ID and Application Photo Size Guide — Korean Passport, ID Card, Driver's License, Civil Service Exam, Q-Net and US Visa

The figures in this article were checked directly on each institution's official guidance pages on September 23, 2026. Specs can change with exam announcements or policy revisions, so always recheck the institution's latest notice before submitting. Specs we could not verify have been left out. Except for the US entries, all specs below are Korean requirements.

First: print size and file specs are different things

ID photo rules mix two kinds of requirements. One is the physical size (cm) of a printed photo; the other is the pixel dimensions and file size (KB) of a file for online submission. For example, "3.5×4.5cm" is the printed size, and when you upload it as a file, each institution asks for different pixel dimensions, such as 413×531 or 137×177 pixels. The value that links cm and pixels is resolution (dpi) (see the conversion section below).

Korean ID photos (print specs)

Type	Size	When taken	Key conditions	Source
Passport	3.5 wide × 4.5 tall cm, crown to chin 3.2–3.6cm	Within 6 months before applying	Plain white background, no border, front-facing upper body, no editing or AI compositing, 300dpi recommended	Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs passport portal
Resident registration card	3.5 wide × 4.5 tall cm	Within 6 months	Front-facing upper body without a hat or similar, may be taken to passport spec	Ministry of the Interior and Safety
Driver's license (reissue)	3.5 × 4.5cm passport-style color photo	Within 6 months	One passport-style photo	Korea Road Traffic Authority

The passport photo rules are the most detailed of these. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, colored lenses, cosmetic lenses and sunglasses are not allowed, and glasses must have no light reflections and frames that don't cover the eyes. Photos using filters or editing software, and photos with the background removed or composited, are also not accepted.

File specs for online submission

Where you submit	Pixel size	File size	File type	Notes
Korean passport online application (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)	413×531 recommended (uploads accepted only at 395–431 wide, 507–550 tall)	500KB or less	JPG, JPEG, PNG	300dpi recommended
Korean national civil service exam application (national civil service recruitment system)	137×177 (based on 3.5×4.5cm)	Under 350KB	JPG, PNG	Exams for people with severe disabilities are an exception
Korean national technical qualification application (Q-Net)	300×400 or larger	200KB or less (per the Q-Net guide)	JPG, JPEG	ID, half-size ID or passport photo
US visa digital photo (Department of State)	Square, 600×600 to 1200×1200	240kB or less	JPEG	24-bit color, sRGB, compression ratio of 20:1 or less

A few points to watch out for:

The file size limit for Korean national civil service applications may differ from older guidance (under 100KB). At the time of checking, the official guidance said under 350KB. Local government exams take applications on a separate site (the local government online application center), so check that announcement separately.
Q-Net splits its photo spec guidance across two pages. The how-to-use page specifies a JPG of 300×400 pixels or larger, and the guide page specifies a JPG of 200KB or less. It's safest to meet both: 300×400 or larger and 200KB or less. Selfies, side profiles, black-and-white photos, photos with hats, and scans of a resident registration card are listed as unacceptable.
US visa photos must be square, and the head (chin to crown) must take up 50–69% of the image height. The printed photo is 2×2 inches (51×51mm).
US passport printed photos are also 2×2 inches, with a head size of 1 to 1 3/8 inches (25–35mm). The Department of State requires glasses to be removed and does not accept photos edited with apps, filters or AI.

Converting cm to pixels — calculating with dpi

The pixel count is cm ÷ 2.54 × dpi (1 inch = 2.54cm). Converting a 3.5×4.5cm passport photo at 300dpi gives 3.5 ÷ 2.54 × 300 ≈ 413 and 4.5 ÷ 2.54 × 300 ≈ 531 — exactly the 413×531 pixels recommended by the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The 137×177 pixels for the Korean civil service application is the same size converted at about 100dpi.

Print size	100dpi	200dpi	300dpi
2.5×3.5cm (Korean standard ID)	98×138	197×276	295×413
3×4cm (Korean half-size ID)	118×157	236×315	354×472
3.5×4.5cm (passport)	138×177	276×354	413×531
2×2 inches (US)	200×200	400×400	600×600

The principle behind the conversion and how to choose a print resolution are covered in more detail in Resolution, DPI and pixels explained.

Steps to meet the spec

Match the aspect ratio first. 3.5×4.5cm is 7:9, 3×4cm is 3:4, and the US spec is 1:1. Use the Crop tool with a fixed ratio so the face is centered with a little space above the crown.
Resize to the required pixels. Once the ratio is right, resizing won't distort the face.
Hit the file size. The spec presets in the Compress Image tool set the pixel size and target file size together. For "under" limits, you have to land below the boundary value.
Final check: look at the file extension (.jpg), pixel size and file size in the file properties one more time.

Studio files vs. smartphone shots

ID photo files from a photo studio are usually high-resolution files meant for printing, so uploading them as-is runs into file size limits. Conversely, photos you take yourself with a smartphone have plenty of resolution but make it hard to meet the rules on background, lighting and face size. Official IDs (especially passports) have strict shooting conditions, so a studio photo is recommended; when you only need a file, as for application uploads, the easiest route is to shrink the studio file to spec.

Fixes for common upload errors

Error type	Common cause	Fix
File too large	High-resolution print file	Resize to the required pixels, then adjust JPG quality
Photo size (spec) doesn't match	Pixel size or aspect ratio mismatch	Crop to the right ratio, then save at the exact pixel size
Unsupported file type	HEIC or WebP file, or a file with only the extension changed	Actually convert it to JPG
Photo is blurry or unsuitable	Small photo enlarged, over-compression	Recreate it from the original

Common reasons for rejection

Shadows or patterns in the background, or visible traces of an app-removed background (mushy hair edges)
A face that is too small or too large, falling outside the crown-to-chin length requirement
Photos older than 6 months, or photos with heavy skin retouching or filters
Files where only the extension was changed to .jpg but that are actually HEIC or PNG (upload forms that inspect the contents will reject them). If it's an iPhone photo, see What is HEIC? and actually convert it to JPG.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use my Korean passport photo for my resident registration card and driver's license too?

All three Korean IDs require a 3.5cm wide × 4.5cm tall photo taken within the last 6 months, and the guidance from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Road Traffic Authority is based on passport-standard photos. The passport has the strictest conditions, such as a white background and no editing, so a photo that meets the passport rules will generally be fine for the other two as well.

The file I got from the photo studio is larger than the application spec.

Studio files are usually made for printing at 300dpi or higher, so their pixel dimensions and file size are large. Resize to the required pixels while keeping the aspect ratio, and if the file is still too big, lower the JPG quality. It's important to match the aspect ratio first so the face position stays within spec.

Can I change the background to white with an app?

The Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not allow passport photos whose background has been removed or composited with editing software. Other institutions may also reject retouched or composited photos, so the safest approach is to shoot in front of a light, plain background from the start.

Try it now

Compress Image to KB Crop, Rotate & Split Remove Background

Last updated: 2026-09-23