Japan My Number Card Photo Requirements
The photo you hand in for a My Number Card (マイナンバーカード) is not the same deliverable as the one printed on the card: you submit a 4.5 × 3.5 cm photo, and the card office shrinks it to fit the card face. The official checklist of unacceptable photos is unusually detailed, and there are real exceptions for infants and for people who cannot sit upright. Verified against the Japanese government My Number Card photo guidance, September 2026.
Submitted size vs the size on the card
There are two numbers worth keeping apart. You provide a photo measuring 4.5 cm tall × 3.5 cm wide. On the card itself, that photo is reduced to 2.75 cm tall × 2.20 cm wide when it is affixed. In other words you do not pre-crop to the small card size — you submit the standard 4.5 × 3.5 cm photo and the office does the reduction. Write your name and date of birth on the back, as the guidance asks.
Basic conditions
| Submitted size | 4.5 cm (height) × 3.5 cm (width) |
| Size on the card | Reduced to 2.75 cm (height) × 2.20 cm (width) when affixed |
| Recency | Taken within the last 6 months |
| Pose | Front-facing, no hat, plain background |
| Colour | Black-and-white photos are also accepted |
| Back of the photo | Write your name and date of birth |
Photos the office will not accept
The official guidance groups the failures into three kinds:
- Framing: the face off-centre; a side-on face; the face tilted left or right; a chair or other background visible; a shadow on the background; a patterned background.
- Obscured features: glasses frames over the eyes; very thick frames covering a large part of the eyes or face; light reflecting off the glasses; a wide hairband covering the head; a hat covering the head; sunglasses that stop you being identifiable; a long fringe hiding the eyes or the face outline; a large volume of hair leaving the face too small.
- Identification: pupils red from a flash; an appearance markedly different from your everyday look; shadow on the face; an unclear, out-of-focus or camera-shaken image.
Exceptions: head coverings, infants and bedridden applicants
The guidance allows a head covering for religious or medical reasons as long as the outline of the face is visible — turbans, hijabs and similar items for religious reasons, and wigs, hats, eye patches or sunglasses worn routinely for medical reasons.
It also sets out a route for anyone who cannot stand or sit: infants, people with disabilities and people who are bedridden. Where a seated or standing pose is not possible, the photo may be taken lying face-up on a plain light-coloured sheet, photographed from the front. If a helper holds or supports the person, the helper must not appear in the photo.
The guidance notes separately that a photo can be rejected for being out of specification (too dark, uncroppable and so on), or that a card application can be held up for reasons other than the photo — so a clean photo is necessary but not the only thing the office checks. The official page we verified gives no digital pixel or file-size limits (it is a paper-photo process), so none are stated here.
Frequently asked questions
What size photo does a My Number Card need?
You submit a photo 4.5 cm tall by 3.5 cm wide. On the card it is reduced to 2.75 cm tall by 2.20 cm wide when affixed.
Should I crop the photo to the small card size myself?
No. Submit the 4.5 × 3.5 cm photo; the office reduces it to 2.75 × 2.20 cm for the card. Write your name and date of birth on the back.
Do I have to use a colour photo?
No. Black-and-white photos are also accepted, provided the other conditions are met.
Why might my photo be rejected?
Common official reasons include the face off-centre, a side-on or tilted face, a patterned or shadowed background, glasses frames over the eyes, reflection off the lenses, a hat or wide hairband covering the head, red pupils from a flash, and an out-of-focus image.
Can I wear a head covering?
Yes, for religious or medical reasons, as long as the outline of your face is visible — for example turbans and hijabs for religious reasons, or wigs, eye patches or sunglasses worn routinely for medical reasons.
What if my baby or a bedridden relative cannot sit up?
The guidance allows the photo to be taken lying face-up on a plain light-coloured sheet, photographed from the front. If someone supports the person, the helper must not appear in the photo.
Use a plain background and no hat, then check the proportions against the full size chart and verify your file with the passport photo checker. For other Japanese documents see the Japan passport photo page.