Ireland passport photo size and maker
Ireland photos are 35 mm by 45 mm with the face measuring 31.5 to 36 mm from chin to crown, on a light grey background. Upload a photo and we handle the rest.
Photo format
Head height 31.5-36 mm
Background: Plain light grey
Glasses: must be removed
Background
Compliance
Upload a photo and every requirement is checked here in real time.
Private by design
Your photo is processed entirely inside this browser tab. It is never uploaded to a server, so there is nothing for us to store, share or leak.
Read the full requirement checklistIreland photo requirements
- Irish passport photos are 35 mm x 45 mm with the face measuring 31.5 mm to 36 mm.
- The background must be a plain light grey or light blue, never white or patterned.
- Online renewals need a digital photo; first-time applications need four printed photos.
- Glasses must be removed.
Getting the head height right
The chin-to-crown measurement is the number that decides most applications, and it is measured to the top of your hair rather than your hairline. For Ireland that means the head must occupy 70% to 80% of the photo height. There is no reliable way to judge this by eye, which is why the tool above reports the figure in millimetres and flags it when the crop drifts out of range.
Lighting beats camera quality
A phone camera is more than good enough. What separates a pass from a retake is the light and the distance. Face a window during daylight so the light is soft and frontal, and have the photo taken from about two metres away rather than at arm's length, which visibly enlarges the nose and forehead in a way biometric checks notice.
The background does not have to be perfect
Ireland requires a plain light grey backdrop, which few homes have. Photograph against any plain, evenly lit wall and turn on background replacement above; the correct shade is preselected for you. The one thing replacement cannot fix is a hard shadow on the wall, so stand at least half a metre clear of it.
What a reviewer is looking for
One compliant photo, five of the faults that cause most rejections.
Accepted
Neutral expression, even lighting, plain background, head correctly sized and centred.
Shadow on the face
A side light or overhead lamp leaves one side of the face dark. Face a window instead.
Background not plain
A textured, coloured or shadowed wall. Turn on background replacement to fix this.
Glasses causing glare
Reflections hide the eyes. Most countries want glasses removed entirely.
Head tilted
The head must be square to the camera. Use the straighten slider to correct small tilts.
Head too large
The crown is cut off and the head exceeds the allowed millimetre range.
Ireland photo questions
The photo is the easy part. We handle the other 40 documents.
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