South Africa passport photo: live capture and printed-photo rules
The photo route for a South African passport depends on where and how you apply. If you use eHomeAffairs and attend a smart Home Affairs office or an enabled bank branch, your photograph and other biometric details are captured or verified in person. You do not upload a prepared portrait as your passport photo.
If you apply at a non-smart Home Affairs office, you may need to bring two printed colour photos. Applications made through a South African embassy, high commission or consulate abroad commonly require printed photos too, but the number of copies and some specifications can vary by mission.
This guide explains how to identify the correct route, the requirements that apply when printed photos are requested, and how to prepare a South African passport photo online.
Table of contents
- Do you need to submit a photo for a South African passport application?
- South Africa passport photo requirements
- South African passport photo size
- South Africa passport photo prices
- South Africa passport photo online
- South Africa passport photo: where to print
- Links
Do you need to submit a photo for a South African passport application?
You need to submit printed photos only when the office or South African mission processing your passport application does not capture the passport image digitally. The answer depends on your application route, not on whether you are applying for your first passport or replacing an existing one.
| Application route | Do you submit a photo? | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| eHomeAffairs with a smart Home Affairs office or enabled bank branch | No prepared photo is normally submitted | You attend the selected location so staff can capture or verify your photograph, fingerprints and signature. |
| Non-smart Home Affairs office | Yes, when the office does not capture photos digitally | Bring two identical colour passport photos that meet the printed-photo requirements. |
| South African embassy, high commission or consulate abroad | Usually yes | Use the number and format stated in that mission's passport checklist. The standard specification refers to two prints, but some missions request four. |
eHomeAffairs lets eligible applicants complete steps such as entering application details, uploading supporting documents and making payment online. It does not turn the passport application into a photo-upload-only process. You must still attend the selected Home Affairs office or enabled bank branch for biometric capture or verification, and a photo prepared at home does not replace that appointment.
If you plan to apply at a Home Affairs office without using eHomeAffairs, ask the office whether it uses the live biometric system before paying for prints. Applicants abroad should check the instructions issued by the specific mission that will accept the application, as the required number of prints and endorsement procedure can differ. For example, the South African High Commission in Canberra requests four 35 × 45 mm colour photos and requires one to be endorsed.
South Africa passport photo requirements
The rules below apply when a Home Affairs office or South African mission asks you to provide printed passport photos. They should not be treated as upload specifications for eHomeAffairs.
Your printed South African passport photos must:
- Be identical colour photographs
- Be no more than one month old
- Measure 35 × 45 mm
- Show a close-up of your head and the top of your shoulders
- Show your face occupying approximately 70-80% of the image
- Be clear, sharply focused and undamaged, without ink marks or creases
- Have appropriate brightness, contrast and natural skin colour
- Be printed on high-quality photographic paper
- Show only you, without another person, a chair back, a toy or another object in view
Passport-photo rules should not be assumed to be identical to the requirements for a South African visa photo, driving-licence photo or Smart ID card photo. Use the specification for the document you are applying for.
South African passport photo size
The required South African passport photo size for a printed-photo application is 35 mm wide by 45 mm high. The head must measure 29 to 34 mm from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head, and the face should occupy approximately 70-80% of the photo.
| Measurement | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Photo width | 35 mm |
| Photo height | 45 mm |
| Head height | 29 to 34 mm, measured from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head |
| Face proportion | Approximately 70-80% of the photo |
| Photo age | No more than one month old |
These measurements apply to applicant-supplied printed photos. They are not digital upload dimensions for eHomeAffairs. The official printed-photo specification does not set a 600-DPI requirement, so the print's physical size, head position, clarity and photographic-paper quality are the relevant checks.
Background
The standard South African passport and ID photograph specification calls for a light grey or plain cream-coloured background. The background must provide a clear contrast with the face and must not contain patterns, shadows or other objects.
