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Visas and travel authorisations

South Africa visa photo requirements

The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by VFS Global for the Department of Home Affairs, South Africa (UK) for the South Africa visa, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 13 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the South Africa visa photo?

South African visa photos depend on where you apply. Missions abroad usually want two 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) prints; Stockholm accepts a white or light background, and Copenhagen rejects home prints and photos over six months old. Inside South Africa, temporary residence applications go through VFS Global, which captures your biometrics. Travellers eligible for the Electronic Travel Authorisation upload a selfie on the official Home Affairs portal instead.

Visas for South Africa are granted by the Department of Home Affairs under the Immigration Act. Visitor's visas and temporary residence visas, such as study, work, relative's and retired person's visas, are applied for at a South African mission abroad. The Washington embassy lists form DHA-84 for stays under 90 days and form DHA-1738 for longer stays. Many nationalities need no visa for a short visit; UK passport holders, for example, are exempt for up to 90 days.

Inside South Africa, the DHA says all immigration applications should be made through VFS Global. You book an appointment, submit at a visa facilitation centre and give your biometrics there. The DHA-1738 form itself carries a box for the fingerprint form with photograph.

Some missions use VFS Global too, London among them, while Stockholm, Canberra and Ottawa take applications at the embassy or high commission. The Electronic Travel Authorisation, launched on 12 August 2026, is a separate online route for short visits by eligible travellers: you scan your passport and upload a selfie, which is compared with the passport photo.

South Africa visa photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by VFS Global for the Department of Home Affairs, South Africa (UK):[1]

Print size35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) where a size is stated (Stockholm, DHA sheet); ETA: a selfie, no size
Digital sizeETA: selfie uploaded with a passport scan; no pixel size published
Head heightDHA sheet published by VFS Global UK: head 29 to 34 mm, face 70 to 80% of the photo
BackgroundWhite or light (Stockholm); light grey or plain cream (DHA sheet via VFS Global UK)
ColourColour; Stockholm accepts colour or black/white for several visa types
Photo ageCopenhagen: not older than 6 months; DHA sheet: not more than one month
Print qualityPrinted professionally; Copenhagen rejects home prints; machine-type or instant photos not acceptable
Pixels when printed413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
35 mm45 mm29–34 mm
35 × 45 mm photo drawn to scale, with the 29–34 mm head height from chin to crown. Background: white or light.

In the official words

Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:

Photographs must be taken and printed professionally – photographs printed at home will be rejected.

Application for a visitor's visa for any period not exceeding three years[2]

Key requirements

  • The mission checklist comes first

    Each South African embassy, high commission or consulate publishes its own checklist. Stockholm asks for two identical 35 x 45 mm photographs for visitor's, study and retired person's visas, and two passport photos with a white or light background for intra-company transfer and relative's visas. Canberra asks for two recent, identical passport photographs.

  • No home prints in Copenhagen

    Copenhagen wants two biometric photographs not older than six months, taken and printed professionally, and says photographs printed at home will be rejected.

  • No booth or instant photos

    Stockholm's business visa checklist and Home Affairs residence checklists say machine-type or instant photographs are not acceptable. The DHA residence checklists also ask for a recent, passport-type, full face photograph with the applicant's names on the back.

  • Biometrics at VFS in South Africa

    Applications lodged inside South Africa go through VFS Global, where you present yourself for biometrics at a visa facilitation centre. The DHA's 2024 general work visa checklist lists no photographs at all.

  • The ETA uses a selfie

    The Electronic Travel Authorisation is applied for on the Home Affairs ETA portal. You register, confirm your phone number and email with a one-time PIN, scan your passport and upload a selfie, and the system compares your face with the passport photo. On arrival, facial verification takes place at immigration.

  • Face rules on the VFS UK sheet

    VFS Global's UK pages for South Africa carry the DHA photo specification: head and top of shoulders, face 70 to 80% of the frame, head 29 to 34 mm, a neutral expression with mouth closed, and uniform light without shadows or red-eye.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Read the checklist of the mission or VFS centre handling your visa.
  • Bring two identical prints unless the checklist says otherwise.
  • Write your names on the back if a DHA checklist asks for it.
  • Have visa photos taken and printed by a professional.
  • Check that your nationality and airport are covered before applying for an ETA.

Don't

  • Do not use photo booth or instant prints.
  • Do not send Copenhagen photos older than six months.
  • Do not print visa photos on a home printer.
  • Do not apply for an ETA through look-alike websites.
  • Do not lodge a traditional visa application after applying for an ETA; the Mexico embassy says the system blocks it.

Sample photos

How a South Africa 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.

Correct
Open-mouth smile
Head tilted
Too close: head too big
Too far: head too small
Busy background
Shadows on face or background
Glare on glasses

Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.

Glasses

The mission visa checklists checked say nothing about glasses. The DHA specification that VFS Global publishes for UK applicants allows them only when the eyes are clearly visible, with no reflection from the lenses, no dark tint or heavy frames, and frames clear of the eyes.

