Thailand Visa Photo Maker

35 × 45 mm visual reference

Thailand's visa photo uses the same 35 × 45 mm frame as the UK, Schengen area and Australia. The diagram below shows the proportions: a portrait 7:9 rectangle with the head occupying the upper 70–80% and a small margin above the crown.

35 × 45 mm photo size diagram · 413 × 531 pixels

Who sets the rules: Thai visa authority overview

Thailand visa photo specifications are set by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, enforced day-to-day through two channels depending on how you apply: Royal Thai Embassies and Consulates-General abroad for paper applications, and the e-Visa portal at thaievisa.go.th for online applications, which now covers most Tourist, Non-B, Non-O, and DTV filings. Thai passports are handled separately by the Department of Consular Affairs.

This matters for your photo because the two channels don't always describe the same requirement in the same words. An embassy's printed checklist might say "passport-style photo, white background" without a stated millimeter figure, while the e-Visa portal's upload field enforces a specific pixel dimension and file size at the point of submission. When the two appear to conflict, the system you're actually submitting through — portal or embassy counter — is the one whose limit applies to you.

Thailand visa photo requirements

The table below covers the standard 35×45mm specification used for Tourist (TR), Non-B, and Non-O visa applications through an embassy or the e-Visa portal. Rows are marked verified where multiple independent sources agree, and flagged for confirmation where published figures conflict or are thin. Each rule links to the detailed standard in our passport photo rules library.

Rows marked "Confirm before submitting" reflect genuine disagreement or thin sourcing across the guidance we reviewed — not an oversight. Check the exact figure shown on your application screen or consulate checklist before finalizing your file.

How the application process touches your photo

For e-Visa applications, you create an account on thaievisa.go.th, select your visa type and the Thai mission with jurisdiction over your application, then upload your documents — passport biodata page, supporting paperwork specific to your visa category, and your photo — before paying the visa fee. The portal typically flags an obviously wrong photo at upload time, before you pay, which is the cheapest point to catch a sizing mistake.

For paper applications at an embassy or consulate, the photo is checked manually by consular staff against a printed checklist, often alongside your passport photo if you're submitting both documents in the same visit. Manual review can be more forgiving on exact pixel dimensions but less forgiving on visible quality issues like glare or shadow, since a person is looking at the print rather than software checking pixel dimensions.

What actually differs between the visa types

The photo is the constant; the paperwork around it is not. Tourist, Non-B and Non-O share the identical 35×45mm photo specification, so if you are switching between categories you do not need a new photo — you need different supporting documents:

• Tourist (TR) — proof of onward or return travel, accommodation, and funds for the stay.
• Business (Non-B) — an invitation or sponsor letter from the Thai company, plus company registration documents.
• Retirement (Non-O) — evidence of pension income or a qualifying Thai bank balance, and age eligibility.
• DTV — remote-work, freelance or soft-power activity evidence depending on the qualifying category, filed through the e-Visa portal only.

The DTV is the only category where the photo guidance itself is thinner: mission checklists describe it in general terms without the millimetre figure that appears in TR, Non-B and Non-O documentation. Match the standard 35×45mm e-Visa size, since you are uploading through the identical portal interface.

Child and infant visa photo requirements

Children and infants follow the same 35×45mm size and white-background rule as adults, with a few enforcement points that come up specifically for younger applicants:

• No parent's hand, arm, or any part of another person visible in the frame
• No toys, pacifiers, or bottles in shot
• Eyes open, mouth closed — a neutral expression is held to the same standard as adults
• Background must be plain white with no visible car seat, crib, or furniture edge
• Head height still 70–80% of the frame; there is no reduced band for infants
• Shoot wide and crop down — cropping tightly in-camera on a small face leaves too few pixels once the 7:9 frame is applied

In practice this is harder to get right at home for infants than for adults, since holding a baby still against a plain background for a phone photo takes a few attempts — budget extra time rather than rushing the first shot. Our baby passport photo at home guide covers positioning and lighting technique for newborns and toddlers in full, and the eyes requirements page explains where the open-eyes rule is and is not relaxed.

Visa renewal, extension, and reapplication photo rules

If you're extending a Non-O retirement visa or a TR visa from inside Thailand at a local immigration office, several sources indicate the in-person extension form uses the larger 4cm × 6cm photo box rather than the 35×45mm e-Visa size — the same size requested for Visa on Arrival. This is one of the more common mix-ups: bringing a correctly-sized e-Visa photo to an in-person extension counter that wants the larger print.

Whichever size applies to your renewal, the same six-month recency rule holds. A photo used successfully on your original application that's now older than six months should be retaken, not reused.

Digital e-Visa submission rules

Applications through thaievisa.go.th require a digital JPEG upload. Published file-size ceilings differ across the guidance we reviewed — figures cited range from around 120KB to 1MB — which may reflect a limit that has changed over time or one that varies slightly by mission. Rather than relying on a fixed number here, check the size limit displayed on your actual upload screen before exporting your final file.

