How to take a passport photo on an iPhone
Use the back camera in normal Photo mode, avoid Portrait mode, and open the tool in Safari so HEIC photos open without converting.
An iPhone takes more than good enough photos for any passport. The things that trip people up are portrait mode, the front camera, and the HEIC file format.
Camera settings
- Use Photo mode, not Portrait. Portrait mode blurs the background and softens edges, which can get a photo refused.
- Use the back camera. Ask someone else to take it. The front camera at arm's length distorts the face and makes the nose look bigger.
- Turn off filters and Live Photo effects. Leave the image as it comes out of the camera.
- Keep the 1× lens. Don't zoom in. Step closer instead, to about 1.2 m.
HEIC photos
iPhones save photos as HEIC by default. Safari on iPhone and Mac opens them in the tool without problems. Chrome and some other browsers on Windows can't read HEIC. If the tool says it can't open your photo, do one of these:
- Open this site in Safari on your iPhone and pick the photo there.
- Share the photo from the Photos app by email or AirDrop; it usually converts to JPG.
- For future photos, set Settings › Camera › Formats to “Most Compatible”.
Making the photo on the phone
Open the passport photo maker in Safari, choose your document, tap “Choose a photo”, and pick the picture from your library. Drag with one finger to move it and pinch to zoom. When the face sits on the guides, tap “Download photo” or “Download print sheet”. The file is saved to Downloads in the Files app; from there you can save it to Photos or AirDrop it to a computer.
Updated November 2026.