Tunisia passport photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia for the Tunisia passport, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Tunisia passport photo?
A Tunisian passport photo is about 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) on a white background. The Interior Ministry asks for four prints, whether you apply at a police or national guard station in Tunisia or at an embassy or consulate abroad. The embassy in Washington asks instead for two recent 2 x 2 inch (51 x 51 mm) prints on white and rejects old photos. The prints go in with a paper form; nothing is uploaded.
Ordinary Tunisian passports are issued by the Minister of the Interior under Law 75-40 of 14 May 1975 on passports and travel documents. Today's passport is machine-readable. Organic Law 2024-23 of 11 March 2024 adds a secure electronic chip holding the identity data, leaves the passport model and its technical specifications to a decree, and keeps machine-readable passports valid until they are replaced under a renewal programme set by the Interior Minister.
People living in Tunisia apply at the police or national guard station for their area. Tunisians living abroad apply at an embassy, consulate or other diplomatic representation and add proof that they live there legally. The ministry's procedure guide gives the same photo rule on both routes and for every procedure (first passport, renewal, change of passport, duplicate): four photos with a white background, in a 3.5 x 4.5 cm format.
Missions can publish their own lists. The embassy in Washington, which handles applications from the United States, asks for two recent 2 x 2 inch photos on a white background with each first, renewal or lost-passport application and warns that old photos will be rejected. It sends the new passport back by USPS in a prepaid Priority Mail Express envelope that you include with the file.
Tunisia passport photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia:[1]
| Print size | 35 x 45 mm (3.5 x 4.5 cm), "approximately" in the Arabic text; from the US: 2 x 2 in (51 x 51 mm) |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No upload: printed photos go in with the paper application |
| Background | White (fond blanc); the embassy in Washington also asks for white |
| Photo age | Embassy in Washington: recent photos only, old photos are rejected (no period stated) |
| 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:
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Key requirements
- White background
Every passport procedure in the Interior Ministry's guide lists a white background, for residents of Tunisia and for Tunisians abroad. The embassy in Washington also asks for white. No other colour is mentioned by either source.
- About 35 x 45 mm
The ministry's French text gives the format as 3.5/4.5 cm, and the Arabic text adds that the size is approximate. That is 35 mm wide and 45 mm high.
- Four prints per application
The ministry asks for four photos for a first passport, a renewal, a change of passport and a duplicate after loss, theft or damage. The number is the same in Tunisia and at embassies and consulates.
- 2 x 2 inches from the United States
For the embassy in Washington, send two recent 2 x 2 inch (51 x 51 mm) prints on white. The embassy marks the renewal list with the warning that old photos will be rejected.
- Prints, not an upload
The photos travel with the machine-readable application form, which you fill in and sign in the box provided. Neither the ministry's guide nor the embassy's page describes an online upload or a photo taken at the counter.
- Rules that are not published
Neither source sets a head size, an expression rule, or rules on glasses and head coverings. The page lists only what the ministry and the embassy actually state.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Use a plain white background
- Bring four identical prints in Tunisia or at a consulate
- Send two 2 x 2 inch prints if you apply through the embassy in Washington
- Use recent photos, taken for this application
- Fill in and sign the machine-readable passport form
- Attach your old passport when you renew
Don't
- Do not use a coloured or patterned background
- Do not send photos from an earlier application to the embassy in Washington
- Do not expect to upload a photo online
- Do not apply for a minor without the guardian's authorisation
- Do not forget proof of legal residence if you apply abroad
Sample photos
How a Tunisia 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.
Babies and children
Minors apply with a birth certificate extract in place of a national identity card, together with the authorisation of their guardian (tuteur) and a copy of the guardian's identity card. Pupils and students add proof of enrolment, and a lower stamp duty applies to pupils, students and children under 6. The ministry's list asks for the same four white-background photos whatever the applicant's age.
In Washington, a newborn's birth must first be registered with the embassy; the birth registration and the passport application are never submitted together. The child's file includes a notarised parent's authorisation form with a copy of both sides of that parent's identity card, plus two 2 x 2 inch photos.
