Mali passport photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Government of Mali, administrative procedures portal for the Mali passport, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Mali passport photo?
The passport office in Bamako asks for 2 colour identity photos and publishes no size. Embassies add the detail: facing the camera on a white background, and Tokyo writes the format as 45 x 35 mm. The number of prints depends on the mission: 2 in Rome, 3 in Brussels, 4 in Berlin, and 2 or 3 in Tokyo. The Washington embassy and the Paris consulate general list no photo for the passport.
The Malian biometric passport is issued by the Direction de la Police des Frontières, which belongs to the Ministry of Security and Civil Protection and sits at ACI 2000 in Bamako. The government's administrative-procedures portal describes the route: you fill in the form at the deposit counter, the file goes to the Visa division, and the passport then passes through an imaging unit "où on appose la photo scannée". The office therefore works from a printed photograph that you hand in, not from an upload.
Malians abroad apply at the embassy or consulate that covers their country of residence. The applicant obtains an eVoucher payment receipt, proves a NINA number, and appears in person so that fingerprints can be taken. Each mission writes its own checklist, which is why the number of prints and the wording of the photo rule differ from one city to the next.
Official detail on the photo itself is thin. No Malian government page read for this guide gives a size, a head position or a background colour for passport photos. The only size appears in two Tokyo embassy documents, and the white background comes from the embassy pages in Tokyo, Brussels, Rome and Berlin rather than from the Bamako office.
Mali passport photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Government of Mali, administrative procedures portal:[1]
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm (the Tokyo embassy writes "45 x 35 mm"); no size on Mali's own pages |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No digital file: hand in printed photos with the paper application |
| Background | White (Tokyo, Brussels, Rome and Berlin embassies); Mali's own pages do not say |
| Colour | Colour photographs |
| Photo age | Recent photographs; no maximum age is stated |
| Print quality | Prints: 2 in Bamako and Rome, 3 in Brussels, 4 in Berlin, 2 or 3 in Tokyo |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Two colour prints in Bamako
The Police des Frontières lists "2 photos d'identité en couleurs" among the documents for an adult applicant, and the same two colour photos for a minor. The portal gives no size, head position or background colour for them.
- The print is scanned, not uploaded
The portal says the passport reaches an imaging unit where the scanned photo is attached. No online upload of a passport photo is described anywhere, and the embassy checklists treat the photos as papers to hand in.
- Abroad: facing the camera on white
The embassies in Tokyo, Brussels, Rome and Berlin all ask for colour photos taken "de face et sur fond blanc" or the equivalent wording. The Washington embassy and the Paris consulate general list no photograph for the passport at all.
- The number of prints changes by mission
Rome asks for 2 (for the manual application), Brussels for 3 and Berlin for 4. Tokyo's two pages disagree: one asks for 2 prints, the other for 3, and neither is dated. Bring the count your own mission lists.
- Only Tokyo writes a size
The Tokyo documents page and a 2018 Tokyo notice give the format as "45 x 35 mm", and neither says which side is the width. Read as a portrait photo, that is 35 mm wide and 45 mm high. Brussels, Rome and Berlin give no size.
- The new e-passeport AES
A Tokyo embassy notice dated 16 December 2025 announced that applications for the new "e-passeport AES Mali" had started. It said the documents to provide stayed the same apart from the fee and a new two-page A4 form, and it set no new photo rule.
- Photos and fingerprints are separate steps
Tokyo takes ten-finger ink fingerprints on the application form when the applicant attends in person. Berlin adds that identity photos can now be taken on site, which is the only mission read that says so.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Bring the exact number of colour prints that your own embassy or consulate lists.
- Face the camera squarely against a plain white background if you apply abroad.
- Use a recent photograph.
- Hand in paper prints together with the application form.
- Ask your mission whether it expects the 45 x 35 mm format that Tokyo writes.
Don't
- Do not hand in black-and-white prints.
- Do not assume the print count of one city applies in another.
- Do not try to upload a file in place of printed photos.
- Do not treat the Tokyo size as a Bamako rule; the portal does not repeat it.
Sample photos
How a Mali passport 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.
Glasses
None of the Malian passport sources read mentions glasses. The Paris consulate general asks for photos "sans verres, foulard et couvre-chef" for its laissez-passer and its deposit certificate, but its own passport page lists no photograph, so that wording is not recorded as a passport rule. If you wear glasses, ask your mission whether it expects them off.
Headwear and religious dress
No passport rule on headwear is published by the Bamako office or by the embassies read. The only wording found is the Paris consulate's ban on a scarf or head covering in photos for the laissez-passer and the deposit certificate. For a passport, ask the mission that will take your file.
