You can also print your passport photos at home, as long as you make sure you can meet the following requirements:
- You need a good photo printer, with a high resolution and realistic colour reproduction.
- The paper used for identity cards, passports and driving licences must have the same properties as conventional photo paper. You should use branded matt or low gloss paper at a minimum weight of 200gsm. Plain paper, card and other non-photographic papers will not be accepted.
- The printed image must accurately reflect the skin tone of the subject. Many home printers deliberately increase the warmth of an image by adding slightly more red ink to the print. This can lead to inaccurate skin tones being produced.
- The size of the printed passport photograph must conform exactly to the published requirements. In some image editing programs, you can adjust the print size in inches or cm. If not, you can find an example calculation in our guide to Uploading Digital Photos, which shows you how to calculate the correct size in pixels.
The golden rule when printing your own photo is to check, double check and then check again to make sure the print is exactly as it should be. Any variation in size or quality from the required standard will result in the entire application being rejected without any refund of the fee paid. UK Passports are already amongst the most expensive in the world, without having to pay twice!
Getting all the above right will greatly increase your chances of having your home printed photo accepted.
