OpenPhotoId · Documents
Polish passport photo: size and rules from gov.pl, checked in your browser
A Polish passport photo is a colour photo of 35 × 45 mm, taken no more than six months before you apply, showing the whole head and the top of the shoulders, with the face filling 70–80% of the photo on a white, evenly lit background. You bring it printed to the office; only an online passport application for a child under 12 takes a digital file, at least 768 × 1004 px and up to 2.5 MB. OpenPhotoId is a free passport photo maker that makes the Polish passport photo on your own device and checks it before you download or print it. No sign-up, no watermark, and nothing is uploaded.
Polish passport photo size and rules
These rules are from the Polish government’s page on photos for an ID card or passport, “Zdjęcie do dowodu lub paszportu – informacje” on gov.pl [1], checked on 26 October 2026 and translated from Polish.
| Rule | What gov.pl asks for | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Printed photo | colour, 35 × 45 mm (width × height), when you apply at the office | [1] |
| Digital photo | only for an online application, that is for a child under 12: colour, at least 768 × 1004 px, up to 2.5 MB, in the proportions of 35 × 45 mm | [1] |
| Taken | no earlier than 6 months before the application | [1] |
| Head | the whole head from the crown, and the top of the shoulders; the face 70–80% of the photo | [1] |
| Face | straight at the lens, head not tilted, no half-profile; natural expression, mouth closed, eyebrows not covered; eyes open and visible with the pupils; no red eye | [1] |
| Background | white, evenly lit, without shadows or decorations; nobody else in the photo | [1] |
| Light and quality | face evenly lit, no glare on skin or hair; sharp, natural contrast and natural skin colour | [1] |
| Glasses | corrective glasses if the eyes are clearly visible, the frames do not cover the eyebrows and the lenses do not reflect light; dark glasses only with a disability certificate | [1] |
| Head covering | none, unless your religion requires it: then the face stays visible, the whole face oval and the line of the ears uncovered, with a certificate from a religious community registered in Poland | [1] |
| Children under 5 | may have eyes closed, mouth open or an unnatural expression; face not covered by hair or a toy; light, even background | [1] |
gov.pl also allows a beard or moustache that does not make you hard to recognise, and jewellery that does not cover the face oval or break up the background, but suggests a photo without them to avoid problems [1]. The full entry, with its official page, is on the supported documents list.
Applying in person or online
gov.pl says to bring the printed photo to the office. An online passport application is for a child who has not turned 12, and that is the only case where the Polish passport photo is uploaded as a file [1]. For an adult, the photo you need is the 35 × 45 mm print.
What the app makes for a Polish passport photo
- A 781 × 1004 px JPEG of up to 2.5 MB for the online application. It meets gov.pl’s 768 × 1004 px floor and keeps the 35 × 45 shape, so the same file prints at 35 × 45 mm.
- A white background. The app replaces the background with white for this document; you can choose another option under Background.
- The face at 70–80% of the photo height, gov.pl’s figure, in the head-height check.
- Glasses are allowed, and the Glasses check reminds you to keep the lenses clear and free of glare. For tinted glasses or sunglasses it tells you to take them off.
- Twelve checks run on the finished file: face count, head height, eye line, centring, head tilt, glasses, distance between the eyes, sharpness, even lighting, background, size in pixels and file size.
Printing the Polish passport photo
The web app tiles the 35 × 45 mm photo on a 4×6, 5×7, A4 or Letter sheet with cutting guides: 8 photos on a 4×6 in sheet, 10 on 5×7 in, 32 on A4 and 30 on Letter. Print it at actual size, not “Fit to page”, and measure one photo before you cut: it should be 35 mm wide. More on printing the sheet at actual size.
Before you submit a Polish passport photo
- Look straight into the lens with your mouth closed and a natural expression; keep hair away from your eyes and eyebrows.
- Take off a hat, and dark glasses unless you have a disability certificate for them.
- Stand a little away from a plain wall in even light, so there are no shadows on your face or behind you.
- Use a photo taken in the last six months.
- A pass from the app is not an acceptance. The office still checks every photo.
Taking the Polish passport photo yourself? See how to take a passport photo at home, and which documents need a white background.
Questions
What size is a Polish passport photo?
35 × 45 mm (width × height), in colour. For an online application for a child under 12, the file must be at least 768 × 1004 px and no larger than 2.5 MB.
Can I wear glasses in a Polish passport photo?
Corrective glasses, yes, if your eyes are clearly visible, the frames do not cover your eyebrows and the lenses do not reflect light. Dark glasses only with a disability certificate attached to the application.
How old can the photo be?
gov.pl asks for a photo taken no earlier than six months before you apply.
Does OpenPhotoId upload my photo?
No. The face detector and the matting model run in your browser, so the photo never leaves your device, and after the first visit the app works offline.
Free, private, and on every device
Every feature is free, with no account and no watermark. It runs in any modern browser, on desktop or phone, and there are apps for macOS, Windows and Android; the iPhone and iPad download is coming back soon. The source is on GitLab under MIT or Apache-2.0.
Sources, checked 26 October 2026
- gov.pl: Zdjęcie do dowodu lub paszportu – informacje (Ministry of the Interior and Administration; last updated 4 October 2024).