Will a photo you take with this app be accepted?
Passport, visa or ID — it depends on the country, and not in the way most sites tell you. Some governments only care what the finished photo looks like, and PhotoSpec builds it to their published rule. Others require proof of where the photo came from, and no app can supply that. We read the government pages ourselves and listed all 76.
Checked on 2026-08-15. Rules move — we re-check this list at least every six months. Next review: 2027-02-15.
How we decided
A country is marked not accepted if any one of these is true. If none of them is true, your own photo is accepted.
- The office or consulate photographs you on the spot.
- Only a designated or approved studio or booth may take it.
- The studio name and address must appear on the photo.
Wording like “professionally taken” is about quality, not about where you stood. That alone does not make a country ineligible.
Two kinds of rule
Quality rules look at the finished photo. A photo you took can meet them.
Origin rules demand proof of where the photo came from — a stamp on the back, an approved-photographer register, a direct upload channel, or a code issued by the studio. However good your photo is, you cannot supply that proof.
Accepted A photo from this app is accepted — 40 countries
| Country | What applies | Photo spec | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | — | white · 4 prints | Government page |
| Australia In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Austria In the app | — | 35×45 mm · light grey · within 6 months | Government page |
| Belarus | — | 40×50 mm · white · within 6 months · 4 prints | Third-party |
| China In the app | Passport only — the national ID card is photographed at the police office | 33×48 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Cyprus | — | 40×50 mm · white · within 6 months | Third-party |
| Egypt | — | 40×60 mm · white · 4 prints | Government page |
| Estonia | — | plain light · within 6 months | Government page |
| Georgia | — | 35×45 mm · within 6 months · 2 prints | Third-party |
| Hong Kong In the app | — | 40×50 mm · white | Government page |
| India In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white | Government page |
| Iraq | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months · 3 prints | Government page |
| Ireland In the app | — | 35×45 mm · light grey · within 6 months | Government page |
| Italy In the app | — | 35×40 mm · 1 print | Government page |
| Japan In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white | Government page |
| Jordan | — | white · within 1 month · 4 prints | Third-party |
| Kazakhstan | — | 45×35 mm · within 6 months | Third-party |
| Kenya | — | white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Kuwait | Visa applications | white | Third-party |
| Lebanon | The local chief must certify the back of the print | 45×35 mm · white · within 6 months · 2 prints | Third-party |
| Mongolia In the app | — | 35×45 mm · within 1 month | Third-party |
| Morocco In the app | — | 35×45 mm · light blue, white or grey · 1 print | Government page |
| Myanmar (Burma) | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months · 2 prints | Third-party |
| New Zealand In the app | — | 33.75×45 mm · light grey · within 6 months | Government page |
| Nigeria | A guarantor must sign the back of the print | 35×45 mm · 2 prints | Government page |
| Oman | Visa applications | white | Third-party |
| Pakistan In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Poland In the app | — | 35×45 mm · plain light · within 6 months | Government page |
| Qatar | — | 38×48 mm · white | Third-party |
| Russia | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Singapore In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 3 months | Government page |
| Slovenia | Passport only — the ID card needs a reference number from an authorised e-photographer · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | 35×45 mm | Third-party |
| South Korea In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
| Spain In the app | — | 32×26 mm · white | Government page |
| Taiwan In the app | — | 45×35 mm · 2 prints | Government page |
| Tunisia In the app | — | 45×35 mm · white · 2 prints | Third-party |
| Türkiye In the app | — | within 6 months · 1 print | Government page |
| United Arab Emirates In the app | — | 35×45 mm · white | Third-party |
| United Kingdom In the app | — | 35×45 mm · light grey · within 1 month | Government page |
| United States In the app | — | 51×51 mm · white · within 6 months | Government page |
Limited Only in some cases — 20 countries
| Country | What applies | Photo spec | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | Children under 6 only · Background: grey lab print (domestic e-Passport) · white (missions abroad, e.g. UK High Commission) | 89×127 mm · 2 prints | Government page |
| Belgium | Depends on your municipality | 35×45 mm · white · within 6 months · 1 print | Government page |
| Brazil In the app | Depends which document and office | 50×70 mm · white | Government page |
| Denmark | Children and emergency documents only · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | — | Government page |
| Ethiopia | Depends which document and office · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | — | Government page |
| Greece | Applications at embassies abroad only · 2026-01-31 · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | — | Government page |
| Israel | Applications at embassies abroad only · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | 50×50 mm · white · 2 prints | Government page |
| Madagascar | You hand photos in, then they photograph you anyway | 3 prints | Government page |
| Nepal | Children under 5 only | — | Government page |
| Netherlands In the app | Depends on your municipality | — | Government page |
| Panama | Applications at embassies abroad only | 2 prints | Government page |
| Philippines In the app | Applications at embassies abroad only | 2 prints | Third-party |
| Portugal | Temporary passport only · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | within 12 months · 2 prints | Government page |
| Saudi Arabia | Depends which document and office · Visa applications | 51×51 mm · white | Third-party |
| South Africa | Depends which document and office | — | Government page |
| Sri Lanka | Applications at embassies abroad only | white · within 3 months · 3 prints | Government page |
| Sweden | Temporary passport only | 2 prints | Government page |
| Switzerland In the app | Depends on your canton | — | Third-party |
| Ukraine | Children and emergency documents only | 100×150 mm · 1 print | Government page |
| Vietnam In the app | Printed copies are handed in | 40×60 mm · white · within 6 months · 2 prints | Third-party |
Not accepted No app can meet the rule here — 16 countries
| Country | What applies | Photo spec | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Bolivia | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Cameroon | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Third-party |
| Canada In the app | The studio must stamp its name and address on the photo | — | Government page |
| Chile In the app | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Colombia In the app | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Czechia | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Finland In the app | You submit a code issued by the studio, not a photo | — | Government page |
| France In the app | Only photographers on the government register may take it | — | Government page |
| Germany In the app | The studio sends the photo to the authority directly · 2025-05-01 | — | Government page |
| Iceland | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Third-party |
| Indonesia In the app | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Malaysia In the app | The office photographs you on the spot · Children under 4 only · Changed on 2026-08-15 after reading the government page | — | Government page |
| Mexico In the app | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Peru | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
| Thailand In the app | The office photographs you on the spot | — | Government page |
Government page = we read the country’s own page. Third-party = we could not reach an official page, so treat it as unconfirmed.
Who signs matters
If a photo studio must certify the photo, no app can help — that is Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Finland and Slovenia. But where someone other than a studio signs — a guarantor in Nigeria, the local chief in Lebanon, the consular stamp in Iraq — you can print the photo you made and have it signed.
Small children are the exception
Even where adults are photographed at the counter, small children are usually asked to bring a print: Brazil under 5, Bangladesh under 6, Nepal under 5, Malaysia under 4.
Europe is closing, one country a year
Germany moved to direct upload in May 2025, Greece to a studio-issued code in December 2025, Slovenia to a reference number in April 2026. Finland states the reason plainly: a studio may upload only photos it took itself, because it has to vouch for where the photo came from. Poland, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Estonia and Cyprus are still open.
If your country is on the accepted list
PhotoSpec measures your photo against the published rule for the country and document you picked, and tells you before you pay. Taking and retaking is free.