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Make Colombia Passport Photo

Colombia uses 4x5cm — a size nothing else on this site shares — and switches the background to blue if your hair is white or sparse.

Upload PhotoJPG, PNG

Precise Face Alignment

  • 1

    Fit your head inside the guide

    The face measures 39-42mm on a 50mm frame.

  • 2

    Show both shoulders

    Cancillería asks for the full silhouette.

  • 3

    Choose the right background

    White, or blue for white or sparse hair.

Specifications

The 4x5cm format published by Colombia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Dimensions40 x 50mm (4 x 5cm)
Face Size39 - 42mm
BackgroundWhite (blue for white/sparse hair)

Compliance Checklist

  • 4x5cm, not 35x45mm

    Colombia's frame is its own size.

  • Blue if hair is white or sparse

    Otherwise the hairline blends into the backdrop.

  • Both shoulders visible

    Not a tight face crop.

  • Neutral expression

    Eyes open and clearly visible.

Photo taken at the appointment

the consulate takes your photo, fingerprints and signature at the appointment; you do not need to bring one

Colombia Passport Photo Requirements, Explained

4x5cm, white background — unless your hair is white or thinning, in which case the rule flips to blue.

Quick Check: Do's & Don'ts

Not 35x45mm

Colombia uses 4x5cm (40x50mm).

Don't Crop to the Face

Both shoulders should be in frame.

40 x 50mm

Published by Cancillería directly.

Blue for White Hair

The documented exception to the white rule.

The Blue Background Exception

White as standard, blue for white or sparse hair.

Colombia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs specifies a white background — except, in its own words, for people with white and/or sparse hair, in whose case the background must be blue.

The reasoning is practical rather than bureaucratic. Light hair against a white backdrop leaves no edge for a biometric system to find, so the outline of the head cannot be measured reliably. Switching to blue restores the contrast. Very few countries write this exception down, and if it applies to you, using white is a genuine rejection risk.

A Size Nothing Else Uses

40x50mm is neither ICAO nor the 4x6cm family.

4x5cm is its own format. It is not the 35x45mm ICAO photo used across Europe and most of Asia, and it is not the 40x60mm used by Vietnam, Laos and Egypt. Nothing you already have in a drawer is likely to fit.

The same 4x5cm size is used for other Colombian documents — the cédula de ciudadanía and nationality applications — so one correctly framed crop covers more than just the passport.

Where the Official Numbers Disagree

Several figures are published and they do not fully reconcile.

Cancillería publishes a head length of 27mm, a face size of 39-42mm, 9mm from the top edge of the photo to the start of the head, 2mm of space at the top border, and eye height 24-34mm up from the bottom edge. Read literally, those do not all fit together: 27mm and 39-42mm cannot both be chin-to-crown, and 2mm and 9mm cannot both be the top margin.

The reading that fits a 50mm frame is the 39-42mm face figure with the 9mm top margin — 41 + 9 = 50 exactly. So this tool targets a 39-41mm face with roughly 9mm above the head, and the 27mm figure is best understood as chin to hairline. Saying so is more useful than picking one number and pretending the rest do not exist.

You May Not Need to Bring One

Photos are taken on site, free, at passport offices in Colombia.

Cancillería states that you do not need to bring photographs for a passport application: they are captured digitally and in person at the issuing office as part of the process, at no cost.

So the real use for this page is applying through a Colombian consulate abroad, where requirements vary by post, or preparing photos for the other 4x5cm documents. Either way, keep a neutral expression, eyes open and clearly visible, head centred, no headwear except for religious reasons, and a photo taken within the last six months.

What You'll Actually Download

Printed at 40 x 50mm, 945 x 1181px, JPG/PNG. Computed from this photo's own specification, not typed by hand.

How you submitPhotographed on site
Pixel size
945 x 1181px @ 600dpi
Print size
40 x 50mm (4 x 5cm / 1.57 x 1.97 in)
File type
JPG / PNG
Background
White

Requirements verified

Watch out — Photo taken at the appointment — the consulate takes your photo, fingerprints and signature at the appointment; you do not need to bring one

Colombia Passport Photo Maker (4 x 5cm)

Create the 40x50mm photo Colombian passport, cédula and nationality applications need — free, private, and with the blue-background rule handled.

Get Your Photo in 3 Steps

1. Upload Your Photo

Choose a clear, recent photo from your phone or computer.

White hair? Shoot against blue, not white.

2. Auto Alignment

We crop to 40x50mm with your face at 39-41mm.

Keep both shoulders in the frame.

3. Download & Submit

Print it or attach it to your consular application.

The same size covers the cédula.

Colombia Passport Photo Specifications

Dimensions40 x 50mm (4 x 5cm)
Face Size39 - 42mm (clamped to 41mm to fit the frame)
Top MarginAbout 9mm from the edge to the head
BackgroundWhite; blue for white or sparse hair

Frequently Asked Questions

Q.What size is a Colombian passport photo?▼
4 x 5cm (40x50mm), published directly by Cancillería. It is not the 35x45mm ICAO size, and not the 40x60mm used by Vietnam or Egypt.
Q.When does the background have to be blue?▼
If your hair is white and/or sparse. Cancillería writes this in as an exception, because light hair against white leaves no edge for a biometric system to measure.
Q.Why do the official head measurements not add up?▼
Cancillería publishes several figures — 27mm head length, 39-42mm face, 9mm and 2mm top margins — that cannot all be the same measurement. The 39-42mm face with the 9mm margin is the only combination that fits a 50mm frame, so that is what this tool uses.
Q.Do I need to bring photos to a Colombian passport office?▼
No. Cancillería captures them digitally on site, free of charge. This page is aimed at consular applications abroad and the other 4x5cm documents.
Q.Does this work for the cédula de ciudadanía?▼
Yes — the cédula and nationality applications use the same 4x5cm size.