Pakistan visa photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA) for the Pakistan visa, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Pakistan visa photo?
A Pakistan visa photo follows the Pakistan Online Visa System (POVS) photograph guide: the 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) passport format, a plain white background, head and shoulders filling 70 to 80% of the frame, no glasses, taken within the last six months. You upload it as a file of up to 350 KB. Applying from the US changes nothing: missions there accept visa applications only through POVS.
Visas for Pakistan are applied for online. From 1 January 2021 the Government of Pakistan has required every visa application to go through the Pakistan Online Visa System (POVS), the visa portal hosted by NADRA, and missions such as the Consulate General in Los Angeles say manual processing of visa cases has been discontinued. You create an account, pick your visa category, fill in the form, upload documents and a photograph, pay by card and submit. A mission sees you in person only if it calls you for an interview.
The photo is therefore a digital upload. The POVS how-to-apply page asks for a photograph of up to 350 KB, captured as explained in its photograph tutorial. The tutorial sets the rules: no more than six months old, a plain white background, the passport format of 45 mm high by 35 mm wide, and a close-up in which the face takes up 70 to 80% of the picture. Successful applicants receive an electronic Visa Grant Notice by email, or an Electronic Authorization to Travel (ETA) for visa-on-arrival categories.
If you apply from the United States, the same rules apply. The Embassy of Pakistan in Washington processes visa applications only online through POVS and simply lists a passport-style photograph among the required documents; no US mission page read for this guide sets a 2 x 2 inch (51 x 51 mm) size. Indian nationals are the exception: they cannot use POVS and fill in a visa form instead, and DGI&P's notice for the visa form asks for two photographs with a white background, 35 x 45 mm.
Pakistan visa photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA):[1]
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in): 45 mm high by 35 mm wide, passport format |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No pixel size published; upload a photo file of up to 350 KB |
| Head height | Face takes up 70 to 80% of the photo: close-up of head and top of shoulders |
| Background | Plain white |
| Colour | High-quality colour, colour neutral, natural skin tones |
| Photo age | No more than 6 months old |
| File size | Up to 350 KB (POVS); the Consulate General in Melbourne says up to 200 KB |
| Print quality | No print for POVS; paper forms (Indian nationals) take two 35 x 45 mm prints, white background |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Online only
All visa applications are made in POVS and the photograph is uploaded with the form. The Washington embassy and the Los Angeles consulate no longer take manual visa applications; Indian nationals are the one group the embassy sends to a paper form.
- File under 350 KB
The POVS how-to-apply page caps the photograph at 350 KB. The Consulate General of Pakistan in Melbourne quotes 200 KB, so a file under 200 KB is accepted under both figures.
- 70 to 80% close-up
The photograph tutorial wants a close-up of your head and the top of your shoulders, with your face taking up 70 to 80% of the picture, in sharp focus and clear.
- You alone on white
Use a plain white background and uniform lighting, with no shadows, no flash reflections on your face and no red eye. Nobody else may appear, and no chair backs should be visible behind you.
- True colour
The picture must be colour neutral, show your skin tones naturally and have appropriate brightness and contrast. Photographs from a digital camera must be high-quality colour.
- Face the lens
Look directly at the camera with your eyes open, no hair across them, your mouth closed and a neutral expression. A portrait-style pose over one shoulder or a tilted head is rejected, and both edges of your face must show.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Use a colour photo taken in the last six months.
- Stand against a plain white background.
- Frame your head and the top of your shoulders.
- Keep the file within 350 KB, ideally under 200 KB.
- Make a separate application, with its own photo, for each traveller.
- Check the REVIEW tab after you submit.
Don't
- Do not wear glasses in the photo.
- Do not wear a hat, helmet or sunglasses.
- Do not include other people or chair backs.
- Do not turn your shoulders or tilt your head.
- Do not upload a blurred picture or one with a colour cast.
- Do not post printed photos unless your mission uses a paper form.
Sample photos
How a Pakistan visa 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
Remove your glasses. Under the heading for people who wear glasses, the POVS photograph tutorial says the photograph must show your eyes clearly with no glasses on.
One mission is more relaxed: the Consulate General of Pakistan in Melbourne allows everyday glasses but not sunglasses, and the paper visa form published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the same. Taking glasses off meets every version of the rule.
Headwear and religious dress
Head coverings are permitted by the POVS tutorial, provided your facial features from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, and both edges of your face, are clearly shown.
The Melbourne consulate asks for a photo without a hat or helmet, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs paper form wants a full face with no hat. A headscarf worn so that the forehead, chin and both sides of the face stay visible meets these rules.