Two things are safe to fix in advance regardless of the ceiling. Export at 300 DPI so the file is 413 × 531 pixels, which is comfortably inside every published range. And save as JPEG at quality 85 rather than maximum — a 413 × 531 JPEG at maximum quality can exceed a 120 KB limit for no visible gain, while quality 85 typically lands between 40 and 90 KB.

If your export is still too heavy, the reduce file size guide and compress to 240 KB guide cover the mechanics without dropping below the pixel minimum. iPhone users shooting in HEIC should convert first with the HEIC to JPEG guide. Broader portal rules across countries are covered in the digital passport photo requirements guide.

In-person submission at an embassy, consulate, or VFS counter

For paper applications, bring the number of physical prints your specific mission requests — this is commonly two prints, though some checklists call for three. Photos should be printed on photo-quality paper, not standard printer paper, with no staples or adhesive residue on the print itself, since damaged or stapled photos are noted as a rejection reason in multiple guides covering Thai visa submissions.

It's worth bringing a digital copy of your photo on your phone even for a paper application — if your mission also asks you to register or follow up online, having the same file in digital form saves a second photo session.

Printing a 35 × 45 mm Thailand visa photo

Because most missions want two physical prints, printing is part of the specification rather than an afterthought. A 35 × 45 mm photo tiles cleanly onto standard photo paper, so one sheet covers your application with spares.

Printer settings 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.

Can I take my Thailand visa photo at home?

Yes, with care. A phone camera is sufficient quality for a Thai visa photo as long as you control a few variables that are easy to get wrong without a studio setup.

Phone camera setup

Use the rear camera, not the front-facing camera, for sharper detail. Shoot in normal photo mode rather than portrait mode — portrait mode's background blur and edge softening can interfere with later background removal and is flagged by several guides as a source of blurred edges on visa photos.

Lighting

Face a window with soft, indirect daylight rather than using your phone's flash, which tends to create the under-chin shadows and glasses glare that show up repeatedly in rejection-reason lists for this size of photo. Even, diffused light across your whole face with no harsh shadow on one side is the goal.

Background

Stand at least two to three feet from a plain white or light-colored wall so your own shadow doesn't fall on it. If you don't have a suitable wall, our background removal step replaces whatever's behind you with compliant white automatically.

Distance from camera

Stand back far enough that your head and shoulders fill the frame loosely — you'll crop tighter afterward. Shooting too close distorts facial proportions at this small a final print size. The crop guide explains how the 7:9 ratio and head-height band are applied together.

Common at-home mistakes

• Using flash, which creates shadows and glasses glare
• Shooting in portrait/bokeh mode, which softens edges needed for cropping
• Standing too close to the background, causing a visible shadow
• Uploading a phone photo of a printed photo instead of the original digital file
• Submitting a photo older than six months because it "still looks like you"

Thailand visa photo vs. Thailand passport photo

These are not the same specification, and the difference is bigger than it looks at a glance: the photo sizes are different enough that a photo trimmed for one will be the wrong proportions for the other.

The honest summary: the underlying look of the two photos — white background, neutral expression, full colour — is genuinely similar, which is exactly why people assume one photo works for both. But 35 × 45 mm and 40 × 60 mm are different aspect ratios (7:9 versus 2:3), so a print trimmed for one physically cannot be trimmed to the other without re-cropping from the original. Do not reuse a passport print for a visa application or vice versa.

For passport-specific specifications, see our Thailand passport photo page.

Thailand compared to neighbouring visa photo standards

If you are visa-hopping across Southeast Asia, the size does not stay constant. A photo cut for Thailand will not fit a Chinese or Cambodian application, which is one of the most common reasons travellers end up retaking photos mid-trip.

Every national standard is indexed in the passport photo requirements by country hub and the visa photo requirements hub. For the full worldwide dimension reference see passport size photo dimensions.

How to create a Thailand visa photo

Common reasons Thailand visa photos get rejected

The full cross-country breakdown of refusal causes is in passport photo rejection reasons.

Processing tips

• Get the photo right before you pay the visa fee — most fees are non-refundable, and a photo-related resubmission resets your place in the queue rather than your payment.
• If you're applying for a DTV and the photo spec field feels under-specified, default to the 35×45mm e-Visa standard rather than guessing a different size.
• Keep a digital copy of your photo even if you're submitting on paper — useful if your mission later asks for an online follow-up step.
• Take the photo a few days before you plan to submit, not the morning of, so you have time to retake it if the first attempt has shadow or glare issues.
• Export once at 413 × 531 pixels and keep that master file — you can compress a copy down to any portal's KB limit without reshooting.

Frequently asked questions

Size & specification

Appearance & compliance

Taking & printing

Sources & references

Related pages