Independent guide to official photo rules

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Taking a Chinese Passport or Visa Photo at Home

How to take a photo at home that meets the COVA and 中国领事 app rules: background, light, clothing, camera position and cropping.

Based on official sources · last checked

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Quick answer

Can I take my own Chinese passport or visa photo at home?

Yes, for digital uploads such as COVA and the 中国领事 app, which check the photo online. Stand in front of a plain white wall in even light, wear a dark top, show both ears, and have someone else take it at eye level. Embassies still recommend a photo studio, and in China many offices need a studio receipt.

You can take a Chinese visa or consular passport photo at home if you can meet the rules: a plain white background, even light with no shadows, a dark top, both ears visible, eyes open and mouth closed, taken within 6 months and cropped to 33 × 48 mm. For uploads, save a JPEG of 40–120 KB for COVA or 30–80 KB for the 中国领事 app.

This works best for the two systems that take a digital upload: COVA, the MFA's online visa application, and the 中国领事 app for passports and travel documents abroad. Both the Swiss and UAE embassies still recommend a professional studio, and in China many offices expect a photo from an approved studio.

Set up the shot

Do

  • A plain white wall or a white sheet pulled tight, with you standing a little in front of it
  • Soft daylight from a window in front of you, or two lamps either side
  • A dark top with a collar that contrasts with the white background
  • Hair pinned back and tucked behind both ears

Don't

  • Patterned, off-white or coloured walls, doors or furniture behind you
  • Overhead lights or a direct flash that cast shadows or glare
  • A white or very light top that blends into the background
  • Glasses with tinted lenses or glare, hats, earrings or heavy make-up

Beat shadows

Stand about a metre in front of the wall so your shadow falls behind you, out of shot. Face the window directly so both sides of your face are lit evenly.

Camera position

  • Have someone else take it. The Swiss embassy says many selfies are sent back for a tilted or wrongly sized head, a turned face and eyes not looking ahead.
  • Hold the camera at eye level, straight on, and look into the lens. COVA allows no more than 20° of turn or tilt to either side and 25° up or down, but aim for none.
  • Stand back and zoom slightly rather than holding the phone close, which can distort your face. COVA lists distortion as a fault.
  • Leave room around your head so you can crop it later. COVA's crop tool needs to cut more than 354 × 472 pixels around your head.
Correct photo example
Correct
Rejected photo example: shadow on face
Shadow on face
Rejected photo example: white top on white
White top on white
Rejected photo example: head tilted
Head tilted
Rejected photo example: head too big
Head too big
Rejected photo example: under-exposed
Under-exposed
Rejected photo example: glare on glasses
Glare on glasses
Rejected photo example: ears covered
Ears covered

Crop and save it

Print layout 33 × 48 mm; head 28–33 mm high and 15–22 mm wide; 3–5 mm above the crown; at least 7 mm below the chin
COVA file JPEG, 354–420 × 472–560 px, 24-bit colour, 40–120 KB
中国领事 app file JPEG, 30–80 KB (the app accepts JPG or PNG up to 5 MB, per the Swiss embassy)
Editing Crop and resize only; no retouching, filters or background swaps

Make passport photo

Printing at home

The MFA spec says that where an embassy or consulate asks for paper photos, they must be printed by a photo studio or on professional photo paper. Visa centres ask for glossy photo paper, not matte or plain paper. Order prints from a photo lab if your printer cannot do this.

Applying in China

Inside mainland China, many public security offices expect photos from approved studios, which upload the image to a police checking platform and give you a printed receipt (回执) with a number. Shanghai runs police photo points that store one photo for several services. Rules differ by city, so check before you take your own: our photo receipt guide explains the system.

How to take a Chinese passport or visa photo at home

  1. Set up a white background. Stand about a metre in front of a plain white wall, facing a window or two soft lights, so there are no shadows.
    A woman stands about a metre in front of a plain white wall while a friend photographs her with a phone held at eye level
    About a metre in front of a plain white wall
    A woman faces a large window so soft daylight falls evenly on her face, with a white wall behind her
    Facing a window for soft, even light
  2. Dress and prepare. Wear a dark top with a collar, remove your glasses, hat and earrings, and tuck your hair behind both ears.
    Rejected photo example: white top on white
    White top
    Rejected photo example: earrings
    Earrings
    Rejected photo example: ears covered
    Ears covered
    Correct photo example
    Dark top, ears showing
  3. Have someone take the photo. Ask them to hold the camera at your eye level, straight on, while you look into the lens with your eyes open and mouth closed.
    A helper holds a phone upright at eye level to photograph a woman standing in front of a white wall
    Camera at eye level, straight on
  4. Crop it to size. Crop to 33 × 48 mm with your head 28–33 mm from chin to crown, without retouching.
    A woman photographed from the waist up in front of a white wall, before the photo is cropped
    Straight from the camera
    Correct photo example
    Cropped to 33 × 48 mm
  5. Save the right file. Save a JPEG of 40–120 KB for COVA or 30–80 KB for the 中国领事 app, and print on glossy photo paper if prints are needed. If the file is not a JPG, such as a HEIC photo from an iPhone, convert it with the free 123PhotoTool JPEG converter.

Photo at home FAQ

The rules do not ban selfies, but the Chinese Embassy in Switzerland says many selfies are sent back for shadows, a tilted or wrongly sized head, or eyes not looking at the lens. Holding the phone at arm's length also tends to distort the face. Ask someone else to take the photo.

It depends on the city and office. Many exit-entry offices work with approved studios that upload the photo and give you a receipt (回执) with a number, and Shanghai runs police photo points that reuse one photo across services. Ask your local office before you take one yourself.

White. COVA and the 中国领事 app need white, and NIA also accepts white for documents issued in China. A plain, evenly lit white wall or a sheet pulled tight both work.

For COVA and the 中国领事 app you upload a file. Many visa centres also ask for a printed 33 × 48 mm photo on glossy photo paper, and travel document applicants abroad need two prints that match the upload. Use a photo lab or professional photo paper: the MFA spec says prints must come from a studio or be on professional photo paper.

You can crop it and adjust its file size. You must not retouch your features, use beauty filters, swap the background or combine images: the MFA spec forbids editing and composite photos, and NIA forbids retouching.

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Official sources

Last checked . Requirements and fees can change, so always confirm with the issuing agency before you apply. This site is independent and not affiliated with any government agency.