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Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo requirements

The 70 × 100 mm photo rules set by National Transport Authority for the Ireland SPSV taxi licence, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 9 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo?

An SPSV driver licence application needs three identical passport-style photographs, each approximately 10 cm by 7 cm, showing your head and shoulders and meeting passport photo standards in every other respect. You hand them in with Garda form PSV15 at your local Garda station, and renewals on form PSV18 need photographs too. The National Transport Authority then prints your photo on your driver display card and smart card.

A small public service vehicle (SPSV) driver licence lets you drive a taxi, hackney or limousine in Ireland. Two bodies share the work. An Garda Síochána is the licensing authority: it vets applicants, handles applications and grants and renews licences. The National Transport Authority (NTA), as taxi regulator, runs the SPSV Driver Entry Test, processes the licence fee and, once the Gardaí have granted the licence, issues your driver identity and display cards.

Those cards are where your photograph ends up. The SPSV regulations require the driver display card to carry your name, photograph, licence number and licence expiry date, and to sit in a prominent place on the dashboard where passengers in the rear can see it. The NTA also keeps the licence photograph in the SPSV licence register it maintains.

The size is unusual. Instead of a standard 35 x 45 mm passport print, the NTA asks for three larger photographs of about 10 cm by 7 cm.

Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by National Transport Authority:[1]

Print sizeAbout 7 x 10 cm (2.76 x 3.94 in) each, showing head and shoulders
Digital sizeNo digital file: hand in three identical prints with form PSV15
BackgroundNot set by the NTA beyond passport standards; Irish passport photos use plain light grey, white or cream
Print qualityThree identical prints that meet passport photo standards
Pixels when printed827 × 1181 px at 300 dpi · 1654 × 2362 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
70 mm100 mm
70 × 100 mm photo drawn to scale. Background: not set by the NTA beyond passport standards.

Key requirements

  • Three identical photographs

    Get three copies of the same photograph. The NTA calls them passport-style photographs, and its Official Manual for Operating in the SPSV Industry calls them official photographs.

  • Approximately 10 cm by 7 cm

    Each print should measure approximately 10 cm by 7 cm. The NTA gives no tolerance and does not say which side is the height; for a head-and-shoulders portrait that means 7 cm wide and 10 cm high.

  • Head and shoulders in view

    The photographs must show your head and shoulders, so do not crop the picture down to your face.

  • Passport standards for the rest

    Apart from the size, the NTA says the photos must comply with the standards for passport photographs. It does not repeat those standards itself.

  • Photographs at renewal too

    A standard SPSV driver licence lasts up to five years. The renewal checklist on the NTA website lists your photographs, and the SPSV manual repeats the three-photo rule at the same size for renewals.

  • Your photo goes on two cards

    The NTA prints your photograph on a large driver display card for the dashboard of any SPSV you drive, and on a small smart card that you must carry while working.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Order three identical prints of one photo.
  • Make each print approximately 10 cm by 7 cm.
  • Show your head and shoulders.
  • Keep the NTA fee receipt to hand in with the photos.
  • Hand in form PSV15 at your local Garda station.
  • Take a renewal to the Carriage Office if you live in Dublin.

Don't

  • Do not hand in standard 35 x 45 mm passport prints.
  • Do not crop the photo to your face only.
  • Do not use three different photos.
  • Do not pay the licence fee before you pass the entry test.
  • Do not skip the online safeguarding course before paying the fee.

Sample photos

How a Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 70 × 100 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.

Glasses

The NTA publishes no separate rule on glasses, hats or head coverings for SPSV photographs. Beyond the number, size and head-and-shoulders framing, its only instruction is that the photographs comply with the standards for passport photographs, so the pose, lighting and accessory rules you would follow for a passport photo are the ones that apply here.

SPSV driver licence applications are made on paper at a Garda station, so the photos must be physical prints; no photo is uploaded. A digital photo can be cropped to the right proportions and printed at about 10 cm by 7 cm at a photo counter, with three copies of the same image.