Babies and children
Each child travelling with you needs a separate visa application. POVS treats accompanying family members named on your form as information only: listing them does not apply for a visa for them, so every child has their own application and their own photograph meeting the same rules.
The photograph tutorial gives no separate rules for babies or young children, so a child's picture follows the adult rules: plain white background, the child alone in the frame, eyes open, looking at the camera, mouth closed. US missions also want a notarised parental consent form, the child's birth certificate and the parents' IDs for applicants under 16.
Printed and digital photos
For almost everyone the visa photo is digital only: you upload it to POVS and print nothing. The tutorial still describes the photo in print terms, 45 mm high by 35 mm wide, so crop your digital photo to that portrait shape before uploading and keep the file within 350 KB. POVS publishes no pixel dimensions.
If you apply from the United States, use the same digital photo: the Washington embassy lists a passport-style photograph and tells applicants to upload documents and photograph in POVS. Prints are needed only for manual applications such as those from Indian nationals, for which DGI&P asks for two photographs with a white background, 35 x 45 mm. They can be printed from a digital photo on a 4x6 inch sheet at a photo counter.
Where to submit the photo
Apply in the Pakistan Online Visa System: create an account, verify your email, log in, choose the visa category, complete the form, upload the documents and photograph, pay online and submit. The mission covering where you live processes the application; the Embassy in Washington takes only residents of its consular jurisdiction and requires a US state-issued ID or driving licence for every category.
After submitting, check the REVIEW tab regularly. If extra documents are requested, upload them within 7 days, or the application is cancelled automatically. You may be called to the mission for an interview.
How to get your Pakistan visa photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Pakistan visa: 35 × 45 mm print, plain white background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: online only; file under 350 KB; 70 to 80% close-up; you alone on white.
- Prepare a print or digital file. For almost everyone the visa photo is digital only: you upload it to POVS and print nothing.
- Submit the photo with your application. Apply in the Pakistan Online Visa System: create an account, verify your email, log in, choose the visa category, complete the form, upload the documents and photograph, pay online and submit.
Pakistan visa photo FAQ
The POVS photograph tutorial describes the standard passport format, 45 mm high by 35 mm wide (35 x 45 mm, 1.38 x 1.77 in), with your head and the top of your shoulders taking up 70 to 80% of the picture. Online you upload it as a file of up to 350 KB; no pixel size is published.
The POVS how-to-apply page says the photograph can be up to 350 KB. The Consulate General of Pakistan in Melbourne quotes 200 KB on its visa page, so a file below 200 KB meets both figures.
No 2 x 2 inch requirement appears on the US mission pages read for this guide. The Embassy in Washington and the Consulate General in Los Angeles take visa applications only through POVS, so you upload a passport-style photo that follows the POVS tutorial: 35 x 45 mm format, white background, up to 350 KB.
The POVS tutorial says no: the photograph must show your eyes clearly with no glasses on. The Melbourne consulate and the paper visa form allow everyday glasses but not sunglasses. Removing your glasses is the safe choice.
Yes. The tutorial permits head coverings as long as your face is clearly shown from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with both edges of the face visible. The Melbourne consulate and the paper form rule out hats and helmets.
Yes. Naming accompanying family members on your form does not apply for a visa on their behalf. POVS requires a separate application for each person, and each one needs its own photo meeting the same rules, children included.
Not for an online application: POVS takes a digital upload. Paper forms are only for applicants who cannot apply online, such as Indian nationals; DGI&P's notice for the visa form asks for two photographs with a white background, 35 x 45 mm.
Related photo specifications
Other Pakistan documents
Visas and travel authorisations nearby
- Afghanistan visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Bangladesh eVisa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Bangladesh visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- India e-Visa photo
- India visa photo 2 × 2 in
- Iran eVisa photo
- Nepal visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Sri Lanka visa 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 Pakistan 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
- Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA). How to Apply visa.nadra.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA). Photograph Guide: Visa Application photograph capturing guidelines visa.nadra.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA). Frequently Asked Questions visa.nadra.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Government of Pakistan. Pakistan Online Visa System visa.nadra.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Directorate General of Immigration & Passports. Visa dgip.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Embassy of Pakistan, Washington DC. Visa for Pakistan mofa.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Consulate General of Pakistan, Los Angeles. Visa services mofa.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Consulate General of Pakistan, Melbourne. Visa pakconsulatemelbourne.org.au. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pakistan. Visa Application Form mofa.gov.pk. Checked 1 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Pakistan Online Visa System (NADRA) before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Pakistan visa photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/pakistan/visa-photo