Serbia visa photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia for the Serbia visa, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Serbia visa photo?
A Serbian visa application needs one colour photo of 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm, 1.38 x 1.77 in). The government's Welcome to Serbia portal asks for a sharp, clear photo under 6 months old, with natural skin colour, a light background, your mouth closed and your eyes clearly visible. Online, the photo is uploaded as a JPG, PNG or TIFF file of up to 5 MB.
Serbia issues two kinds of visa. The short-stay visa C allows entry, transit and stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period, for tourism, business, family visits and similar trips. The long-stay visa D covers stays of 90 to 180 days for work, study, family reunification and other grounds, and is the first step towards a temporary residence permit. Since 23 April 2025 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also issued visas electronically, as Digital Travel Authorizations, to nationals of the countries for which the service is enabled; other applicants receive a visa sticker in their passport.
You can apply in person at a Serbian embassy or consulate general, or online on Welcome to Serbia, the government portal for foreign nationals, after creating an account on the Electronic Identification Portal (eID). Many travellers need no visa at all: under a government decision of 30 October 2014, holders of a valid Schengen, UK, EU or US visa, or of a residence permit for the Schengen area, the EU or the United States, may stay for up to 90 days in a six-month period. Check the visa regime for your passport first.
Every visa application includes a photo. The Ministry's list of general requirements gives its size as 3.5 x 4.5 cm, and the paper application form has a photo box of the same size. Welcome to Serbia adds the rest of the guidance: colour, less than 6 months old, sharp and clear, with a light background and the face looking straight at the camera. No head size, pixel dimensions or rules on glasses and headwear are published.
Serbia visa photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia:[1]
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in), written as 3.5 x 4.5 cm |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No pixel size published; the online form takes one face photo file |
| Background | Light background (Welcome to Serbia); no colour is named |
| Colour | Colour, showing natural skin colour |
| Photo age | Less than 6 months old |
| File size | Online: up to 5 MB per attached document |
| File format | Online: JPG, JPEG, PNG or TIFF |
| Print quality | Sharp and clear; the Tokyo embassy asks for the print to be stuck on the form, not stapled |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Size 3.5 x 4.5 cm
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists a photo of 3.5 x 4.5 cm among the general visa requirements, in both the English and the Serbian version of its page. The photo box on the Ministry's paper visa application form is marked with the same size, 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm.
- Colour and less than 6 months old
Welcome to Serbia states that the photo should be in colour and less than 6 months old. It must depict natural skin colour, so do not use filters or tints that change your complexion.
- Sharp, with a light background
The photo must be sharp and clear and have a light background. The portal names no particular colour; a plain light background that sets your face apart meets the wording.
- Mouth closed, looking at the camera
The photo shows the face with the mouth closed and looking directly into the camera, with the eyes clearly visible. Face the lens squarely so that both eyes can be seen.
- Upload rules online
In the online application the photo goes in the Face photo field, which takes one file in .jpg, .jpeg, .png or .tiff format. The portal's instructions tell you to check the allowed extensions and keep each document to 5 MB or less.
- One application per traveller
If other people, such as your children, are registered in your passport, a separate visa application must be submitted for each of them, so each person needs their own photo.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Check on Welcome to Serbia whether your passport needs a visa before you apply
- Use a colour photo taken within the last 6 months
- Choose a plain, light background and even lighting that shows natural skin colour
- Look straight into the camera with your mouth closed and your eyes clearly visible
- Save the online photo as JPG, PNG or TIFF and keep the file under 5 MB
- Glue a printed photo to the paper form if your embassy asks for it, as Tokyo does
Don't
- Do not use a photo older than 6 months
- Do not use a black-and-white photo or one with filters that change skin colour
- Do not send a blurred, dark or grainy picture; it must be sharp and clear
- Do not staple the photo to a paper application in Tokyo
- Do not apply online for a child under 18; minors apply in person
Sample photos
How a Serbia 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.
Glasses
Serbia publishes no specific rule on glasses for visa photos. The one requirement that touches on them is that the eyes must be clearly visible, so if you wear glasses, make sure there is no glare on the lenses and the frames do not hide your eyes. Tinted lenses that obscure the eyes would not meet that wording.
Babies and children
Every child needs a separate visa application and photo, even when the child is registered in a parent's passport. Welcome to Serbia accepts online applications only from people aged 18 or over; applications for minors can be submitted only in person to the competent authority.
