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India FRRO photo requirements

The 35 × 35 mm photo rules set by Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs for the India FRRO, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 2 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the India FRRO photo?

An e-FRRO photo is a passport-size JPG of up to 1 MB, either 3.5 x 3.5 cm (35 x 35 mm) or 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm), showing your full face from the front with eyes open on a plain light or white background. Upload the photo portion only, with no border. The Bureau of Immigration rejects photos edited or modified with Photoshop or any other software or mobile app.

Foreigners living in India deal with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) or Foreigners Registration Office (FRO) for registration, visa extension, visa conversion, exit permits and similar services. The Bureau of Immigration, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, delivers all of these through e-FRRO, an online portal that is now mandatory in every FRRO and FRO jurisdiction. Registration applies to a foreigner on any visa, other than a diplomatic or official passport, whose stay in a calendar year or on a single entry exceeds 180 days.

There is no counter where the photo is taken. You create an account with your own email address and an Indian mobile number, fill in the application and upload a photo and the required documents; the application is not submitted until those uploads succeed. Visa officers then scrutinise it, ask for any fee or correction by email or SMS, and send the residential permit or other grant by email. You visit the office only if it calls you in, or in an emergency.

India FRRO photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs:[1]

Print size3.5 x 3.5 cm (35 x 35 mm) or 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm), passport size
Digital sizeNo pixel size published: upload a passport-size JPG
BackgroundPlain light-coloured or white, with no shadows
File sizeUp to 1 MB
File formatJPG
Pixels when printed413 × 413 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 827 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
35 mm35 mm
35 × 35 mm photo drawn to scale. Background: plain light-coloured or white.

In the official words

Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:

Photographs which are edited or modified by Photoshop or any other Software/ Mobile App will be rejected.

e-FRRO portal: instructions and photo and documents requirement[1]

Key requirements

  • Unedited photos only

    e-FRRO warns that photographs edited or modified with Photoshop or any other software or mobile app will be rejected. Take the picture against a plain light wall rather than replacing the background afterwards.

  • Two accepted shapes

    The photo requirements accept a passport-size photo of 3.5 x 3.5 cm or 3.5 x 4.5 cm. The separate instructions for diplomatic and official passport holders mention the square 3.5 x 3.5 cm version with a clear light background.

  • Upload the photo portion only

    The file should contain the photo and nothing around it: no border, no edge of a print or scanner bed. Tilted, distorted and blurred photos are not accepted.

  • Full head, centred

    Show your full face from the front with your eyes open. Centre your head in the frame, from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin.

  • Light background, no shadows

    The background should be plain, light-coloured or white, with no shadows on your face or behind you.

  • JPG under 1 MB

    The photo is a JPG of at most 1 MB. Documents go separately as PDFs, one copy of each type, with each PDF up to 1 MB for general applicants.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Take a new photo against a plain light or white wall.
  • Face the camera with your eyes open.
  • Keep your whole head, hair to chin, in the frame.
  • Save the photo as a JPG of 1 MB or less.
  • Upload the photo portion only.
  • Keep a print of the uploaded photo in case the office calls you in.

Don't

  • Do not edit the photo in Photoshop or a phone app.
  • Do not add a border.
  • Do not upload a tilted, distorted or blurred image.
  • Do not leave shadows on your face or the wall.
  • Do not pay an agent who promises a faster grant.

Sample photos

How a India FRRO photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 35 × 35 mm and background colour.

Correct
Open-mouth smile
Head tilted
Too close: head too big
Too far: head too small
Busy background
Shadows on face or background
Glare on glasses

Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.

Babies and children

Each family member needs an individual online form, and so a photo of their own, although all the applications can be submitted from one e-FRRO account.

For a child born in India to foreign parents, the parents must tell the local FRRO or FRO electronically within 30 days of the birth. Where both parents are foreigners, they apply for the child's visa service, a new visa or an exit permit, on e-FRRO within 90 days of the birth; where one parent is a foreigner, the deadline is 30 days from the child acquiring foreign nationality or a foreign passport. Photo upload is mandatory for every application, so the baby needs a photo that meets the same rules.

e-FRRO is digital: the photo is a JPG upload, and the portal's FAQ says there is no appointment or office visit unless the FRRO or FRO calls you. No pixel dimensions are published, so the file has to show a 3.5 x 3.5 cm or 3.5 x 4.5 cm passport-size photo and stay within 1 MB. The portal asks for the photo portion only and rejects photos edited or modified with software or a mobile app, so start from an unretouched picture.

The photo requirements also say to bring the same photo along with the application form. That matters if the FRRO calls you for an interview or you go to the office in an emergency, so keep a print of the uploaded image. Prints of 35 x 35 mm or 35 x 45 mm can be made on a 4x6 inch sheet at a photo counter.

Where to submit the photo

Register on the e-FRRO portal with your own email address and a valid Indian mobile number, log in and choose the service. Complete the form, then use Online Application Submission to upload the photo and the documents. Pay any fee online when the portal asks for it, and track the status from your dashboard.

Apply at least two weeks in advance. Delays in fee payment, uploads or interviews can lead to fines or prosecution under Indian law. Diplomatic, official and service passport holders already in India use a separate set of instructions on the same portal, with document PDFs under 200 KB.

How to get your India FRRO photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the India FRRO: 35 × 35 mm print, plain light-coloured or white background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: unedited photos only; two accepted shapes; upload the photo portion only; full head, centred.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. e-FRRO is digital: the photo is a JPG upload, and the portal's FAQ says there is no appointment or office visit unless the FRRO or FRO calls you.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. Register on the e-FRRO portal with your own email address and a valid Indian mobile number, log in and choose the service. Complete the form, then use Online Application Submission to upload the photo and the documents.

Make this photo online

India FRRO photo FAQ

A passport-size photo of 3.5 x 3.5 cm or 3.5 x 4.5 cm, uploaded as a JPG of up to 1 MB. It should show your full face from the front, eyes open, with the head centred from the top of the hair to the chin, on a plain light or white background.

No. The e-FRRO instructions say photographs edited or modified with Photoshop or any other software or mobile app will be rejected. Take the picture in front of a plain light or white wall, in even light, instead of correcting it afterwards.

Look for edits made in an app, a border, a tilted, distorted or blurred image, shadows on the face or background, or a file that is not a JPG or is larger than 1 MB. The portal also asks you to upload the photo portion only and encourages good-quality uploads.

No. e-FRRO is designed to work without visiting the FRRO or FRO: the photo and documents are uploaded online, and the permit is sent by email or downloaded from the portal. You go to the office only if it asks you to, or in an emergency.

A foreigner on any visa, except a diplomatic or official passport holder, whose total stay in a calendar year or continuous stay on one entry exceeds 180 days must register with the FRRO or FRO concerned. Registration, like extensions and exit permits, is applied for on e-FRRO.

No. The Bureau of Immigration says foreigners registered as OCI cardholders and staying in India are exempt from registration with the jurisdictional FRRO. They must still hold a valid passport and OCI card throughout their stay.

Yes. You can submit applications for family members from the same account, but each person needs an individual form, which means each one needs their own photo uploaded.

Related photo specifications

Other India documents

Residence and work permits nearby

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Official sources

  1. Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs. e-FRRO portal: instructions and photo and documents requirement indianfrro.gov.in. Checked 1 November 2026.
  2. Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs. About PIO/OCI Card boi.gov.in. Checked 1 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"India FRRO photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/india/frro-photo

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