Baby & Toddler Passport Photos: Rules and How to Shoot at Home
A newborn’s photo is judged on almost the same rules as an adult’s — only a few allowances change for babies, and the most common reason infant photos get rejected is something the parent does, not the baby. Here is the official picture, country by country, updated September 2026.
The one rule that changes for babies (and the ones that don’t)
Strip away the folklore and the official relaxations are narrow. What genuinely eases for a baby is the eyes — and, in some countries, the mouth:
- United States: “It is okay if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open.” That is the only allowance; the wording says “a baby” without printing an age cut-off (widely read as under 1).
- United Kingdom: children under 1 do not have to have their eyes open, and children under 6 do not need a plain expression or to look straight at the camera.
- Australia: for children under 3 the mouth may be open; from 3 the full adult standard applies.
- Canada: the official wording allows some range for infant facial expressions.
Everything else is identical to the adult rules at every age: a plain background with no shadows, no other person in the photo (a supporting hand counts as a person), the full face visible, and no editing or AI retouching. The US in particular gives babies no expression exemption — a laughing or crying face is not accepted simply because the subject is small.
Country rules at a glance
| Country | Size & head | Eyes / expression | Others, hands & background |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 United States | 2 × 2 in (51 × 51 mm); head 25–35 mm | “It is okay if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open.” That is the only allowance — the wording says “a baby” with no printed age cut-off (widely read as under 1). No expression exemption. | “No other person can be in the photo.” Plain white or off-white background, no shadows. |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 45 mm high × 35 mm wide; head 29–34 mm; two identical prints | Under 1 need not have eyes open; under 6 need no plain expression and need not look at the camera. | A hand may support the head but must not be visible. No dummies or toys. Under 1: lie on a plain light-coloured sheet, photo taken from above. |
| 🇨🇦 Canada | 50 mm wide × 70 mm high; face 31–36 mm | Newborns may have a range of facial expressions. | The photo must not show your hands or your child’s hands; car-seat method with a white blanket behind the head, no shadows. Photos must be professionally printed — home prints are not accepted. |
| 🇦🇺 Australia | 35–40 mm wide × 45–50 mm high; chin-to-crown 32–36 mm | Under 3 the mouth may be open; from 3 the full standard applies (face the camera, eyes open, neutral expression). | “But no one else can be visible.” Dye-sublimation on heavyweight glossy paper (min 200 gsm); pure white or light grey background. |
| 🇪🇺 Schengen | 35 × 45 mm (ICAO standard) | No published infant exemption on the EU official page — check the accepting country’s embassy or consulate page for a baby’s specific allowance. | Plain light background, no shadows, no other person, no editing. |
All sizes and head heights above come from the official pages and match the presets in our full size chart.
Can a baby’s eyes be closed?
- US: yes for a baby — “it is okay if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open.” Older children must have their eyes open.
- UK: children under 1 do not have to have their eyes open.
- Australia: the official page writes the under-3 allowance as an open mouth; it does not publish a closed-eye exemption, so do not rely on one — aim for open eyes.
- Schengen: the EU page only requires ICAO compliance and publishes no infant exemption — treat your destination’s embassy or consulate page as the authority.
Practical approach: keep an eyes-mostly-open frame as your first choice and a sleepy one as backup, so the reviewer has fewer reasons to object.
Can I hold my baby? (the hands rule)
This is the single most common real rejection. The UK states you may support a baby’s head with your hand, but your hand must not be visible in the photo. Canada says the photo must not show your hands or your child’s hands, and the US says no other person can be in the photo — an arm or a knee at the edge of frame counts. Australia allows no one else visible.
The fix is not to remove support but to keep it out of shot: put a white sheet over the seat or the supporting surface, or keep both hands behind the seat, behind the camera’s field of view.
Two proven setups
- Lie-down method (newborn). Sit the baby on a plain white or off-white sheet on the floor and shoot straight down from above. This is what the US and UK official pages suggest for the youngest babies — the UK says children under 1 “should lie on a plain light-coloured sheet” with the photo taken from above.
- Sheet-covered car seat. The US page notes you can cover a car seat with the sheet and place your child in it; Canada describes the same idea with a white blanket placed over the seat behind your child’s head. The seat gives support and the covered back becomes your background — just keep the harness, buckles and edges out of frame.
Shooting checklist
- Plain background, no shadows. White or off-white for the US; light-coloured for the UK; white or light grey for Australia. Smooth the sheet — creases read as texture.
- Nobody else, nothing over the face. No supporting hand, arm or knee; no dummy, bottle, hat or hair over the eyes.
- Soft side light, no flash. Camera flash causes red-eye, and red-eye is listed as unacceptable; overhead lamps dig shadows under the eyes. Use daylight from a window, from the side.
- Burst, then choose. Take a run of frames and pick the one with the face square to the lens and the mouth relaxed.
- No filters, no AI clean-up. Keep the original background — the US and Canada both rule out altered photos.
- Crop to the exact size. Finish with the preset for your document; see the home photo guide for the adult setup this builds on.
Top reasons baby photos get rejected
- A hand or arm in frame. The supporting hand behind the head is the classic fail — hide it under a sheet or behind the seat.
- Shadows on the face or background. There is no infant exemption; the overhead angle makes the photographer’s own shadow easy to cast.
- Background fails. Wrinkled sheet, a car-seat edge or harness peeking in, a toy in the corner.
- Something over the face. A pacifier, a hat, or hair across the eyes.
- Expression out of range. A crying or laughing face — the US gives infants no expression exemption.
Baby photo FAQ
Can a newborn get a passport photo?
Yes. The US sets no minimum age, and the only infant allowance — a baby’s eyes not entirely open — applies from day one; every other requirement (plain background, no shadows, no other person, full face visible) matches the adult list. The UK mirrors it: under-1s may keep their eyes closed.
Can I take a baby’s passport photo at home?
For a US or UK application, yes — the rules judge the finished photo, not where it was taken. For a Canadian passport, no: the official page requires a professionally printed photo on plain, high-quality photographic paper and does not accept home prints, so use a commercial photo lab.
Can the baby be asleep in the photo?
In the US that is acceptable for a baby — the rules say it is okay if the eyes are not entirely open — and the UK likewise lets under-1s keep their eyes shut. The face must still be square to the lens and free of shadows. Keep an eyes-mostly-open frame as your first choice and the sleeping one as backup.
Can I hold my baby’s head for the photo?
Support is allowed, but the hand must never appear. The UK says you may support the head with your hand as long as it is not visible; Canada states the photo must not show your hands or your child’s hands; Australia allows no one else visible. The fix is to hide the support under a sheet — use the lie-down or covered car-seat setup.
Can the baby have its mouth open?
It depends on the country. Australia allows an open mouth for children under 3, then requires the standard “eyes open, neutral expression” from 3. The US asks for a neutral expression and gives infants no exemption, so a calm, mostly-closed mouth is the safe choice. The UK waives the plain-expression rule under 6.
Can I use my phone — and edit the background?
The phone is fine; editing is not. The US lists altered photos as unacceptable and Canada bans software and AI changes, so do not replace, blur or clean up the background. Set up a plain background in camera and keep the original.
Next steps
Make the photo against the right preset with the idpixo ID photo tool (everything runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded), then get it onto paper the right way: sizes in the size chart, printing in the printing guide, exact scale via print calibration and layout via the photo print sheet. If a photo is turned down, work through rejection reasons. Age-by-age US & UK tips are in the baby & child photo guide, and all our guides are listed under guides.