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United Arab Emirates ID card photo requirements

The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) for the United Arab Emirates ID card, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 7 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the United Arab Emirates ID card photo?

An Emirates ID photo is 3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm) with a white background, as ICP's services guide states. It must meet ICAO standards and, for a renewal, must not be the photo already printed on your card. You attach it to the application online or at a typing office; applicants aged 15 and over also visit an ICP service centre for fingerprints and a signature.

The Emirates ID is the identity card of the United Arab Emirates, issued by ICP. The u.ae portal describes it as a legal requirement for all citizens and residents, who must carry it at all times; it is used for government services, at airport immigration gates and, for citizens, as a travel document within the GCC. ICP issues it to three groups: UAE citizens, GCC nationals and foreign residents, whose card is applied for together with the residence permit.

The photo is not taken when you collect the card. ICP lists the personal photo as a required document of the application, which you submit through the ICP Smart Services website, the UAEICP app or an authorised typing office, and its December 2021 workshop for photography providers was about photos inserted during the electronic submission of ID card and residence applications. What happens in person is biometrics: everyone aged 15 or over must give fingerprints and a signature at an ICP service centre. The finished card arrives by courier, or is collected from a centre if you paid for the urgent service.

United Arab Emirates ID card photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP):[1]

Print size3.5 x 4.5 cm (35 x 45 mm), written 4.5x3.5 cm in ICP's services guide; photo width 35 to 40 mm
Digital sizeNo pixel size published: the photo is attached as a file to the online or typing-office application
Head heightHead and top of shoulders, with the face filling 70 to 80% of the picture
BackgroundWhite; ICP's photo guide calls for a plain, light-coloured background
ColourColour photo with natural skin tones
Photo ageRecent (at most 6 months old), and not identical to the photo on your current card
Print qualityIn focus and high quality, with no ink marks or creases
Pixels when printed413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
35 mm45 mm31.5–36 mm
35 × 45 mm photo drawn to scale, with the 31.5–36 mm head height from chin to crown. Background: white.

In the official words

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

Personal photo (4.5x3.5 cm) with white background

Guide of the Services of ICP (issuance of new ID card)[5]

Key requirements

  • One standard for every card holder

    ICP applies the same photo standard to citizens, GCC nationals and residents: a personal photo of 4.5x3.5 cm with a white background that complies with ICAO standards.

  • Renewal needs a different photo

    When you renew, the photo must be recent and must not be identical to the photograph already printed on your Emirates ID.

  • Straight face, neutral look

    ICP's FAQ asks for a straight face and a neutral expression, with the facial features and eyes shown clearly and no shadows or reflections distorting them.

  • No hats or sunglasses

    Hats and sunglasses are not allowed. Medical glasses are, as long as they do not cover the eyes.

  • Fingerprints in person from 15

    Applicants who have completed 15 years of age must complete the fingerprint and signature procedures at an ICP service centre, attending on the date and time of the appointment they booked.

  • Resident cards follow the residence permit

    For residents, the card is issued through the unified Emirates ID and residence application. ICP's renewal page says the two are renewed together in all emirates except Dubai.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Attach a recent colour photo on a plain white background
  • Use a new photo when you renew, not the one on your current card
  • Keep your head straight and parallel to the camera
  • Book a service-centre appointment for fingerprints if you are 15 or older
  • Check that your face is evenly lit, with no shadow behind your head

Don't

  • Do not submit the photo that is already on your Emirates ID
  • Do not wear a hat, cap or sunglasses
  • Do not let hair fall across your eyes
  • Do not send a blurred, pixelated or creased image
  • Do not let another person, a toy or a chair back appear in the frame

Sample photos

How a United Arab Emirates ID card 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

You may wear glasses in an Emirates ID photo if they are medical glasses that leave your eyes uncovered. ICP's FAQ states that wearing hats or sunglasses is not allowed and that only medical glasses are permitted, provided they do not cover the eyes.

To meet the photo guide, angle the glasses so the camera flash does not bounce off the lenses, avoid tinted lenses, and choose a light frame if you have one. No part of the frame may sit across your eyes.

Headwear and religious dress

The Emirates ID photo follows ICP's general photo guide, which allows a head covering only for religious reasons. Even then, your face has to be clearly shown from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with both edges of the face visible. Hats and caps are not accepted.

