United States DS-160
photo.
DS-160 upload silently rejects files over 240 KB. Most free tools export at 500 KB+. We auto-compress with quality bisection to hit the cap precisely.
- 51×51 mm
- Plain white or off-white
- JPEG · 54–240 KB
Photos deleted within 24 hours · Full refund if your photo is rejected · No training on your photo.
Illustrative model, not a real applicant — this photo is not tied to United States and is shown only to preview the frame and background. Your compliant render will follow United States DS-160 specs exactly.
A photo, not a selfie. We handle the rest.
Framing, cropping, and background are automatic. But arm’s-length selfies distort your face — most authorities reject them. Take a few steps back instead.
- Ask someone to take the photo from about 1.5–2 m away — or prop your phone and use the timer
- Use the rear camera, not the front / selfie camera — the wider front lens distorts your face
- Face a window for soft, even light; no harsh shadows on you or the wall behind
- Head and shoulders in frame, eyes looking straight at the lens
- Plain-ish background is fine — we replace it with the exact required colour
- Arm's-length selfie — the close focal length stretches your nose and chin
- Wide smile or visible teeth
- Glasses (prescription included — remove for this spec)
- Hats or sunglasses
- Head coverings unless worn for religious reasons
- Another person in the frame — only the applicant
- Photos older than the recency window below
Four steps. Under two minutes.
End-to-end, from picking a photo to downloading the final compliant JPEG.
- № 01Upload your photo
Your browser loads a face-check model (once, ~3 MB) and runs the compliance rules locally. The photo never leaves your device at this step.
- № 02Free compliance check
We verify face position, expression, eyes, centering, and head-height against the United States DS-160 spec. If something fails, we tell you exactly what to fix.
- № 03Spec-compliant render
Once it passes, we auto-crop to 51×51 mm, replace the background with plain white or off-white, and compress the JPEG to 54–240 KB.
- № 04Preview, then pay $6
Watermarked preview first — you only pay if you're happy. Download link works for 24 hours, emailed to you as a receipt.
Exact specification
Drawn from travel.state.gov (US Department of State).
- Dimensions
- 51×51 mm (2.01″ × 2.01″)
- Pixels
- 600×600 px @ 300 dpi
- Head height
- 22–35 mm (50–69% frame)
- Background
- Plain white or off-white#FFFFFF
- File
- JPEG 54–240 KB
- Use
- Digital upload or printed photo
- Recency
- Taken within 6 months
What reviewers check
The common rejection reasons, ranked by frequency.
- No eyeglasses — frames or lenses
- Neutral expression, mouth closed — no smile
- Ears optional
- No head covering unless religious (face fully visible)
- Taken within the last 6 months
Country-specific notes
Notes- 01US State Department specifies chin-to-crown 22–35 mm (50–69% of frame).
- 02No eyeglasses since November 2016 — a common rejection reason.
- 03Photo must be square (600×600 to 1200×1200 pixels).
- 04File must be JPEG. The upload tool aims for 54–240 KB; anything over 240 KB is silently rejected.
- 05Taken within the last 6 months.
The measurement diagram, annotated.
Beside every sample output we publish the compliance diagram — frame ratio, head-height window, background colour swatch — drawn from the issuing authority. No guesswork before you pay.
Official source · travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/photos.html
Common questions
- What makes this photo compliant?
- Every output is rendered to exactly 51×51 mm (600×600 px at 300 DPI) with the #FFFFFF background required by travel.state.gov (US Department of State). The JPEG is compressed to fit the 54–240 KB cap.
- What if my photo is rejected?
- If the issuing authority rejects your photo because it doesn’t match the spec on this page, we refund you in full within 30 days. We can’t refund rejections for reasons unrelated to the photo (application errors, document issues, clerk discretion).
- Is my photo stored?
- Your uploaded photo and the rendered output are both deleted within 24 hours. We store only a SHA-256 hash and order metadata (for your receipt and chargeback defense). We never train models on your photo.