Babies and children
In Bamako a minor needs the same 2 colour identity photos, plus a legalised parental authorisation and a photocopy of the passport or identity card of the guardian. Tokyo and Brussels also list a parental authorisation for minors, and Brussels wants it signed by both parents with copies of their identity documents. No source gives a separate photo size or pose rule for babies or young children.
Printed and digital photos
No source describes an upload of the passport photo. The passport office scans the print it receives, and the embassy lists place the photos among the papers you bring. A digital photo can be cropped to the size your mission wants and printed in colour at a photo counter, several copies on one 4x6 inch sheet, then cut apart.
Mali's pages do not say whether a print from a home printer is accepted. Berlin asks you to print your documents in colour before you attend, and adds that photos can be taken on site.
Where to submit the photo
In Mali, go to the Direction de la Police des Frontières at ACI 2000, Bamako, where the form is filled in at the deposit counter. The portal cites an interministerial order of 7 June 2002 as the text that sets the conditions for issuing the national passport.
Abroad, apply at the embassy or consulate for your country of residence. The Tokyo page says its jurisdiction covers Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and the Philippines, and that requests go through the foreign ministry to the technical authorities in Mali. Brussels and the Paris consulate general work by appointment.
How to get your Mali passport photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Mali passport: 35 × 45 mm print, white background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: two colour prints in Bamako; the print is scanned, not uploaded; abroad: facing the camera on white; the number of prints changes by mission.
- Prepare a print or digital file. No source describes an upload of the passport photo. The passport office scans the print it receives, and the embassy lists place the photos among the papers you bring.
- Submit the photo with your application. In Mali, go to the Direction de la Police des Frontières at ACI 2000, Bamako, where the form is filled in at the deposit counter. The portal cites an interministerial order of 7 June 2002 as the text that sets the conditions for issuing the national passport.
Mali passport photo FAQ
No Malian government page gives a size. The Tokyo embassy writes "45 x 35 mm" on its documents page and in a 2018 notice, without saying which side is the width; read as a portrait photo, that is 35 mm wide and 45 mm high. The Brussels, Rome and Berlin embassies give no size.
It depends on where you apply. The Bamako passport office lists 2, and so does Rome for the manual application. Brussels asks for 3 and Berlin for 4. Tokyo's pages say 2 on one and 3 on the other. The Washington embassy and the Paris consulate general list none.
White, according to the embassies in Tokyo, Brussels, Rome and Berlin, which also say the photo is taken facing the camera. The Bamako passport office and the government portal do not state a background colour.
The portal describes a scanned photograph attached at the imaging stage, which points to a print you supply. Among the embassies read, only Berlin says photos can be taken on site. Ask the office before you go if you want it to take the picture.
No change was announced. A Tokyo embassy notice of 16 December 2025 says the documents to provide stay the same, except for the fee and a new two-page A4 application form. No Malian authority has published a new photo specification.
No upload channel is described for the passport photo. The Bamako office scans the print it receives, and the embassies ask for printed photos with the paper file. A digital photo can be printed on a 4x6 inch sheet and cut into passport prints.
Yes. In Bamako a minor needs 2 colour identity photos, a legalised parental authorisation and a photocopy of the guardian's passport or identity card. No separate photo rule for children is published.
The Direction de la Police des Frontières, part of the Ministry of Security and Civil Protection, in Bamako. Embassies and consulates take applications abroad and send them to Mali.
Related photo specifications
Passports nearby
Also 35 × 45 mm
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- 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
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- All Mali photo specifications
- Passports: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Africa
Official sources
- Government of Mali, administrative procedures portal. Passeport (procedure, documents to provide) demarchesadministratives.gouv.ml. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Japan. Obtention des documents administratifs et consulaires (passport section) ambamali-jp.org. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Japan. Visa and consular documents (biometric passport list) ambamali-jp.org. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Japan. Updated notice on biometric passport applications (scanned PDF) ambamali-jp.org. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Japan. Notice no. 010/AMJT/2025 on the e-passeport AES Mali (scanned PDF, 16 December 2025) ambamali-jp.org. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Belgium. Le Passeport amba-mali.be. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Italy. Passeports ambassademali.it. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in Germany. Passeport ambassademali.de. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Embassy of Mali in the United States. Malian passport application maliembassy.us. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Consulat général du Mali à Paris. Passeports consulatdumalienfrance.fr. Checked 3 November 2026.
- Consulat général du Mali à Paris. Laissez-passer et attestations consulatdumalienfrance.fr. Checked 3 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Government of Mali, administrative procedures portal before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Mali passport photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/mali/passport-photo