ICP's current pages for the ID card do not mention national dress, the ghutra or the shayla specifically. Use the face-visibility rule as the test for any headdress, and ask ICP if you are not sure yours meets it.

Babies and children

Children need an Emirates ID too, and the same photo standard applies to them. The application can be made by the head of the family, a legal representative or a guardian. Fingerprints and a signature are required only from the age of 15.

ICP's services guide says a 10-year card is not issued to citizen children aged 5 to 14, because fingerprinting and signing are tied to the age of 15. Newborn citizens are registered through the Mabrouk Ma Yak package. For a foreign resident's child born in the UAE, ICP starts charging a daily fine four months after the birth, so apply early, with a photo that shows the baby alone against a white background.

The Emirates ID application is electronic, so the photo is a digital image attached to it. ICP publishes no pixel size, file size or format for the upload. If you apply through a typing office, the office attaches the photo for you; ICP's 2021 workshop briefed photography service providers across the emirates on the standards for photos inserted into electronic ID card and residence applications.

Biometrics are a separate step. ICP's ID card pages describe the service-centre visit as fingerprint and signature capture. Its description of the Work Bundle for new employees lists the biometric step as fingerprint and photo, so a new photo may be captured at that appointment too. A digital photo can be cropped and resized to 3.5 x 4.5 cm before you upload it.

Where to submit the photo

Apply for a new card, a renewal or a replacement through the ICP Smart Services website or the UAEICP app (log in with UAE Pass), at an authorised typing office, or at an ICP Customer Happiness Centre. The urgent service, with collection from a centre, has to be requested at the centre itself.

Residents do not apply on their own: the card is linked to the residence permit through the unified identity and residence form, which the sponsor submits. Citizens may renew in the final year of the card's validity, and GCC nationals and residents in the final six months, with a 30-day grace period after expiry before late fines start.

How to get your United Arab Emirates ID card photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the United Arab Emirates ID card: 35 × 45 mm print, white background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: one standard for every card holder; renewal needs a different photo; straight face, neutral look; no hats or sunglasses.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. The Emirates ID application is electronic, so the photo is a digital image attached to it. ICP publishes no pixel size, file size or format for the upload.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. Apply for a new card, a renewal or a replacement through the ICP Smart Services website or the UAEICP app (log in with UAE Pass), at an authorised typing office, or at an ICP Customer Happiness Centre.

Make this photo online

United Arab Emirates ID card photo FAQ

3.5 x 4.5 cm, which is 35 mm wide by 45 mm high. ICP's services guide writes it as 4.5x3.5 cm with a white background, and its photo guide gives the width as 35 to 40 mm with the face filling 70 to 80% of the picture.

You supply it with the application. ICP lists a personal photo among the required documents whether you apply online or through a typing office. The service-centre appointment for applicants aged 15 or over is for fingerprints and a signature, although ICP's Work Bundle for new employees lists photo capture in its biometric step.

No. ICP's renewal conditions say a recent personal photograph must be provided when you apply and must not be identical to the photograph printed on the current Emirates ID card.

Yes, medical glasses are allowed if they do not cover your eyes. Sunglasses are not. Avoid tinted lenses, glare from the flash and frames that cross the eyes.

ICP's photo guide allows head coverings worn for religious reasons, provided the face is clearly visible from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead and both edges of the face can be seen. Hats and caps are not allowed.

White. ICP's FAQ on approved photo standards and its services guide both ask for a white background, and the photo guide adds that it must be plain, with no shadows behind the head.

Only from the age of 15. Younger children need a photo that meets the same standard, but ICP requires the fingerprint and signature procedures at its service centres only for those who have completed 15 years of age.

Related photo specifications

Other United Arab Emirates documents

Identity cards nearby

Also 35 × 45 mm

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Official sources

  1. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). New Identity Card Issuance icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  2. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). Identity Card Renewal icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  3. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). FAQ (ID cards and approved photo standards) icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  4. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). Personal Photo Specifications icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  5. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). Guide of the Services of ICP (issuance of new ID card) icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  6. Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). Workshop on the specifications and standards of the personal photograph icp.gov.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.
  7. u.ae, the official portal of the UAE Government. Emirates ID u.ae. Checked 2 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"United Arab Emirates ID card photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/united-arab-emirates/id-card-photo

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