Are you going to have your trip to your favorite place? Pay attention to your passport application before you go to your destination. If this is your first time applying for a new passport, you may want to pay attention to every detail in your passport application, especially passport photos. You may be wondering if your hair is appropriate in your passport photo. Should I cut my long hair? Should I dye my hair from red to the original color? Some applicants have such questions because they don’t know what to show in the passport photo. In this article, we will reveal the details of your hairstyles.

Passport Photo Hair Rules 

According to passport photo rules in most countries, there are no strict or clear rules about hairstyles that you can and can’t wear in your passport photo. Although there are no general hair requirements that regulate your hairstyles, you need to keep the most important thing about hair in mind, which is that your hair can’t hide your face. Because there is a clear rule that you need to have all your facial features visible in the passport photo. Therefore, make sure to let your face show up in the picture without any hair blocking. If not, we highly recommend that you keep your hair back.

Can I have braids or ponytails in my passport photo?

Yes. If you want to look beautiful, you can have braids or ponytails in your passport photo. In fact, you can have various hairstyles in the photo. No matter if you put your hair down, make some braids or tie them up with pontails. All you need to remember is that you must have your facial features shown in the picture.

If I have long hair, do I need to tie it in my passport photo?

It’s okay for you to have long hair in a passport photo, and you don’t need to change your hairstyles, cut them short or tie them up. If you want to keep your hair down all the time, and that’s how you look at the boarding place, you can put your hair down when you take a passport photo. If you have beautiful long, voluminous hair, it is recommended to pull your hair back with a hair band to keep your face exposed, such as eyes, mouth and nose and the main part of your face. If you find that your hair takes up a lot of space in your face, then you need to tie them up or put them behind your ears to make your face visible and let the background of the photo around your face be seen.

Should I cut my bands when I take my passport photo?

Some applicants have long, thick belts in their daily lives. You don’t need to trim them or cut them off for the passport photo, when they don’t cover your eyes and some important facial features. But if you have long bangs in passport photo that cover the sights, you have to make some changes when taking a photo, dividing them in half on your head and tucking each strand behind your ears. If you don’t like it, you can use discreet hair clips to put your bangs away to avoid covering your eyes and eyebrows. Make sure you can be recognized in the passport photo. Otherwise, your passport photo will be rejected because of an unrecognizable image. Always keep this in mind that it’s better for you to make your face more visible.

Can I wear headgear when I take a passport photo?

The answer is no. Normally, you need to let your hair show, because there is a standard rule in passport photos that you are not allowed to have a hat, scarf, headband or any other decorative object on your head, which may cause shadow on your face or cover your facial features. However, if you have signed a document proving that you wear headscarves for religious reasons, then you can wear hijab in your passport photos. 

Can I wear any accessories in my hair?

Yes. You can wear some accessories in your passport photo, including barrettes, hair bands and hair clips and other extras. If your hair covers your face, you need to tie it in a ponytail or bun and put it behind your head. But you must make sure that the hairband is simple. It is not allowed to have heavily accessorized hair ties in your photo, which may reflect light in your photo.

Can I dye my hair for my passport photo?

The answer is yes. You have the right to choose any hair color. According to the U.S. Department of State, it’s all up to you to have your hair color. It is allowed to have different colors between your current hair and the hair in the passport photo. The color of your hair doesn’t matter much in your passport photo, as it won’t affect your facial features. It is well known that people change their hair color very often. So you can have your favorite hair color and style.

How do I know if my hair matches the passport photo?

If you are taking a photo yourself, you must ensure that the photo complies with passport photo requirements. Here you can upload this photo to AiPassportPhotos, an online professional passport photo editor, to verify it and avoid unacceptable passport photos. But if you take a photo at a photo booth, the professional photographer helps you get the compliant photo quickly.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to make your hair look good in your passport photo, no matter what hairstyle you wear, just make sure the hair doesn’t disturb facial features. Otherwise, you need to tie them up and put them behind your ears. If you want to make your passport photo look better, you can style your hair before you take a photo at a photo shop. But it’s better to show your daily appearance in your passport photo.

By Dolores Xiao

I am a content creator and marketer with over 5 years of professional writing experience. I hold a bachelor's degree in communications and have a natural curiosity about technology, as evidenced by my technology blog. As an avid traveler, I draw upon adventures in over 10 countries to inject unique cultural perspectives into my articles and social media campaigns. I thrive on developing engaging content that informs and inspires audiences.