Hong Kong Passport Photo Maker
A Hong Kong passport photo must be 40 mm wide by 50 mm tall on a plain white background, with the head measuring 32–36 mm from chin to crown.
Hong Kong is one of the few places in the world that doesn't use the common 35x45mm passport photo. The Immigration Department (ImmD) sets this taller 40x50mm format, and a walk-in or postal application with a substandard photo gets returned unprocessed — another trip to a photo studio and a delay you didn't plan for. Our Passport Photo Maker is built around ImmD's published specification, so you can upload a photo, crop and size it correctly, and download a file that matches what the Department actually asks for — whether you're applying online, by app, in person, or by post.
Official ImmD Photo Specs
Source: Hong Kong Immigration Department, "Photo Requirements for Travel Document." Pixel figures at 300 DPI are the arithmetic equivalent of the published millimetre size.
Hong Kong Passport Photo Size (Quick Answer)
The Hong Kong passport photo size is 40 mm × 50 mm (4 × 5 cm, or 1.57 × 1.97 inches) on a plain white background, with the head 32–36 mm from chin to crown — roughly 64–72% of the frame height. At 300 DPI that is 472 × 591 pixels. Digital uploads accept a scan at 600 dpi or a camera file of at least 1200 × 1600 pixels, JPEG, up to 5 MB.
| Photo size (printed) | 40 × 50 mm (4 × 5 cm / 1.57 × 1.97 in) |
|---|---|
| Aspect ratio | 4 : 5 portrait |
| Pixels @ 300 DPI | 472 × 591 px |
| Pixels @ 600 DPI (ImmD scan spec) | 945 × 1181 px |
| Digital camera minimum | 1200 × 1600 px |
| Head height (chin to crown) | 32 – 36 mm, about 64–72% of frame height |
| Background | Plain white, no shadow or texture |
| File format and size | JPEG, 5 MB maximum for online or app upload |
| Issuing authority | Immigration Department of the HKSAR (ImmD) |
Applying for a Chinese visa rather than an HKSAR passport? The size differs — see the China visa photo requirements (33 × 48 mm). For a Hong Kong visa photo, see the Hong Kong visa photo guide.
Hong Kong Passport Photo Visual Reference
The diagram below marks the measurements ImmD checks: the 40 × 50 mm frame, the 32–36 mm chin-to-crown head height, and the headroom above the crown.
Why Upload Here Instead of Editing It Yourself
Hong Kong's 40x50mm format trips people up because most photo apps and printers default to the more common 35x45mm size. Manually resizing a photo to fit 40x50mm without also rebuilding the head-size ratio usually produces a photo that's the right outer dimensions but the wrong proportions inside the frame — and ImmD checks both.
On This Page
Hong Kong Passport Photo Requirements
Every row below must pass. Each general rule links to the detailed standard in our passport photo rules library, where the same requirement is explained across countries.
| Photo size | 40mm (width) × 50mm (height) |
|---|---|
| Head size | 32mm to 36mm, measured chin to crown, with sufficient headroom above the crown — see head size rules |
| Head as share of frame | Roughly 64% to 72% of the 50mm frame height — see face size requirements |
| Background | Plain white, no texture, pattern or shadow — see background colour rules |
| Lighting | Even and diffused from the front; ImmD rejects photos that are too light, too dark, or show shadow — see lighting requirements and shadow rules |
| Resolution (scanned) | 600dpi at 40mm × 50mm, which equals 945 × 1181 pixels — see resolution rules |
| Resolution (digital camera) | At least 1200px (W) × 1600px (H) |
| File format | JPEG, 5MB or below, for online/app upload |
| Glasses | Not officially prohibited, but rejected if a frame crosses the eyes or there is flash reflection on the lenses — see glasses rules |
| Eyes | Must be clearly visible with no hair across the eyes or eyebrows — see eyes requirements |
| Hair | Must not fall across the eyes or eyebrows; ImmD lists this as an explicit rejection reason — see hair rules |
| Ears | ImmD does not publish an ear-visibility rule, but the face must be full frontal with clear features — see ears visibility rules |
| Expression | Full frontal face, centred, with clear facial features; avoid heavy make-up |
| Head covering | Do not wear head dress — see head covering rules for how other authorities handle religious coverings |
| Clothing | Avoid overly dark or overly light-coloured clothing — see dress code rules |
| Photo age | No fixed validity period is published; the photo should currently and clearly represent the applicant |
| Digital submission | Available for first applications and standard replacements via Internet or the ImmD mobile app; not available for lost/damaged/defaced passport replacements or detail amendments |
Millimetre, dpi, pixel-minimum, file-size, glasses, head-dress and clothing figures come directly from ImmD's published "Photo Requirements for Travel Document" page and ImmD's online application guidance on GovHK. The frame-percentage and 300/600 DPI pixel figures are arithmetic conversions of the published millimetre values. Requirements can change — always confirm against the live ImmD page before submitting.
