A baby does not hold their head up, may sleep through the shoot and cannot be told to look at the lens. Passport offices allow for that, and the rules for infants are looser than the adult ones. They are still specific, and a photo that breaks them is rejected like any other. This guide covers the official wording for the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, then shows how to make the print or upload file with DocPro. For the general routine, see how to make a passport photo at home.
What the US State Department says about babies
The US page on passport photos has a section for babies and young children. In short:
- Place the baby or toddler on a plain white or off-white sheet, or put the child in a car seat with a white or off-white blanket.
- There must be no shadows on the baby's or toddler's face.
- No other people may be in the photo, and a pacifier that hides part of the face is not acceptable.
- "It is okay if a baby's eyes are not entirely open." Older children still need their eyes open.
- The general rules still apply: a photo changed with computer software, phone apps, filters or artificial intelligence is not accepted.
The page gives a photo size of 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm) in its general rules. It does not say that babies get a different size.
What the UK says
GOV.UK is more detailed about the baby's position. Children must be on their own in the picture, and babies must not hold toys or use dummies. A child under 1 does not need to have their eyes open. A child under 6 does not need to look directly at the camera or have a plain expression. For a child under 1, the page says to lay them on a plain, light-coloured sheet and take the photo from above. You may support the head, but your hand must not be visible in the photo. The photo must also be unaltered by computer software, and the page says not to crop it, because the service does that.
Canada and Australia
Canada says newborns may have a range of facial expressions, and allows some range for infants in general. A newborn may be photographed in a car seat if a white blanket is placed behind the child's head, with no shadows around the ears, in the background or on the face and shoulders. Canada also says the photo must not show your hands or the child's hands. Australia says children under 3 may have their mouth open, that no one else can be visible, and that parents' hands in the photo are not acceptable.
These are the main differences in one line each: the UK wants the baby flat and shot from above, Canada accepts a car seat with a white blanket and no hands at all, and the US accepts either a sheet or a covered car seat. Whichever country applies, check its own page before the shoot.
How to take the photo
- Pick a window with soft daylight and no direct sun. The aim is even light on the face with no shadow, which the US, UK and Canadian pages ask for in some form.
- Lay a plain white or off-white sheet (a light-coloured sheet for the UK) over a flat surface or a car seat. Smooth out folds, because a fold shows as a line or a shadow.
- Place the baby on the sheet, alone. Remove toys, dummies and pacifiers. If you must support the head for a baby under 1 in the UK, keep your hand out of the frame. For Canada and Australia, no hands should appear at all.
- Shoot from directly above for a baby lying down, or straight on for a car seat. Take many shots. A baby's expression changes by the second, and one frame will have the face clear and the head level.
- Check each shot for shadows on the face, a hat, a hair clip or a sheet crease crossing the head. Pick the sharpest frame.
If you use a phone, turn the flash off. A flash can cast hard shadows and reflect in the eyes. That is general photography advice, not something the offices state.
Make the 2 x 2 inch photo with DocPro
A photo taken from above may need turning so the head is upright. DocPro's Passport photo tool can rotate it, set the crop to a country size and lay out a print sheet. For the United States, the details are on the US passport photo page.
- Open the tool and drop the chosen photo in.
- Under 1 · Size, search for United States passport and pick it. The panel lists the print size and the head height range.
- Use Rotate left or Rotate right until the baby's head is upright, then drag and zoom until the head sits between the guides. Auto-place head makes a guess at the position, but check the placement by eye, because it is only a first guess.
- Leave the background as Keep original. A real white sheet is the safe choice, since the US and UK pages forbid altering photos with software.
- Under 4 · Print sheet, choose the paper and the number of photos, make the sheet and print at 100 percent with no fit-to-page option.
The photo is processed in the browser and is not uploaded, which suits a photo of a child's face.
What DocPro cannot do
- It cannot guarantee that any authority accepts the photo. The presets are common requirements, and the office decides.
- Rotating and cropping are changes too. The UK page says not to crop a photo taken for its online service, so for a UK digital application use the photo as taken and follow the service's own prompts.
- Canada and Australia point applicants to a photographer for some applications, so a home photo may not be an option there. Check the application type first.
- It cannot fix shadows, a pacifier in the mouth or a hand in the frame. Those need a retake.
Rules change. These notes reflect the official pages listed under Sources on 29 October 2026. Check the current page of your passport office before you take the photo.
Frequently asked questions
Do a newborn's eyes have to be open in a passport photo?
Not fully, in the US: the State Department says it is okay if a baby's eyes are not entirely open. The UK says a child under 1 does not need to have their eyes open. Canada allows newborns a range of facial expressions.
How should a baby be positioned for a US passport photo?
The State Department says to lay the baby or toddler on a plain white or off-white sheet, or to put the child in a car seat covered with a white or off-white blanket. There must be no shadows on the face and no other people in the picture.
Can a parent hold the baby in the photo?
Not visibly. The UK allows you to support a baby's head if your hand is not visible. Canada says the photo must not show your hands or your child's hands, and Australia lists a parent's hands in the photo as unacceptable.
Can a baby have a pacifier or toy in a passport photo?
No. The UK says babies must not be holding toys or using dummies, and the US says a pacifier that hides part of the face is not acceptable.
Does a baby have to look at the camera?
Not in the UK, where children under 6 do not need to look directly at the camera or have a plain expression. Australia says children under 3 may have their mouth open.
Can I change the background of a baby's photo with an app?
Not if the office follows the US or UK pages. The US page says not to change the photo with computer software, phone apps, filters or artificial intelligence, and the UK asks for a photo unaltered by computer software.