Because the prints are larger than ordinary passport photos, start from a sharp original image rather than enlarging a small one. Your photograph appears on both the display card and the smart card the NTA issues, and passengers see the display card on the dashboard.

Where to submit the photo

For a new licence: pass both modules of the SPSV Driver Entry Test, complete the free online Safeguarding and Disability Awareness course, pay the licence fee to the NTA, then fill in form PSV15 and hand it in at your local Garda station. The photos go in with the fee receipt, proof that your tax affairs are in order, your driving licence, an up-to-date NDLS driver statement and your entry test certificate. The Gardaí may ask for other documents too.

As part of the character assessment, the Garda PSV office nearest your home, or the Carriage Office if you live in Dublin, checks two referees who are not family members, and a police certificate of character is required from countries where you have lived outside Ireland. Renewals use form PSV18, which you must complete in person at the renewal centre: your local Garda PSV office outside Dublin, or the Carriage Office in Dublin. Once the Gardaí grant the licence, the NTA sends your display card and smart card.

How to get your Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Ireland SPSV taxi licence: 70 × 100 mm print, not set by the NTA beyond passport standards background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: three identical photographs; approximately 10 cm by 7 cm; head and shoulders in view; passport standards for the rest.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. SPSV driver licence applications are made on paper at a Garda station, so the photos must be physical prints; no photo is uploaded.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. For a new licence: pass both modules of the SPSV Driver Entry Test, complete the free online Safeguarding and Disability Awareness course, pay the licence fee to the NTA, then fill in form PSV15 and hand it in at your local Garda station.

Make this photo online

Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo FAQ

Approximately 10 cm by 7 cm each, according to the NTA, which is far larger than a 35 x 45 mm passport photo. The photographs must show your head and shoulders and otherwise meet the standards for passport photographs.

Three identical photographs for a new SPSV driver licence. The NTA's SPSV manual asks for three photographs of the same size when you renew as well.

With your PSV15 application form at your local Garda station, together with the NTA fee receipt and the other documents. Renewals on form PSV18 go to your local Garda PSV office, or to the Carriage Office if you live in Dublin.

Not a standard 35 x 45 mm print, because the NTA asks for photographs of about 10 cm by 7 cm. The other passport photo standards still apply, so take a passport-standard photo and have it printed at the larger size.

An Garda Síochána grants the licence itself, a paper licence known as the PSV 17. The National Transport Authority then issues a driver display card for the dashboard and a smart card you carry, both showing your photograph, name, licence number and expiry date.

Yes. The SPSV regulations require the driver display card to include your photograph and to be shown prominently on the dashboard, clearly visible to passengers in the rear and to people standing in front of the vehicle.

Up to five years for a standard SPSV driver licence. You can renew up to three months before it expires, and each renewal application on form PSV18 needs photographs.

Related photo specifications

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Official sources

  1. National Transport Authority. Applying for an SPSV driver licence nationaltransport.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  2. National Transport Authority. Renewing an SPSV driver licence nationaltransport.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  3. National Transport Authority. Driver licensing nationaltransport.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  4. National Transport Authority. The Official Manual for Operating in the SPSV Industry, Edition 8.0 nationaltransport.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  5. An Garda Síochána. Form PSV 15: Application for a licence to drive small public service vehicles garda.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  6. Irish Statute Book. S.I. No. 33/2015, Taxi Regulation (Small Public Service Vehicle) Regulations 2015 irishstatutebook.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  7. Department of Transport. Article 60 School Transport Licence Policy Review 2025 assets.gov.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  8. An Garda Síochána. PSV 18 renewal form, March 2020 (PDF) garda.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.
  9. An Garda Síochána. Property found in taxis and PSVs, and forms garda.ie. Checked 1 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with National Transport Authority before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"Ireland SPSV taxi licence photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/ireland/spsv-taxi-licence-photo

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