Hong Kong Passport Photo Dimensions, Units & Pixels
ImmD publishes the printed size in millimetres and the digital requirement in dpi and pixels. Those describe the same photograph. The conversions below let you match whichever unit your camera, scanner or editor uses.
Which figure should you actually use?
It depends on how the photo was produced, and the two paths have different targets:
- Scanning a printed photo: scan the 40 × 50 mm print at 600 dpi. That produces roughly 945 × 1181 pixels.
- Capturing with a digital camera or phone: ImmD sets a floor of 1200 × 1600 pixels, which is higher than the 600 dpi scan equivalent. Aim at or above that figure and crop to the 4:5 ratio.
- Printing for postal or in-person submission: 300 dpi is the practical minimum for a sharp 40 × 50 mm print, which is 472 × 591 pixels.
Upscaling does not help. Enlarging a small file to reach 1200 × 1600 interpolates pixels rather than adding detail, and the softness shows in the laser-engraved result. Shoot wide and crop down instead. The digital passport photo requirements guide covers pixel and file rules across portals, and if your phone saves HEIC files, convert them first with the HEIC to JPEG guide. If your JPEG exceeds the 5 MB ceiling, the reduce file size guide shows how to bring it down without dropping below the pixel minimum.
For pixel conversions across every country standard, see passport photo size in pixels and the master passport size photo dimensions reference.
About the Immigration Department (ImmD)
The HKSAR passport is issued by the Immigration Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. ImmD is the body that sets and enforces photo specifications, processes applications, and personalises the photo onto the passport's data page by laser engraving — which is part of why ImmD is strict about photo quality: a poor-quality original photo produces a poor-quality laser-engraved image on the finished passport itself, not just a printed insert.
Eligibility to apply for an HKSAR passport is tied to holding a valid Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card, or an Acknowledgement of Application for one, and being a Chinese national who is a permanent resident of the HKSAR under the Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China.
How to Apply for an HKSAR Passport
Eligible applicants can apply through three main channels:
- Online (Internet or ImmD mobile app): Available for first-time applications and standard replacements due to expiry. Not available if your existing passport is lost, damaged, defaced, unavailable, or if you need to amend personal details.
- In person: By appointment at Immigration Headquarters or a Branch Office, or self-service via a Personal Documentation Submission Kiosk / Travel Document Submission Kiosk for eligible applicants.
- By post: Accepted for renewal applications, but a substandard photo will cause the entire application to be returned unprocessed.
Regardless of how you apply, you must collect the finished passport in person, presenting your Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card and your existing passport (if any) for cancellation. For applicants under 18, a parent or legal guardian must accompany them for collection.
Children's Passport Photo Requirements
The photo specification itself — 40mm × 50mm, plain white background, 32–36mm head height — is the same for a child's HKSAR passport photo as for an adult's. ImmD's published guidance does not set a separate or looser photo standard for infants or toddlers, so the same plain-background, full-frontal-face standard applies. That is harder to achieve with a young child, but it is still what the Department checks against.
