"Passport size" is used loosely in India for any small photo on a form. For an actual passport application it is a specific size with specific rules, and getting it wrong is one of the more common reasons an application comes back.
The size
For an Indian passport application the photograph is 4.5 cm tall by 3.5 cm wide — 45 mm × 35 mm. This is the same size used across most of Europe and by many Indian government forms.
The looser "passport size photo" asked for by schools, banks and employers in India is often the smaller 3.5 cm × 2.5 cm stamp-size print, and some forms want a 2 inch × 2 inch square, which is the US standard. Read the form. If it does not say, 45 mm × 35 mm is the safest.
- Indian passport: 45 mm × 35 mm (4.5 cm × 3.5 cm)
- Common Indian form or "stamp size": 35 mm × 25 mm
- US visa and some international forms: 51 mm × 51 mm (2 in × 2 in)
The rules that actually cause rejections
Size is rarely the problem. These are:
- Background: plain white or very light, with no shadow falling on it. A wall that looks white to your eye often photographs grey or cream.
- Face size: your face should fill roughly 70 to 80 per cent of the frame height, looking straight at the camera.
- Expression: neutral, mouth closed, both eyes open and visible.
- No glare on glasses, and no tinted lenses. Removing your glasses entirely is simplest.
- No head covering except for religious reasons, and the full face must still be visible from chin to forehead.
- Recent: taken within the last six months, on matte or glossy photo paper, not printed on plain copier paper.
Taking one on a phone that will actually pass
It works, and it is what most people now do. Stand about a metre from a plain, well-lit white wall, facing a window so the light comes from in front of you rather than behind. Have somebody else hold the phone at your eye level — an arm's-length selfie distorts the face, and that distortion is visible.
Do not use portrait mode. It blurs the background, and a background that is not uniformly sharp and plain is grounds for rejection.
Shoot in landscape or normal mode, keep the shot loose, and let whoever prints it crop to the exact size.
Getting it printed
A studio will shoot and print in one go, which is the reliable route if you are unsure about the rules. If you already have a good photo, any print shop will size and print it, and doorstep printing services will do the same from a photo you send from your phone — useful the evening before an appointment, when studios are shut.
Whichever you choose, ask for photo paper. A passport photo printed on ordinary paper is refused on sight.