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SCHENGEN PHOTO

Prepare a 35 × 45 mm Schengen visa photo

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The preset covered here produces a 35 × 45 mm paper photo with a 32 to 36 mm head height. It follows the German Missions in the UK guidance. Check your own receiving mission before using it, because “Schengen” describes a visa area, not one universal submission channel.

Open the Schengen · Germany preset

Scope comes before size

The source for this preset is the German Federal Foreign Office page for applicants using German Missions in the UK. It specifies a 35 × 45 mm biometric photo, white or off-white background, and a head height of 32 to 36 mm. The page also describes the head as 70 to 80% of the photo.

This receiving office asks for a photo no older than three months. Another embassy or visa centre may set a different recency rule, number of copies, or submission format. Read that office's checklist before printing.

A 35 × 45 crop is only the outer frame

The face still has to fit. Measure from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head, including the hair. That distance should be 32 to 36 mm in the 45 mm-tall photograph.

The background should be white or off-white. Check for shadows behind the head, uneven lighting and loss of contrast between clothing, hair and the background. The tool cannot judge those conditions.

Prepare the source photo

Ask another person to hold the camera at eye level if possible. Face forward, keep a neutral expression and leave visible space around the head and shoulders. Use a sharp original file. A social-media download or screenshot may be too small for a clean print.

Do not stretch a portrait into the 35:45 ratio. Crop it. If the frame cuts the head or shoulders before the measurements work, step back and take another original.

Make and check the print file

  1. Select Schengen area · Germany, Visa · German Missions in the UK.
  2. Move and zoom the image inside the 35 × 45 frame.
  3. Mark the crown and chin. Adjust the crop until the measured head height is 32 to 36 mm.
  4. Inspect the background, shadows, expression, eyes and sharpness.
  5. Download the single JPG and, if useful, the 4 × 6 print sheet.

The single JPG is 413 × 531 pixels at this site's 300 ppi print setting. The official paper source gives millimetres; it does not require those pixel dimensions. They are the site's conversion for printing.

Printer settings can undo a correct crop

Choose actual size or 100% scale. Disable fit-to-page, auto-crop and borderless enlargement. Print one test, cut it on the intended edges and measure it. The finished copy must be 35 mm wide and 45 mm high.

If the paper measures 34 × 44 mm or 36 × 46 mm, changing the crop will not solve the problem. Fix the printer scale. Then recheck the head height on the physical copy.

German Missions in the UK guidance reviewed September 20, 2026. Check the receiving mission's current checklist before submitting.