What changes is the supporting paperwork, not the photograph: a parent or legal guardian of a child under 11 must submit the child's Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card application alongside the first passport application, and for applicants aged 11 to 15 the consenting parent or guardian has additional steps to complete during the application itself.
Same size, same head height
40 × 50 mm frame with the head 32–36 mm chin to crown. No age exemption applies to dimensions or framing.
Child alone in the frame
No supporting hands, arms, car seat, toy or dummy may be visible, and no other person may appear. Support the child from behind a plain white sheet.
No shadow on the background
Lay the child on a plain white sheet in soft indirect daylight and shoot from directly above. Side lighting creates the background shadow ImmD explicitly rejects. See shadow rules.
Hair off the eyes and eyebrows
Hair across the eyes or eyebrows is on ImmD's stated rejection list at any age. See hair rules.
Crop from a wide source
Shoot wide and crop down. Cropping tightly in-camera on a small face leaves too few pixels once the 4:5 frame and 1200 × 1600 minimum are applied.
Recent photo matters more
ImmD asks only that the photo currently represents the applicant, but a young child's appearance changes quickly, so use the most recent shot you have.
Positioning, lighting and timing technique for babies and toddlers is covered step by step in our baby passport photo at home guide.
Can I Take My Hong Kong Passport Photo at Home?
Yes. ImmD's published requirements describe what the finished photo must look like, not where or how it was captured, so a phone photo that meets the standard is treated the same as one taken in a studio. Here's what actually matters:
Phone camera
Any modern smartphone camera has enough resolution; ImmD's own minimum for digitally captured photos is 1200×1600 pixels, which most phones exceed by a wide margin. Use the rear camera, not the front-facing one, for sharper detail, and switch off portrait blur and skin-smoothing modes, which alter facial geometry.
Lighting
Even, diffused light from in front of the face. ImmD explicitly rejects photos that are too light, too dark, or show shadows or flash reflection — so avoid a single overhead light or direct on-camera flash, which both create exactly those problems.
Background
You need a plain white wall or sheet directly behind you with no texture, pattern, or shadow falling on it. A shadow cast onto the background from angled light is one of the most common reasons a self-taken photo gets rejected.
Distance from camera
Stand back far enough that your head and shoulders fill the frame with room for the required headroom above the crown, then let the editor crop precisely to the 40×50mm ratio — don't try to compose the exact crop yourself in-camera. The crop guide explains how the 4:5 ratio and head-height band are applied together.
Printing
If you're applying in person or by post, print at actual size (100% scale, no "fit to page") on photo paper, ideally matching ImmD's 600dpi scanner benchmark for sharpness. Full detail is in the printing section below.
Hong Kong vs Other Passport Photo Sizes
Hong Kong's 40 × 50 mm format sits between the regional 35 × 45 mm standard and the US square, and matches neither. The table below shows why a photo prepared for a neighbouring territory cannot be reused, even after resizing, because the head-to-frame ratio differs in each.
| Territory | Photo size | Aspect ratio | Head height | Background |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong (HKSAR) | 40 × 50 mm | 4 : 5 | 32 – 36 mm | Plain white |
| Mainland China | 33 × 48 mm | 11 : 16 | 28 – 33 mm | Plain white |
| Taiwan | 35 × 45 mm | 7 : 9 | 32 – 36 mm | Plain white |
| Japan | 35 × 45 mm | 7 : 9 | 32 – 36 mm | Plain white |
| South Korea | 35 × 45 mm | 7 : 9 | 32 – 36 mm | Plain white |
| Singapore | 35 × 45 mm | 7 : 9 | 25 – 35 mm | Plain white |
| Malaysia | 35 × 50 mm | 7 : 10 | Varies | Plain white |
| Thailand | 40 × 60 mm | 2 : 3 | Varies | Plain white |
| United Kingdom | 35 × 45 mm | 7 : 9 | 29 – 34 mm | Light-coloured |
| United States | 51 × 51 mm (2 × 2 in) | 1 : 1 | 25 – 35 mm | White / off-white |
The practical difference that catches people out: Hong Kong's frame is both wider and taller than the 35 × 45 mm regional standard, so cropping a Japanese or Taiwanese passport photo to 40 × 50 mm leaves the head undersized inside the larger frame. Compare the two standards side by side in the 35x45 photo size guide and the 2x2 photo size guide, or browse every standard in the passport photo requirements by country hub.
