How to take a Saudi passport photo with your phone
The size we list for the Saudi passport is 40×60 mm on a plain white background, printed at 300 DPI. This document has not yet been checked against an official source, so it carries the standard badge rather than the verified one: use the numbers as a starting point and confirm them on the Absher or Jawazat page before you print a sheet.
The framing follows the ICAO rules every modern passport uses, so the head should take up roughly 70–80% of the photo height, measured from the chin to the top of the crown, with the eyes looking straight into the lens. Stand about 1.5 metres from a white wall, phone at eye level, rear camera, daylight from a window in front of you. Shoot a little wider than the final crop; we cut to the exact rectangle afterwards.
Why a Saudi passport photo comes back
A hijab or other religious head covering is accepted, and this is worth saying plainly because people assume otherwise: what matters is that the whole face is visible, from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with nothing shadowing the eyes. Pin the fabric back from the cheeks and make sure it does not blend into a white background — a light scarf against a white wall can leave the face floating with no visible edge.
The other common failures are the ones every passport office shares: a shadow behind the head from a single lamp, a smile with teeth, a photo cropped out of a larger picture so the resolution is too low, and glasses with glare across a lens.
Where a Saudi passport photo is used
The same photo is used for the passport application and renewal, and generally for residency and civil-affairs paperwork handled through Absher. Keep a printed sheet as well as the digital file: counters still ask for prints, and the digital copy saves a second trip if an online form needs it.