Printed and digital photos
Tunisian passport applications use prints only. Hand four prints in with the form in Tunisia or at a consulate, or post two 2 x 2 inch prints to the embassy in Washington. If you apply from the United States, use the 2 x 2 inch format; elsewhere the ministry's 3.5 x 4.5 cm format applies unless your consulate publishes something different.
A digital photo can be cropped to the required size and printed on a 4x6 inch sheet at a photo counter.
Where to submit the photo
In Tunisia, file the application at the police or national guard station that covers your address. For a renewal or a change, bring the old passport; if you want to keep it, ask in a request on plain paper. A duplicate after loss, theft or damage needs a declaration of loss and is issued only after the necessary inquiries.
Abroad, apply at the Tunisian embassy, consulate or diplomatic representation, with a document proving that you live in that country legally. In the United States this is the embassy at 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC. It accepts money orders only, made out to the Embassy of Tunisia. For a lost passport it also wants a US police report and a letter explaining the loss, and applicants with no Tunisian identity card add their fingerprints.
How to get your Tunisia passport photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Tunisia passport: 35 × 45 mm print, white background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: white background; about 35 x 45 mm; four prints per application; 2 x 2 inches from the United States.
- Prepare a print or digital file. Tunisian passport applications use prints only. Hand four prints in with the form in Tunisia or at a consulate, or post two 2 x 2 inch prints to the embassy in Washington.
- Submit the photo with your application. In Tunisia, file the application at the police or national guard station that covers your address. For a renewal or a change, bring the old passport; if you want to keep it, ask in a request on plain paper.
Tunisia passport photo FAQ
About 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in). The Interior Ministry writes the format as 3.5/4.5 cm, and its Arabic text calls the size approximate. Applications sent to the embassy in Washington use 2 x 2 inch (51 x 51 mm) prints instead.
Four, according to the Interior Ministry, for every passport procedure in Tunisia and at embassies and consulates. The embassy in Washington asks for two recent 2 x 2 inch photos with each application.
White. The ministry lists a white background for every passport procedure, and the embassy in Washington asks for a white background too. Neither source accepts or mentions another colour.
Yes. The embassy of Tunisia in Washington lists two recent passport photos of 2 x 2 inches on a white background for first passports, renewals and lost passports. Its renewal list adds that old photos will be rejected.
No. The ministry's guide and the embassy's page both ask you to bring printed photos with the form. Neither describes a photo being taken at the counter.
A chip passport was provided for by Organic Law 2024-23 of 11 March 2024, which leaves its model to a decree. The ministry's procedure guide still describes the machine-readable passport with printed photos. In December 2025 the Minister of Communication Technologies said the project should enter service at the end of 2026 or early in 2027.
You can ask to. The ministry asks you to attach the old passport and to make a request on plain paper if you want to keep it. The embassy in Washington offers an optional pledge form for the same purpose.
Related photo specifications
Other Tunisia documents
- Visa photo
- ID card photo 30 × 40 mm
- Residence card photo
Passports nearby
- Algeria passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Egypt passport photo 40 × 60 mm
- Libya passport photo 40 × 60 mm
- Morocco passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Sudan passport photo
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 Tunisia photo specifications
- Passports: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Africa
Official sources
- Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia. Vos démarches - Passeport services.interieur.gov.tn. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia. خدمات إدارية - جواز السفر (Passport procedures, Arabic) services.interieur.gov.tn. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia. Passport application form (imprimé) services.interieur.gov.tn. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Embassy of the Republic of Tunisia, Washington, DC. Obtaining a Tunisian passport tunisianembassy.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
- DCAF security-sector legislation database (French text of the law). Loi organique n° 2024-23 du 11 mars 2024 (passports and travel documents) legislation-securite.tn. Checked 2 November 2026.
- La Presse de Tunisie. La date de lancement de la carte d'identité et du passeport biométriques enfin annoncée lapresse.tn. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Ministry of the Interior, Republic of Tunisia before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Tunisia passport photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/tunisia/passport-photo