How to Create a Hong Kong Passport Photo
- Upload your photo. Use the upload widget above, or open the Passport Photo Maker directly.
- Set the 40×50mm frame. Crop to the 4:5 ratio and position your head within the 32–36mm chin-to-crown range, leaving headroom above the crown.
- Apply the plain white background. If your original photo has a busy or coloured background, the tool removes it and replaces it with the required plain white.
- Verify against ImmD's checklist. Check centring, headroom, lighting, and that no hair crosses your eyes or eyebrows before finalising.
- Download your file. Export a print-ready file for in-person or postal applications, plus a digital file of at least 1200×1600px for online or app upload.
Printing a 40x50 mm Hong Kong Passport Photo
Postal and most walk-in applications need a printed photo, and ImmD returns an entire postal application unprocessed if the photo is substandard — so printing is part of the specification, not an afterthought.
| Print resolution | 300 dpi minimum. Disable scaling and "fit to page", which change the physical size |
|---|---|
| Paper | Photo paper, glossy or matte. Plain copier paper does not hold the detail ImmD laser-engraves from |
| Copies per 4 × 6 in sheet | Six 40 × 50 mm photos in a two by three grid with cutting margins |
| Copies per A4 sheet | Around twenty with cutting margins |
| Cutting | Guillotine or steel rule for square edges. Do not cut inside the printed border |
| Colour | sRGB. Turn off printer auto-enhance, skin smoothing and colour correction |
| Handling | Let ink dry fully. Do not fold, staple, or write on the back of the printed photo |
Printer settings, paper choice and cutting technique are covered in full in the print passport photo at home guide, and multi-copy sheet layout in the print sheet guide.
Common Reasons Hong Kong Passport Photos Get Rejected
ImmD publishes a specific rejection list rather than a vague "follow the guidelines" warning. A photo will not be accepted if the applicant is:
Fine details beyond ImmD's published list
These are the practical failures applicants hit most often. Each links to the detailed rule so you can check the tolerance before submitting.
Sized to the wrong format
Cropping to 35 × 45 mm instead of Hong Kong's 40 × 50 mm is the single most common error, because most apps default to the regional standard. See the crop guide.
Head undersized in the frame
Outer dimensions correct but the head below 32 mm chin to crown, usually from resizing a 35 × 45 mm photo up to 40 × 50 mm. See head size rules.
Digital file below the minimum
A camera-captured file under 1200 × 1600 pixels is refused at upload, and upscaling a smaller file to reach it produces detectable softness.
File over 5 MB
The online and app upload ceiling is 5 MB. A full-resolution phone photo often exceeds it. See the reduce file size guide.
Folded, stapled or written on
Printed photos must arrive flat and unmarked. Creases and staple holes distort the area ImmD laser-engraves from.
Filters and retouching
Portrait blur, skin smoothing and slimming alter facial geometry. Shoot in a plain, unfiltered mode.
Clothing that merges with the background
ImmD asks applicants to avoid overly light or overly dark clothing. A white shirt against a plain white wall removes the shoulder outline. See dress code rules.
Wrong application channel
Digital upload is not available for lost, damaged or defaced passport replacements, or for detail amendments. Those require a printed photo.
For the full cross-country breakdown of what causes refusal and how to correct it, see passport photo rejection reasons.
Frequently Asked Questions
Size & Dimensions
What size does a Hong Kong passport photo need to be?
