Netherlands driving licence photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by RDW for the Netherlands driving licence, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Netherlands driving licence photo?
A Dutch driving licence (rijbewijs) photo follows the government passport-photo rules: 35 x 45 mm, colour, no more than six months old, head 26 to 30 mm from chin to crown, plain light grey, light blue or white background. Hand in a print at the municipality. To renew online with the RDW a print is no use: an RDW photographer or approved photo booth sends a digital photo and you receive an application code.
Dutch driving licences are issued by the RDW, the Netherlands Vehicle Authority, which also keeps the driving licence register. You apply for your first licence at your municipality, from the day after you pass the CBR practical test, bringing a valid ID card or passport and a colour passport photo. A licence for cars and motorcycles is normally issued for 10 years; C and D categories for 5.
Renewing, or adding a category, can usually be done online with the RDW. That route has its own photo process: an RDW photographer or an approved photo booth captures a digital photo and your signature and sends them straight to the RDW, which checks the photo with an algorithm before you can continue. If you cannot or prefer not to renew online, you renew at the municipality with a printed photo.
The photo standard itself is the one the government sets for passports, identity cards and driving licences together, based on the RvIG photo matrix 2020. Dutch nationals living outside the EU and EFTA renew by post with the RDW.
Netherlands driving licence photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by RDW:[1]
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) colour print at the municipality; online renewal uses a digital photo in the same ratio |
|---|---|
| Digital size | Online renewal only: 901 x 1158 pixels, sent by an RDW photographer or booth; you cannot upload one yourself |
| Head height | 26 to 30 mm from chin to crown (applicants aged 11 and over) |
| Background | Light grey, light blue or white; plain, single colour, no gradient |
| Colour | Colour photo |
| Photo age | Print: no more than 6 months old; online application code valid 6 months |
| File size | Online renewal: at most 170 KB, sent by the photographer |
| File format | JPEG, 24-bit colour, 80% quality (photographer upload) |
| Print quality | High-quality smooth photo paper, at least 400 dpi, not a copy, unedited |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
In the official words
Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:
unaltered by computer software
Key requirements
- Online renewal needs a digital photo
Ordinary passport photos cannot be used to renew online. Have a digital photo taken by an RDW photographer or at an approved photo booth; the RDW location finder lists both. The photographer or booth sends the photo, and the signature for your new licence, to the RDW. You do not upload anything, and the RDW tells you not to use an older passport photo.
- An algorithm checks the photo
Before you can continue online, an RDW algorithm checks the photo against the Dutch photo matrix, looking at position, background colour, contrast and white flash spots on the skin. It then compares the new photo with the one in the driving licence register, which is the photo on your current licence. If the match is below the set level, you receive a rejection email and must renew at the municipality.
- Keep the printed copy
The RDW advises its photographers to give you at least one printed photo. If the digital photo is not accepted for online renewal, you can use that print to apply at the municipality. The RDW notes that a weak match is relatively common with young people, whose faces change, and can also happen when the register photo falls short of the legal requirements.
- Application code, valid six months
Within a few minutes the RDW sends an application code by email or text message. You need it, plus the DigiD app with an ID check or identity-document login, to apply; logging in with an SMS check is not enough. The code is valid for six months. If no message arrives, contact the photographer.
- What the photographer sends
RDW photographers must follow the photo matrix 2020 and deliver a JPEG of 901 x 1158 pixels, 24-bit colour at 80% quality, no larger than 170 KB, in the 35 x 45 mm proportion. They may take the photo only at their own premises, and must show you the photo and signature and get your explicit permission before sending them.
- From abroad: post a print
If you live outside the EU and EFTA, are not registered in the Netherlands and hold EU or EFTA nationality, you renew by post: return the original form with a colour photo no more than six months old, a copy of your passport or ID and your Dutch licence. A head covering in the photo may have only one colour.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Check that your municipality offers online renewal.
- Bring your driving licence number to an approved photo booth.
- Confirm your email address and mobile number with the photographer.
- Keep the printed photo the photographer hands you.
- Bring a valid ID card or passport to the municipality.
- Use the application code within six months.
Don't
- Do not try to renew online with an ordinary passport photo.
- Do not reuse an older passport photo.
- Do not post a copy of the RDW form from abroad; send the original.
- Do not wear a multicoloured head covering.
- Do not alter the photo with software.
Sample photos
How a Netherlands driving licence 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
The RDW does not publish a glasses rule of its own: municipal staff and the RDW algorithm apply the same photo matrix as for passports. Both eyes must be clearly visible behind fully transparent lenses, the frame may not cover them, and there must be no disturbing glare or shadow. If glare cannot be prevented, take the glasses off. People who only sometimes wear glasses may choose.
