Lebanon visa photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by General Directorate of General Security for the Lebanon visa, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Lebanon visa photo?
For a visa applied for at a Lebanese embassy or consulate, General Security's list asks for photos of 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm). A visa requested inside Lebanon through a sponsor needs a clear colour photo stuck on the application. No background colour is published. Tourists from many countries, including the US, the UK, Canada and Australia, get a free one-month visa at the airport or border, with no photo listed.
Entry visas for Lebanon fall under the General Directorate of General Security (GS). Three channels grant them: GS itself, through a prior approval that a sponsor in Lebanon files at a GS centre; the border departments and centres, which give automatic visas to eligible nationalities on arrival; and Lebanese missions abroad, which issue consular visas with GS approval or under the head of mission's own responsibility.
GS divides visas into work visas, which rest on a prior approval from the Ministry of Labour, and visit visas for individual tourism, groups, study, religious study, medical treatment, an embassy appointment, friendship, family, transit and short business trips. Visas for artists follow separate instructions. For a prior approval, the visa form is filed by a Lebanese citizen, a lawful resident or an organisation in Lebanon, and it must carry a clear colour photo of the visitor.
Applying abroad, the visitor uses the form held by the embassy, again with a clear colour photo on it, and the mission stamps all documents. GS's list for prior visas at missions asks for photos measuring 3.5 x 4.5 cm. GS's website describes no online visa application, so the photo is always a print.
Lebanon visa photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by General Directorate of General Security:[1]
| Print size | 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm) for visas requested at Lebanese missions; no size given for GS prior approval |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No upload: the photo is attached to the paper visa form |
| Background | Not published for visas |
| Colour | Colour, clear (GS visa document list) |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Photo on the form
GS's list for all visa types ends with a clear colour photo of the visitor on the application. A separate application is made for each person, except minors listed on the same passport.
- 3.5 x 4.5 cm at missions
The document list for prior visas at Lebanese missions asks for photos of 3.5 x 4.5 cm with the visa form, a passport copy and the supporting papers. The English version says one passport-size photo.
- Passport valid six months
The visitor's passport must be valid for more than six months. If you live outside your home country, add a residence permit valid for six months as well.
- Free visa on arrival
Tourists from a long list of countries, including the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, Japan and most European states, get a free one-month visa at the airport and border crossings, extendable to three months. GS asks them to give it their address in Lebanon.
- Sponsor's undertaking and insurance
A prior approval filed in Lebanon also needs a notarised undertaking covering accommodation, expenses and the return ticket, health insurance for the visitor and a document showing both parties' professions.
- Apply a month ahead abroad
Mission applications go to Lebanon by diplomatic pouch for security, judicial and administrative review, so GS asks applicants to file at least one month before they travel.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Attach a clear colour photo to the visa form
- Use 3.5 x 4.5 cm prints when you apply at a Lebanese mission
- Check first whether your nationality gets a visa on arrival
- File at the mission at least a month before you travel
- Carry a return ticket and a hotel booking or a clear address
- Make a separate application for each traveller
Don't
- Do not travel on a passport with six months or less left
- Do not submit documents in languages other than Arabic, French or English
- Do not treat a visa as a guarantee of entry
- Do not expect a visit visa to become a work visa without a decision of the Director General
Sample photos
How a Lebanon visa photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 35 × 45 mm and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Headwear and religious dress
GS publishes no rules on glasses, head coverings or expression for visa photos. Its visa lists only ask for a clear colour photo, and the embassy in Washington asks for a passport-size photo that complies with standards without listing them.
The white background and black hijab rule on GS's photo specification page are written for Lebanese citizens' passports, not for visitors.
Babies and children
A child travelling on a parent's passport or travel document does not need a separate application. A child with their own passport needs one, with their own photo.
The embassy in Washington asks, for minors, a notarised parental consent form signed by both parents, a copy of the child's birth certificate and copies of both parents' IDs, submitted with the application.
Printed and digital photos
Every visa route that uses a photo is on paper: the photo is a print glued or attached to the application form, at a mission abroad or, for a prior approval, at a GS centre in Lebanon. There is no published pixel size or upload.
At the border, the automatic visa for listed nationalities is granted on arrival. GS lists conditions such as a return ticket, a hotel booking or clear address and, for some nationalities, proof of funds, but no photo.
A digital photo can be cropped to 3.5 x 4.5 cm and printed on a 4x6 inch sheet at a photo counter.
Where to submit the photo
Abroad, apply at the Lebanese embassy or consulate that covers your place of residence. In Washington, US citizens staying less than a month need no visa in advance; longer stays and other nationalities apply with the form, the passport, one passport-size photo and supporting papers, in person or by mail.
In Lebanon, a sponsor files a prior approval and pays the fee at the Public Relations Department, the Department of Organisations and Human Rights or a regional centre; business visit visas are filed only at the Public Relations Department. The approved visa is then deposited at the border for the visitor's arrival.
How to get your Lebanon visa photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Lebanon visa: 35 × 45 mm print. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: photo on the form; 3.5 x 4.5 cm at missions; passport valid six months; free visa on arrival.
- Prepare a print or digital file. Every visa route that uses a photo is on paper: the photo is a print glued or attached to the application form, at a mission abroad or, for a prior approval, at a GS centre in Lebanon. There is no published pixel size or upload.
- Submit the photo with your application. Abroad, apply at the Lebanese embassy or consulate that covers your place of residence.
Lebanon visa photo FAQ
GS's list for visas requested at Lebanese missions asks for photos measuring 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm). For a prior approval filed inside Lebanon, it asks for a clear colour photo on the form without giving a size.
GS lists no photo for the automatic visa given at the airport and border centres. Eligible tourists receive a free one-month visa, extendable to three months, and some nationalities must show a return ticket, an address and funds.
Not for a short visit. The embassy in Washington says US citizens with a passport valid for more than six months need no visa in advance for stays under a month. For longer stays it recommends applying at the embassy with one passport-size photo.
GS's website describes no online visa application. Visas are requested at a Lebanese mission, through a sponsor in Lebanon or, for eligible nationalities, given on arrival. Be wary of sites that offer a Lebanese e-visa for a fee.
No background colour is published for visa photos. GS asks for a clear colour photo, and Washington asks for one that complies with standards. A plain, light background is the safe choice; ask the mission if it has its own rule.
At least one month before travel. GS explains that mission applications pass through the diplomatic pouch and security, judicial and administrative review before a decision is issued.
Related photo specifications
Other Lebanon documents
- Passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- ID card photo
- Residence permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Work permit photo
Visas and travel authorisations nearby
- Armenia eVisa photo 2 × 2 in
- Armenia visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Azerbaijan visa photo 30 × 40 mm
- Bahrain visa photo
- Georgia eVisa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Georgia visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Iraq visa photo 2 × 2 in
- Israel visa photo 50 × 50 mm
- Jordan visa photo
- Oman visa photo 40 × 60 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 Lebanon photo specifications
- Visas and travel authorisations: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Asia
Official sources
- General Directorate of General Security. Visa granted by the embassy general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- General Directorate of General Security. Prior visas at Lebanese missions (Arabic) general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- General Directorate of General Security. Documents required for deposited visas (Arabic) general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- General Directorate of General Security. How to enter Lebanon by nationality (Arabic) general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- General Directorate of General Security. The list of countries that have the right to a Lebanese visa general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- General Directorate of General Security. Types of visas (Arabic) general-security.gov.lb. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of Lebanon, Washington. Visas lebanonembassyus.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with General Directorate of General Security before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Lebanon visa photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/lebanon/visa-photo