The embassy in Nairobi spells out what that means at a mission: the application for an underage child is submitted at the embassy in the presence of both parents and the child, the forms are signed there by both parents, and a notarised consent from the other parent is needed if only one parent comes. Appointments have to be arranged in advance.
Printed and digital photos
For an online application on Welcome to Serbia, you attach the photo as a digital file in the Face photo field: one file, in .jpg, .jpeg, .png or .tiff format, of up to 5 MB. No pixel size is published, so a sharp, well-lit file cropped to the 3.5 x 4.5 cm shape is the safe choice.
For a paper application at an embassy or consulate, bring a printed photo of 3.5 x 4.5 cm for the photo box on the form. Practice at missions varies: the embassy in Tokyo, which takes applications from holders of Taiwanese passports, first wants a colour scan of the photo by email as a JPG file of at most 15 KB, then one colour print stuck on the application form, not stapled.
Where to submit the photo
Apply online through Welcome to Serbia, logging in with an account on the Electronic Identification Portal (eID), or in person at a Serbian embassy or consulate general. The responsible mission is the one for the consular territory where you lawfully reside; if you are in transit and need a visa urgently, you can apply where you are with evidence of the urgency. Apply no earlier than three months before your trip.
Some nationalities can obtain an electronic short-stay visa (e-Visa C) without visiting a mission. Otherwise, once a visa is approved, you contact the mission to arrange for the visa sticker to be put in your passport; in some cases you must attend in person. You can follow the status of an online application on the portal at any time.
How to get your Serbia visa photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Serbia visa: 35 × 45 mm print, light background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: size 3.5 x 4.5 cm; colour and less than 6 months old; sharp, with a light background; mouth closed, looking at the camera.
- Prepare a print or digital file. For an online application on Welcome to Serbia, you attach the photo as a digital file in the Face photo field: one file, in .jpg, .jpeg, .png or .tiff format, of up to 5 MB.
- Submit the photo with your application. Apply online through Welcome to Serbia, logging in with an account on the Electronic Identification Portal (eID), or in person at a Serbian embassy or consulate general.
Serbia visa photo FAQ
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs gives the size as 3.5 x 4.5 cm, which is 35 x 45 mm or about 1.38 x 1.77 inches. The paper visa application form has a photo box of the same size.
Welcome to Serbia asks for a light background. It does not name a colour, so any plain, light background that sets your face apart fits the rule.
The photo must be less than 6 months old, in colour and showing natural skin colour. An older photo, even of good quality, does not meet the requirement.
The Face photo field takes one file in .jpg, .jpeg, .png or .tiff format. Welcome to Serbia's instructions limit each attached document to 5 MB. No pixel dimensions are published.
No specific rule on glasses is published. The photo must show your eyes clearly, so glasses should not cause glare or hide your eyes, and tinted lenses should be avoided.
Yes. Each person registered in a passport needs a separate visa application. Applications for children under 18 cannot be made on the online portal; they are submitted in person, and the Nairobi embassy asks both parents and the child to attend.
Usually not, because you may not need a Serbian visa at all. Holders of a valid Schengen, UK, EU or US visa, or of a residence permit in the Schengen area, the EU or the United States, may stay up to 90 days in six months without a visa.
Online on the Welcome to Serbia portal, using an eID account, or in person at the Serbian embassy or consulate general responsible for the country where you lawfully reside. Apply no earlier than three months before you travel.
Related photo specifications
Visas and travel authorisations nearby
- Albania eVisa photo 36 × 47 mm
- Albania visa photo 36 × 47 mm
- Bosnia and Herzegovina visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Croatia visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Cyprus visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Italy visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Portugal visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Spain 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 Serbia photo specifications
- Visas and travel authorisations: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Europe
Official sources
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia. Visa Requirements mfa.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia. Услови за визу (Visa requirements, Serbian) mfa.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia. Visa Application Form (PDF) mfa.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Detailed information on the visa D documentation welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Short-stay visa (visa C) welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Short-term visa (C visa): travel for tourist or private purposes welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Long-stay visa (visa D) welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Help: frequently asked questions welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Government of the Republic of Serbia, Welcome to Serbia portal. Instructions for Visa C application (PDF) welcometoserbia.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Serbia, Nairobi. Visa for entry into the Republic of Serbia nairobi.mfa.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Serbia, Tokyo. Travel to Serbia: holders of Taiwanese passports tokyo.mfa.gov.rs. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Serbia visa photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/serbia/visa-photo