengen visa page; this page deals with what French missions ask for, with long-stay visas, and with the residence permit that follows on ANEF, the online immigration service, where the photo becomes an e-photo code.
France visa photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by France-Visas, official visa website of the French government:[1]
| Print size | 35 to 40 mm wide; no height is set, but a 32 to 36 mm face at 70 to 80% means about 45 mm (35 x 45 mm fits) |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No upload on France-Visas: bring two prints; the centre scans one or takes a live photo |
| Head height | 32 to 36 mm from chin to top of skull, hair excluded (70 to 80% of the photo) |
| Background | Plain, light-coloured background |
| Colour | Natural colours and skin tone |
| Photo age | No more than 6 months old |
| Print quality | Quality photo paper, high resolution, sharp, with no ink marks or cracks |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Two prints with the file
France-Visas lists two recent identity photos in ICAO format among the documents to bring, alongside the passport and the supporting papers. A return visa for a resident who lost a residence card asks for three photos with three long-stay forms.
- Width 35 to 40 mm, face 70 to 80%
The France-Visas FAQ sets the width at 35 to 40 mm and the face at 32 to 36 mm from the bottom of the chin to the top of the skull, hair excluded, which is 70 to 80% of the picture. The photo must be recent and resemble you when you lodge the application and when you collect the visa.
- Biometrics at the centre
At the appointment, the provider or consulate collects your biometrics: a photograph, scanned or taken at the time, and ten flat fingerprints. Fingerprints taken for a Schengen visa less than 59 months ago can be reused, but France-Visas says an ICAO photo must still be in every file.
- Even, shadow-free lighting
Use a plain, light-coloured background and uniform lighting with no flash marks, red eyes or shadows on the face or behind it. The France-Visas sample sheet refuses a busy background, an off-centre subject and a print that is too dark, too pale or washed out.
- Face the lens squarely
Look straight at the camera, not at three-quarter angle, with the gaze level, the eyes open and the hair off the face. Colours must be natural, and the sample sheet rejects a yellowish, unnatural skin tone.
- The visa section decides
France-Visas says its sample sheet is indicative only: the visa service alone may accept or refuse a photograph. When in doubt, follow the checklist of the consulate or centre where you lodge the file.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Bring two identical prints to the visa centre.
- Keep the print 35 to 40 mm wide.
- Use high-resolution printing on quality photo paper.
- Light the face evenly from the front.
- Show the full face from chin to forehead if you wear a religious covering.
- Check the provider page for your country before the appointment.
Don't
- Do not use a photo older than six months.
- Do not pose at three-quarter angle or tilt your head.
- Do not wear heavily tinted lenses or frames that hide the eyes.
- Do not let a toy or another person appear beside a baby.
- Do not submit a pixelated or washed-out print.
- Do not skip the photo because your fingerprints are being reused.
Sample photos
How a France visa photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 35 × 45 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
Glasses may be worn for a French visa photo if the eyes are clearly visible. The France-Visas sample sheet refuses lenses that are too tinted and lenses with reflections, and it also refuses frames that are too thick or that cover the eyes. A thin frame with clear, glare-free lenses is shown as acceptable.
Headwear and religious dress
Head coverings are not accepted, except for religious reasons. In that case the covering must leave every feature of the face visible from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, and the outline of the face must remain distinct. The sample sheet refuses a hat, a cap, a covering that hides the lower face and one that casts shadows on it.
This is a real difference from French identity documents: a passport or identity card photo must be bare-headed with no exception, while the visa sheet allows a religious covering that leaves the face clear.
Babies and children
Every applicant needs photos, babies included. The France-Visas sample sheet shows the subject alone, with no other person or object, looking at the lens with a neutral expression and the mouth closed; it refuses a baby photographed beside another person and one with an open mouth and a toy in view.
Personal appearance depends on age. France-Visas says every applicant over 12 must come in person to lodge a first application, so that the biometric data can be recorded.