Removing your glasses for the photo is the simplest way to meet those conditions.

Headwear and religious dress

The same DHA specification allows head coverings only for religious reasons. The face must be shown from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with both edges visible, and hats and caps appear among its rejected examples. No mission visa checklist read sets a different rule.

Babies and children

Each child on a visa application is an applicant with their own documents, including photos where the checklist asks for them. For a learner under 18 applying for a study visa, form DHA-1738 also asks for an unabridged birth certificate, details of the adult guardian in South Africa and consent from both parents.

Copenhagen asks for proof of parental responsibilities, or an affidavit of consent from the other parent, for dependent children who travel with the applicant or join later.

Visa applications at missions are made on paper, so prints are needed: two 35 x 45 mm photos in most checklists. A digital photo can be cropped to that size and printed on a 4x6 inch sheet by a photo lab.

The ETA is fully digital: no prints are used, only the selfie you upload and the scan of your passport. At VFS centres in South Africa your biometrics are captured on site.

Where to submit the photo

Abroad, lodge the application at the mission responsible for your country of residence, in person or by courier where the checklist allows. In the UK, VFS Global facilitates short and long stay visas for the High Commission; Stockholm, Canberra and Ottawa take applications at the mission by appointment.

In South Africa, extensions and changes of status are submitted at a VFS Global visa facilitation centre after booking an appointment; the general work visa checklist says an extension must be submitted in person at least 60 days before the visa expires. ETA applications are made online only; the launch speech named OR Tambo, Cape Town, King Shaka and Lanseria as the first airports covered.

How to get your South Africa visa photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the South Africa visa: 35 × 45 mm print, white or light background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: the mission checklist comes first; no home prints in Copenhagen; no booth or instant photos; biometrics at VFS in South Africa.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. Visa applications at missions are made on paper, so prints are needed: two 35 x 45 mm photos in most checklists. A digital photo can be cropped to that size and printed on a 4x6 inch sheet by a photo lab.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. Abroad, lodge the application at the mission responsible for your country of residence, in person or by courier where the checklist allows.

Make this photo online

South Africa visa photo FAQ

Where a mission states a size, it is 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in). Stockholm lists two identical 35 x 45 mm photographs for visitor's, study and retired person's visas, and the DHA specification that VFS Global publishes for UK applicants uses the same size. Canberra and Ottawa simply ask for passport photographs.

No printed photo. The minister's launch speech of 12 August 2026 says applicants register on the Home Affairs ETA portal, scan their passport and upload a selfie, which is compared with the passport photo using biometrics. No size or background rules for the selfie have been published.

Apply only on the Home Affairs ETA portal, whose web address ends in dha.gov.za, as named in the minister's launch speech and on South African mission pages. Sites at other addresses are not the government portal, even if they look similar or offer to apply on your behalf.

The DHA's 2024 checklist for a general work visa lists no photographs, and applicants present themselves for biometrics at the VFS Global centre. Some residence checklists on the DHA website still ask for a recent, passport-type, full face photo with your names on the back, so check the list for your category.

No. Stockholm's checklist for business visas and DHA residence checklists say machine-type or instant photographs are not acceptable. Copenhagen goes further: photos must be taken and printed professionally, and home prints are rejected.

Copenhagen accepts photos no older than six months. The DHA specification published by VFS Global for UK applicants is stricter, at not more than one month old. Photos taken within the last month satisfy both.

Not for a short visit: the High Commission in London says UK passport holders are visa exempt for travel to South Africa for up to 90 days. Longer stays, such as study or work, need a visa application through VFS Global, which publishes the DHA photo specification.

Related photo specifications

Other South Africa documents

Visas and travel authorisations nearby

Also 35 × 45 mm

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Official sources

  1. VFS Global for the Department of Home Affairs, South Africa (UK). Photo requirements vfsglobal.com. Checked 2 November 2026.
  2. South African Embassy, Copenhagen. Application for a visitor's visa for any period not exceeding three years dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  3. South African Embassy, Stockholm. Immigration services dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  4. South African High Commission, Canberra. Visa application dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  5. South African High Commission, Ottawa. Visitor visa (for stays less than 90 days) dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  6. South African High Commission, London. Immigration services dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  7. Embassy of South Africa, Washington DC. Types of visas and requirements dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  8. Department of Home Affairs, South Africa. Requirements dha.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  9. Department of Home Affairs, South Africa. General work visa checklist dha.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  10. Department of Home Affairs, South Africa. Documents required: dependent of a South African citizen over 21 years dha.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  11. Department of Home Affairs, published by the South African Embassy, Paris. Application for visa to temporarily sojourn in the Republic (DHA-1738) dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  12. South African Government. Launch of South Africa's Electronic Travel Authorisation gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.
  13. Embassy of South Africa, Mexico. Visa info dirco.gov.za. Checked 2 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with VFS Global for the Department of Home Affairs, South Africa (UK) before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"South Africa visa photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/south-africa/visa-photo

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