What are the New Zealand passport photo requirements?
New Zealand passport photos are digital: a JPEG with a 3:4 ratio, from 900 x 1200 up to 4500 x 6000 pixels, between 250 KB and 5 MB, on a plain light-coloured background, taken in the last 6 months, with a neutral expression. FixDoks makes a 900 x 1200 pixel file within that range.
New Zealand Passport Photo at a glance
| Format | JPEG, 3:4 portrait |
|---|---|
| Pixels | 900 × 1200 to 4500 × 6000 |
| Processing | In your browser; your files are not uploaded |
| Price | Free to use, no watermark |
| Download | First download free, then ₹49 for 2 months of unlimited downloads (US$3 outside India) |
| Files at once | 1 free, up to 30 with a plan |
| Works on | Chrome, Edge, Safari and Firefox on Windows, Mac, Android and iPhone |
How to use New Zealand Passport Photo
- Take a photo against a plain wall in even light, facing the camera, or pick a recent one.
- Click Select your photo. The size for this document is already chosen.
- Move and zoom the frame so the head fits the dashed oval. Use Make background white if the wall is not plain.
- Click Create passport photo and download the photo or the print sheet.
The technical requirements
New Zealand Passports says your photo must be a colour portrait with a 3:4 aspect ratio, a digital .jpg or .jpeg file between 250 KB and 5 MB, 900 to 4,500 pixels wide and 1,200 to 6,000 pixels high, and less than 6 months old. You can use a professional passport photo service or take the photo with your own device. The site lists Warehouse Stationery, pharmacies that offer the service and professional photographers. The photographer should print the photo for a paper application or email it to you for an online one. Scans of printed photos will not be accepted.
Taking it with your own device
Get someone else to take the photo, because selfies will be rejected. A photo taken too close can distort your face, making your nose and forehead look larger and your ears less visible. The photographer should stand 1.5 m away and hold the camera at your eye level. If the picture looks distorted, step back and take a wider shot that includes your shoulders, then crop it to the correct head size before submitting.
Centre your head with a clear gap around the top and sides, and include your shoulders and upper chest. Stand at least half a metre in front of a plain, light-coloured background with strong contrast to your face and no shadows or objects behind your head. Face forwards, looking straight at the camera, with your face fully visible, not tilted or turned, and with your hair out of your eyes and away from your face.
Expression, glasses and head coverings
Keep a neutral expression with no smile, mouth closed and eyes open. You can wear prescription glasses if they are not tinted or thick-framed, with a clear gap between your eyes and the frames and no glare or reflection on the lenses. You cannot wear sunglasses. Hats, hoods, headbands and head coverings are allowed only for religious or medical reasons, and your face must be fully visible.
No filters and no edits
Your image must show your natural appearance. Do not edit it, apply filters or use AI tools to change how you look. For a baby, lay them on a plain, light-coloured sheet and photograph from above, showing the whole face with the eyes open and no other people or objects. Before you start the application, you can run your photo through the online photo checker on the passport site to confirm it meets the technical requirements.
Source: New Zealand Passports: Passport photos, checked October 2026.
New Zealand Passport Photo requirements at a glance
| Format | JPEG, 3:4 portrait |
|---|---|
| Pixels | 900 × 1200 to 4500 × 6000 |
| File size | 250 KB to 5 MB |
| Background | Plain, light-coloured |
| Taken | Within the last 6 months |
| Expression | Neutral, no smile |
Rules checked on the official website in September 2026. Requirements can change, so confirm on the official page before you apply. Source: New Zealand Passports: Passport photos.
Digital only
The Department of Internal Affairs uses digital photos. Scans of printed photos are not accepted, and photos must not use filters, selfie effects or AI edits. The tool keeps your photo as taken and only crops and resizes it, and it raises the JPEG quality if needed so the file is at least 250 KB.
Glasses and head coverings
Prescription glasses are acceptable if the lenses are not tinted and the frames are not thick. Head coverings are allowed only for religious or medical reasons.
How this tool helps
The tool crops your photo to the exact size above at 300 DPI, so a print comes out at the right physical size, and it can fill a 4 × 6 inch sheet with copies and cut lines for a photo shop. For online applications it makes a file with the exact pixel size and file size the form asks for. It cannot judge whether your expression, lighting or pose meets the rules, so check the photo against the list before you submit it.
FixDoks is an independent tool and is not affiliated with any government. You submit your application yourself on the official website.