Maldives Passport Photo Requirements — 35 × 45 mm, White Background
For a Maldivian passport (biometric) photo. The official Maldives Immigration photo standard is precise: a 35 mm wide × 45 mm high print on high-quality paper at at least 600 dpi, against a plain white background. The face must take up 70–80% of the photo (32–36 mm, crown to chin), the image must be taken within the last 30 days and it must carry no borders. Verified against the official Maldivian immigration photo standard, September 2026.
Official Maldives passport photo specification
| Print size | 35 mm wide × 45 mm high (the sample image is marked 35MM and 45MM) |
| Print resolution | At least 600 dpi, printed on high-quality paper |
| Background | White and plain — it must contrast with the face and hair |
| Face size | The face must take up 70–80% of the photo, i.e. 32–36 mm from crown to chin |
| Tolerance | Photos are rejected only if the face measures less than 27 mm or more than 40 mm |
| Recency | Taken within the last 30 days |
| Borders | None — the photo must not include any borders |
| Expression | Neutral, mouth closed, looking straight at the camera |
| Head position | The head must not be tilted or turned |
| Glasses | Lenses and frames must not cover the eyes; no flash reflection; no sunglasses or dark lenses |
| Head coverings | Permitted for religious or medical reasons, with the full facial features visible |
| Retouching | Not accepted — sharp-edge edits are rejected |
| Pixel size | Not published by the official standard |
| Print quantity | Not published by the official standard |
The official standard states verbatim:
The face must take up 70-80% of the photo. This corresponds to a height of 32-36mm.
It is often difficult to determine where the top of the head would be without hair, photos should be rejected only if the face measures less than 27mm or more than 40mm.
The background must be in white colour in contrast with face and hair.
The photo must be printed on high-quality paper with a print resolution of at least 600 dpi
The photo must be taken with in the last 30 days.
The photo must not include any borders.
The same guideline states that it “aligns with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) specifications for Machine Readable Travel Documents”, so the framing and quality rules follow the ICAO passport-photo model for machine readable travel documents.
The 35 × 45 mm frame
The Maldives uses the common portrait rectangle: 35 mm wide and 45 mm high. The official sample image is annotated 35MM across the width and 45MM down the height, so the two figures are not interchangeable — width first, height second. The standard gives no trimming instruction, so keep the full 35 × 45 mm print rather than cropping into it. Compare the other countries that share the same rectangle in the full size chart.
Background: plain white
The background must be white and it must sit in contrast with the face and hair. An off-white, grey, cream or patterned backdrop does not meet the Maldivian rule, and a busy wall, a door or a shadow behind the head will fail. Because the requirement is stated as white — not light grey or cream — a photo prepared for the white-background countries is the right starting point here. The general rules are collected in the backgrounds guide.
Face size: 70–80% of the photo (32–36 mm)
This is the Maldives’ most specific number. The face must take up 70–80% of the photo, which the standard equates to a height of 32–36 mm measured from the crown of the head to the chin. It is careful about the margin: because the top of the head is hard to judge without hair, photos should be rejected only if the face measures less than 27 mm or more than 40 mm. That is a review tolerance for the officer, not a target to aim at — crop to 32–36 mm. The mechanics are covered in the head size and eye line guide.
Taken within the last 30 days
The photo must be taken within the last 30 days. A picture reused from an older application, however good it looks, falls outside that window and should not be sent. The reasons behind freshness windows are explained in the photo validity guide.
Expression, glasses and head coverings
The head must not be tilted or turned, the expression must be neutral with the mouth closed, and you must look straight at the camera. The standard does not accept retouching: sharp-edge edits are rejected, and red eye, glare and shadow must not appear. With glasses, the lenses and frames must not cover the eyes, there must be no flash reflection, and sunglasses or dark lenses are not allowed. Head coverings are handled in their own section and are permitted for religious or medical reasons, provided the full facial features are visible. See the expression, glasses and head coverings guides for the detail.
What is still not published
The standard fixes the size, the 600 dpi print resolution, the white background, the 70–80% face ratio, the 30-day window, the no-borders rule and the expression, glasses and head-covering rules. It does not publish a pixel dimension and it does not publish a number of printed copies. The Maldivian application flow starts with an electronic upload through the immigration portal, which is why no paper count is stated. Do not guess at either figure. Confirm a finished crop with the passport photo checker, and if a photo has already been refused, start from rejection reasons.
60-second Maldives check
- ☐ Photo is 35 mm wide × 45 mm high
- ☐ Printed at at least 600 dpi on high-quality paper
- ☐ Plain white background, in contrast with the face and hair
- ☐ Face takes up 70–80% of the photo (32–36 mm, crown to chin)
- ☐ Taken within the last 30 days; no borders
- ☐ Head straight — not tilted or turned; mouth closed, neutral expression
- ☐ No retouching, red eye, glare or shadow; nothing covering the eyes
Frequently asked questions
What size is a Maldives passport photo?
35 mm wide by 45 mm high. The official sample image is marked 35MM across and 45MM down.
What background colour does the Maldives require?
White. The standard says the background must be in white colour, in contrast with the face and hair, so a patterned or off-white backdrop does not meet the Maldivian rule.
How much of the photo should my face fill?
The face must take up 70–80% of the photo, which the standard equates to a height of 32–36 mm from crown to chin. It adds that photos should be rejected only if the face measures less than 27 mm or more than 40 mm.
What resolution must the photo be?
The photo must be printed on high-quality paper with a print resolution of at least 600 dpi. The official standard does not publish a pixel dimension, so do not treat any pixel figure as official.
How recent must the photo be?
It must be taken within the last 30 days.
Can the photo have a border?
No. The standard states that the photo must not include any borders.
Related: the Maldives uses the same 35 × 45 mm rectangle as Denmark and Malta, but Malta wants a light grey or cream background rather than white. Lay out prints with the photo print sheet, and read rejection reasons if a photo has been refused.