Printed and digital photos
France-Visas does not take a photo upload. You complete the form online and bring it with its receipt and two ICAO prints to the appointment, where the centre scans one or takes a live picture with your fingerprints. The sample sheet asks for printing on quality photo paper at high resolution.
After arrival, residence formalities move online. A long-stay visa that counts as a residence permit (VLS-TS) must be validated on ANEF within three months. For a residence permit applied for on ANEF, service-public asks you to enter the e-photo code supplied by the photographer or approved booth on the photo sheet; some permits still filed at the prefecture ask for three photos instead.
Where to submit the photo
Lodge the file in your country of legal residence, at the French consulate or embassy or at the approved provider it uses. In the United Kingdom, TLScontact receives applications in London, Manchester and Edinburgh, and the Consulate General in London decides on them; only spouses of French nationals and family members of EU citizens applying for short stays may lodge directly at the consulate, on Wednesday mornings by appointment. In Algeria, Capago centres in Algiers, Oran, Annaba and Constantine receive files, and in Russia 18 VFS Global centres do.
The service provider charges its own fee on top of the visa fee. Bring the completed form (CERFA) and its receipt, your passport, the supporting documents and the photos.
How to get your France visa photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the France visa: 35 × 45 mm print, plain background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: two prints with the file; width 35 to 40 mm, face 70 to 80%; biometrics at the centre; even, shadow-free lighting.
- Prepare a print or digital file. France-Visas does not take a photo upload. You complete the form online and bring it with its receipt and two ICAO prints to the appointment, where the centre scans one or takes a live picture with your fingerprints.
- Submit the photo with your application. Lodge the file in your country of legal residence, at the French consulate or embassy or at the approved provider it uses.
France visa photo FAQ
France-Visas asks for a photo 35 to 40 mm wide in which the face measures 32 to 36 mm from the bottom of the chin to the top of the skull, hair excluded, about 70 to 80% of the picture. It does not state a height, but a standard 35 x 45 mm print with a face of that size fits these figures.
Two recent ICAO-format identity photos for a normal short-stay or long-stay application. A return visa, issued to residents who lost their residence card abroad, asks for three photos with three long-stay application forms.
No. France-Visas uses the same list for short and long stays: two recent ICAO-format photos. What changes is afterwards: a VLS-TS must be validated online on ANEF within three months of arrival, and other long-stay visas require a residence permit application at the prefecture.
Yes. Fingerprints recorded for a Schengen visa less than 59 months ago can be reused, but France-Visas states that an ICAO-format identity photo must always be included in the file.
Yes, if you wear it for religious reasons. The France-Visas sample sheet requires every feature of the face to be visible from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with the outline of the face distinct and no shadow on it.
For a residence permit applied for online on ANEF, you enter the e-photo code supplied on the photo sheet by a photographer or approved booth, so the picture must come from one of them. Permits still filed at the prefecture may ask for three printed photos.
France-Visas asks only for a plain, light-coloured background and does not list white as forbidden, unlike the French passport and identity card rules. A light grey or light blue backdrop meets both, and it is the safer choice if your provider gives no guidance.
Related photo specifications
Other France documents
- Passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- ID card photo 35 × 45 mm
- Driving licence photo 35 × 45 mm
Visas and travel authorisations nearby
- Austria visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Belgium visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Germany visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Netherlands visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Switzerland visa photo 35 × 45 mm
Also 35 × 45 mm
- Afghanistan visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria ID card photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria residence permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria work permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Andorra passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Anguilla passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Antigua and Barbuda passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Armenia visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- All France photo specifications
- Visas and travel authorisations: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Europe
Official sources
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Questions fréquentes france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. La démarche france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Demande de visa france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Visa pour la France : photographies (sample sheet) france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Visa de long séjour france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Royaume-Uni france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Algérie france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- France-Visas, official visa website of the French government. Russie france-visas.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Service-Public.gouv.fr (DILA). Carte de séjour vie privée et familiale service-public.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. Requesting a visa diplomatie.gouv.fr. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with France-Visas, official visa website of the French government before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"France visa photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/france/visa-photo