Some South African missions publish a white-background instruction in their own passport checklist. If you are applying abroad, use the background colour stated by the mission accepting your application.
Colour and lighting
The passport photos must be in colour and show your natural skin tone. Use even lighting so there are no shadows across the face or behind the head, flash reflections or red-eye. The image must not be blurred, pixelated, too dark, too light or washed out.
Pose and facial expression
Face the camera directly with your head upright and centred. Both sides of your face must be clearly visible. Keep your eyes open and unobstructed, use a neutral expression and close your mouth. Do not tilt your head or look over one shoulder.
Glasses, head coverings and clothing
If you wear glasses, your eyes must remain clearly visible. There must be no reflections on the lenses, and frames must not cover any part of the eyes. Dark-tinted lenses and heavy frames are not acceptable.
Head coverings are permitted only for religious reasons. Your facial features from the bottom of your chin to the top of your forehead, as well as both edges of your face, must remain clearly visible.
See our detailed guide to South African passport photo requirements for more practical preparation advice.
South Africa passport photo prices
If your application location captures your photograph live, you do not need to pay separately for prepared passport prints. If printed photos are required, the cost depends on the photographer or print shop, the number of copies and whether delivery is included.
Visafoto prepares a correctly sized passport-photo file and a print-ready template for $9 US dollars. Before ordering or printing, confirm that your Home Affairs office or overseas mission requires applicant-supplied photos.
South Africa passport photo online
If your non-smart Home Affairs office or South African mission requires printed photos, you can prepare the image online with Visafoto instead of arranging a separate studio session.
Take a portrait with a phone or camera in good, even light. Look directly at the camera, keep a neutral expression and leave enough space around your head and shoulders. The starting background does not have to be perfect because Visafoto can replace it with the background used for the selected document format.
Your source photo can look like this:
Upload the image to Visafoto and select South Africa and the passport-photo format. The service automatically:
- Sets the image to the required 35 × 45 mm format
- Adjusts the crop and head position
- Prepares the required background
- Corrects lighting and contrast where needed
- Produces an individual passport photo and a print-ready sheet
The prepared results look like this:
Download the print-ready template and have it produced on high-quality photographic paper. Visafoto support is available if you need help with the result. The receiving Home Affairs office or South African mission makes the final decision on acceptance.
Visafoto is intended for an application route that accepts applicant-supplied printed photos. It does not replace the mandatory biometric visit for eHomeAffairs, and its digital file should not be described as a passport-photo upload for that system.
South Africa passport photo: where to print
Use a professional photo-printing service or photo counter that can print the Visafoto template on high-quality photographic paper. The official specification warns that ordinary home-printer output may not provide acceptable quality.
When ordering the print:
- Upload the print-ready template without editing it.
- Select the paper size shown for the downloaded template, commonly 10 × 15 cm or 4 × 6 inches.
- Turn off automatic cropping, border correction and "fit to page" scaling.
- Choose high-quality photographic paper.
- Check that each finished portrait measures exactly 35 × 45 mm before cutting it out.
- Print the number of copies required by your office or mission. A non-smart domestic office normally asks for two, while an overseas mission may request more.
Do not print a screenshot or enlarge an individual image to fill the paper, because either action can change the required dimensions or reduce image quality.
Links
Official sources
- Department of Home Affairs: eHomeAffairs
- Western Cape Government: applying for a passport
- Department of International Relations and Cooperation: passport and ID photograph specifications
- South African High Commission in Australia: passport application checklist
Related Visafoto guides
- South African passport renewal in the United States
- South Africa passport photo size
- South Africa passport and ID photo requirements
- Get a South Africa passport photo online
- Get a South African Smart ID card photo online
- Get a South Africa visa photo online
- South Africa visa photo information
- How to apply for a new-generation ID in South Africa
- South African driving-licence application process
- South African passport renewal abroad
- South African passport fees
- How to apply for an emergency travel document
Last updated: 18 September 2026