Russian Visa Photo

There are many reasons for you to want to see the largest country in the world, which occupies one-tenth of all the land on Earth. If you want to travel to some of the cities of Russia such as the beautiful capital Moscow or equally delightful Petersburg, and you have already planned a journey to the country of some of the most famous writers such as Leo Tolstoy or Fyodor Dostoevsky, you might need a visa. 

Russian visa photo guidelines

While the whole process of applying for a visa might be a time-consuming experience, we have prepared a guide for you, in order to make it easier and faster.

According to the Russian visa rules you must provide 2 (two) biometric photographs of yourself. Make sure that you provide the correct photograph that follows all requirements, Read on to find out about:

• The Russian visa photo dimensions.
• What the required background is and how to obtain it.
• How to take the right visa photograph.
• What are the most common mistakes and how to avoid them.
• How to crop and edit your visa photo with a professional photo tool, which does not violate the official rules and verifies that your photo follows all requirements set by Russian officials for visa photos.

Russian visa photo size

The required dimensions for photos for a Russian visa are 35mmx45mm where the size of your face must be a minimum of 32 mm and a maximum of 36 mm. To avoid mistakes you should use our intelligent photo editor, which measures and crops your photos to ensure pictures meet Russian requirements.

Background 

The background for a Russian visa photo must be light gray and free of shadows, patterns and other visible objects or people. If you are not able to prepare the required background, you can use a tool which removes an unsuitable background and makes it any color you need. Just use our dedicated tool on the PhotoAiD site.

Lighting

The best light is natural light (daylight). A photo must show your skin tones accurately and both sides of your face must be evenly illuminated. Remember, you cannot edit your photos to cover up any wrinkles, scars, tattoos or red eyes, etc. 

Head position 

The applicant’s head must be square to the camera, they cannot look down or to either side. In the picture all of the head along with the hair must be visible, as well as the neck and, optionally, the upper part of the shoulders.The camera lens must be at eye level with the person being photographed. 

Facial expression

A neutral expression with your mouth closed and eyes open is a must. Don’t smile, frown or wiggle your eyebrows, because your picture will be declined. Try to look as relaxed and natural as possible. Some people say that the biometric photo looks a bit like a mugshot and we agree. But that’s a requirement and it is demanded of in order to facilitate the process of machine-reading of photos. Smiling might distort facial recognition, that’s why it is not allowed.

Eyes

The applicant’s eyes must be visible and recognisable. If you don’t need to wear glasses for medical reasons you should take them off for the photo. You must also make sure that your hair doesn't cover your eyeline or cast any unnecessary shadows on your face.

Glasses

If you want to be sure that your photo will be accepted, take off your glasses (sunglasses are not acceptable). If you must wear glasses for medical reasons and you really cannot take them off, remember that there must not be any glare on the glass and the frame cannot cover any part of your eyes. Moreover, there should not be any shadows on your face.

Hats and head coverings

Hats aren’t permitted but headwear that you must wear because of medical or religious reasons (except niqabs which are forbidden) can be kept on if it does not obscure your face. The face of the applicant must be visible from the lower tip of the chin to the crown of the head.

Jewellery and piercing

In general there are no special rules about facial piercings and jewellery but the main requirement for biometric photos is that such accessories must not obscure your face or give off a glare on the skin. If you have a facial piercing, you do not need to remove it. If you like jewellery, choose some small pieces just to be sure that massive earrings or ear clips do not touch or cover your face’s oval line. 

Beard

If you normally have a beard then you are allowed to keep it for your photo and don’t have to worry about shaving it off. 

Attire

The clothing you wear for the visa photo can be everyday/casual. There are no special requirements when it comes to the clothes you must wear in your photo except for a few exceptions, uniforms must not be worn and turtlenecks or sleeveless T-shirts are not acceptable. Your neck should be visible, as well as the shoulders, but not in an extravagant way.

Russian visa photo and PhotoAiD

If you decide to take photos with your iPhone or smartphone with Android then you know a little about how to use the app, we would like to convince you even further to utilise the possibilities of our services.

First of all, when you use the PhotoAiD app or online photo editor, you don't need to prepare the background. This photo tool will remove the background from the photo.

The app works like a photo resizer, which will change the size of your Russian visa photo to the correct dimensions and will prepare the correct frame from which you can print the photos, or send a printed version straight to your home.

PhotoAiD works like a visa photo checker. An intelligent software verifies the position of the head, its height in the photo and visibility of all biometric features of the face. It also checks if the picture has the correct contrast and lighting. When there is something wrong, you are informed that you will need to retake the photo.

Russian visa photos - common mistakes

Read this brief description of the most common mistakes to find out what not to do. 

What you should avoid while taking photos for your Russian visa:

• Twisted body - remember that your body has to be straight and be facing towards the camera.
• Face covered - as was mentioned above, your face can’t be covered by any items, objects, other people, your hand or any shadows.
• Smile is not acceptable, you should not show your teeth, your facial expression has to be neutral.
• Hair blowing in the wind - knowing that the photo is for an important document you must be sure that your hair is styled enough to look good in your visa and not as though you have been walking in gale-force winds.
• Neck obscured - jewellery as well as turtlenecks or uniforms are not allowed so don’t wear anything that will cover your neck.
• Harsh light - don’t take photos at night, choose daylight and a brightly-lit room instead.
• Glasses - for Russian visa photos it is better to take them off, especially if they have thick frames or reflect the light.
• Blending with the background - you have to stand out from the background so do not wear a grey shirt if the background is grey too.
• Low resolution - the camera parameters are important as well, so be sure that the photos you take are in focus, sharp and have enough contrast.

Besides mistakes, there are some Don’ts regarding photos for a Russian visa:

• Don’t upload a picture that was taken a long time ago (the photo has to be recent).
• Don’t copy or cut yourself out of another image.
• Don’t overexpose or underexpose the photo.
• Don’t change it with computer software.
• Don’t print it off on a home printer and/or on low-quality paper.
• Don’t submit a damaged or blurred photo that is of bad quality and out of contrast.

Last update: 6/4/23