40mm × 50mm for a printed photo — that is 4 × 5 cm, 1.57 × 1.97 inches, and a 4:5 aspect ratio. For digital upload, a scanned image should match 40×50mm at 600dpi, while a photo from a digital camera needs to be at least 1200×1600 pixels.
What is the Hong Kong passport photo size in pixels?
A 40 × 50 mm photo equals 472 × 591 pixels at 300 DPI, and 945 × 1181 pixels at the 600 dpi scanner resolution ImmD specifies for scanned uploads. If you capture with a digital camera rather than scanning, ImmD's own floor is 1200 × 1600 pixels, which is higher than either conversion.
What head size does a Hong Kong passport photo need?
32mm to 36mm from chin to crown, with sufficient headroom above the crown. Against the 50mm frame height that is roughly 64 to 72 percent of the photo. The face must be full frontal and centred.
Why is Hong Kong's passport photo size different from most countries?
Most territories, including the UK, much of the EU, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, use 35×45mm. Hong Kong's ImmD specifies a taller and wider 40×50mm format, so a photo cropped for another country won't match Hong Kong's head-size ratio even at adjusted outer dimensions. Mainland China uses a third size again, 33×48mm.
Appearance & Compliance
Can I wear glasses in my Hong Kong passport photo?
ImmD doesn't list glasses as banned outright, but it will reject a photo with a frame across the eyes or flash reflection on the lenses — so if you wear glasses, make sure there's no glare and the frame doesn't obscure your eyes.
Are head coverings allowed in a Hong Kong passport photo?
ImmD's photo guidance instructs applicants not to wear head dress, and lists wearing head dress among its stated rejection reasons. It does not publish a religious exemption on that page. If you wear a head covering for religious reasons, contact ImmD directly before submitting rather than assuming an exemption applies.
How recent does my Hong Kong passport photo need to be?
ImmD doesn't publish a fixed validity window like "6 months." Its guidance simply requires the photo to clearly and currently represent the applicant, so use a recent one as a practical rule.
Children & Related Documents
What are the Hong Kong passport photo rules for a baby or child?
The photo specification is identical to an adult's: 40×50mm, plain white background and a 32–36mm chin-to-crown head height. ImmD does not publish a looser standard for infants, so the same full-frontal-face and plain-background rules apply. What differs is the supporting paperwork, not the photo. See the children's requirements section.
Is the Document of Identity for Visa Purposes photo different from a passport photo?
No — it's the same ImmD process and the same 40×50mm specification.
Taking, Printing & Submitting
Can I take my own Hong Kong passport photo at home?
Yes. ImmD's published requirements describe the finished photo, not who took it — a self-taken phone photo that meets the 40×50mm, plain-white-background, correct-head-size standard is acceptable.
Can I submit my Hong Kong passport photo digitally instead of printing it?
Yes, for first applications and standard replacements via the Internet or ImmD mobile app — JPEG, 5MB max, at least 1200×1600px if from a digital camera. Postal and some walk-in applications still need a printed photo.
How do I print a 40x50 mm Hong Kong passport photo at home?
Print at actual size with scaling and fit-to-page disabled, on photo paper rather than plain paper. A 4 × 6 inch sheet holds six 40 × 50 mm photos in a two by three grid with cutting margins, and an A4 sheet holds around twenty. Cut with a guillotine for square edges, and don't fold, staple or write on the back.
Does ClonyPDF guarantee my Hong Kong passport photo will be accepted?
No — no tool can. ImmD itself states that acceptance of an uploaded photo is only confirmed during processing. Passport Photo Maker is built to match the published specification, but final approval is always ImmD's decision.
Sources & References
- Immigration Department, HKSAR — Photo Requirements for Travel Document: immd.gov.hk
- Immigration Department, HKSAR — HKSAR Passport application guidance: immd.gov.hk
- GovHK — Applying for an HKSAR passport online and by app: gov.hk
- ICAO Doc 9303 — Machine Readable Travel Documents biometric photograph standard: icao.int