Headwear and religious dress
The RDW reminds people who renew from abroad that a head covering may have only one colour. Under the photo matrix, a head covering is accepted only for religious or philosophical reasons, or after hair loss caused by illness or medical treatment; it must be plain, contrast with the background and leave the face fully visible. Caps and hats are refused.
Printed and digital photos
The driving licence is the one Dutch document that already has a digital photo route. For online renewal, the photographer's software sends a JPEG of 901 x 1158 pixels straight to the RDW, together with your signature, and then deletes it automatically. You never handle the file, so a photo you take or edit yourself cannot be used for that route.
At the municipality, and for postal renewal from abroad, you hand in or send a printed colour photo instead. For those channels a digital photo can be cropped to 35 x 45 mm and printed on a 4 x 6 inch sheet at a photo counter; the print still has to meet the photo matrix, including the ban on editing.
Where to submit the photo
First licence, renewal at the counter, and a replacement after loss or theft: go to the municipality where you are registered, with a valid ID and a colour passport photo, and check its website for appointments. The RDW makes the licence and you collect it at the town hall.
Online renewal: have the digital photo made, apply on the RDW website with DigiD, pay online, then collect the licence at your municipality within three months, handing in the old one. The English RDW page says your municipality must take part in online renewal; check its municipality finder.
From abroad: request the paper form, which the RDW sends only to a Dutch correspondence address, and post it back with the photo and copies. If you live in another EU or EFTA country, you cannot renew a Dutch licence; exchange it in your country of residence instead.
How to get your Netherlands driving licence photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Netherlands driving licence: 35 × 45 mm print, 901 × 1158 px digital file, light grey background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: online renewal needs a digital photo; an algorithm checks the photo; keep the printed copy; application code, valid six months.
- Prepare a print or digital file. The driving licence is the one Dutch document that already has a digital photo route. For online renewal, the photographer's software sends a JPEG of 901 x 1158 pixels straight to the RDW, together with your signature, and then deletes it automatically.
- Submit the photo with your application. First licence, renewal at the counter, and a replacement after loss or theft: go to the municipality where you are registered, with a valid ID and a colour passport photo, and check its website for appointments.
Netherlands driving licence photo FAQ
It is 35 x 45 mm, the same as the passport and ID card photo, with the head 26 to 30 mm from chin to crown. For online renewal the RDW photographer sends a digital version in the same proportion, 901 x 1158 pixels.
At the municipality, a spare print can be used if it meets the requirements and is no more than six months old when you apply. For online renewal, no: the RDW needs a new digital photo taken by an RDW photographer or approved booth, and says not to use an older passport photo.
No. Only an RDW photographer or an approved photo booth can send the digital photo and signature to the RDW. Ordinary passport photos, and photos you take yourself, cannot be used for online renewal. You can still renew at the municipality with a compliant printed photo.
The RDW algorithm checks the photo against the photo matrix and compares it with the photo in the driving licence register. If the match is below the set level, you get a rejection email. It can happen when your face has changed a lot or the register photo itself is below standard. Apply at the municipality with the printed photo instead.
Six months. The photographer or booth triggers an email or text message with the code within a few minutes, and without it you cannot apply online. If nothing arrives, contact the photographer.
A colour passport photo no more than six months old that meets the Dutch photo requirements; a head covering may have only one colour. Send it with the original RDW form, a copy of a valid EU or EFTA passport or ID card, and your Dutch licence.
Yes, under the same conditions as a passport photo: eyes fully visible, fully transparent lenses, and no disturbing reflection or shadow. Remove them if glare cannot be avoided.
Related photo specifications
Other Netherlands documents
- Passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- ID card photo 35 × 45 mm
Driving licences nearby
- Austria driving licence photo 35 × 45 mm
- Belgium driving licence photo 35 × 45 mm
- France driving licence photo 35 × 45 mm
- Germany driving licence 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 Netherlands photo specifications
- Driving licences: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Europe
Official sources
- RDW. Renewing your driving licence online rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Rijbewijs online verlengen rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Applying or renewing rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Renewing your Dutch driving licence from abroad rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Voorregistratie pasfoto en handtekening DAR rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Pasfoto digitaal aanleveren rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Hoe werkt het halen van een rijbewijs rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Rijbewijs aanvragen na vermissing of diefstal rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- RDW. Geldigheid rijbewijs rdw.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Netherlands. Requirements for photos government.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Rijksoverheid. Eisen aan de pasfoto voor paspoort of ID-kaart rijksoverheid.nl. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with RDW before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Netherlands driving licence photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/netherlands/driving-licence-photo