Most authorities specify a printed rectangle and let the digital requirement follow from it. Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority does it the other way round for its online services: the requirement is stated in pixels, because the file is what the system stores.
The specification
| Rule | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Digital size | 400 × 514 pixels |
| Print equivalent | 35 × 45 mm |
| Background | Plain white, uniform |
| Face coverage | Roughly 70-80% of the frame |
| Expression | Neutral, mouth closed, eyes open |
| Colour | Colour, taken in the last three months |
| Format | JPEG, within the portal weight limit |
400 by 514 pixels has the same proportions as 35 by 45 mm, so the crop is the familiar European rectangle. What differs is that the output has an exact pixel count rather than a minimum.
Why an exact size matters
A minimum - "at least 600 pixels" - lets the receiving system downscale. An exact figure means the system stores what you give it, so an image that is close but not equal has to be resampled by something, and the result is softer than a file produced at the right size in the first place.
Practically: crop to the correct proportions and export once, at 400 by 514. Do not export larger and shrink afterwards in another tool.
Three months, not six
Singapore asks for a photograph taken within the last three months, which is shorter than most. Worth noting if you are reusing a photo prepared for a different application earlier in the year.
What gets refused
- Wrong pixel dimensions, including images that are correct in proportion but the wrong size.
- A background that is not plain white, or that has a gradient from side lighting.
- Face too small in the frame - the usual result of submitting a normal portrait.
- A scan of a printed photo rather than a digital original.
- Visible compression artefacts from a file pushed too hard to meet a weight limit.
Preparing one
Photograph against a plain surface with soft frontal light, a metre of separation from the wall, camera at eye level about a metre and a half away. Crop to the 35 by 45 proportion with the face filling most of the frame, replace the background with white, and export at exactly 400 by 514.
IDShot carries the ICA preset and exports at 400 by 514 directly from the crop, so the file is produced at the target size rather than resampled down to it.
Requirements are changed by the authorities that publish them, and the official page is the only source that settles an argument. Each preset in IDShot links to that page, so you can confirm the current wording before you submit.