Japan visa photo

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' English application form says 45 mm x 35 mm, or 2 in x 1.4 in. Embassies do not all repeat that: Japan's embassy in India says 45 x 45 mm, New Zealand's says 35 x 45 mm, and the Chicago consulate accepts 2 x 2 in or 2 x 1.4 in. Use the size your own embassy lists.

Both figures appear on official Japanese embassy pages, and the visa form itself says 45 x 35 mm. India's embassy states 45 x 45 mm with no edge. New Zealand's says a standard 35 x 45 mm passport photo can be used. The right answer is whichever the embassy handling your application publishes.

The JAPAN eVISA site says the photo must be taken within the last six months against a plain, untextured background, with the whole face clearly centred horizontally. Its FAQ lists JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP or HEIC files, up to 2 MB recommended, and says the image must fit the red frame on the upload screen.

For the eVISA, no: the site says not to use a photo retaken from a passport, driver licence or group photograph. For a paper application, the pages ask for a photo taken within six months, so a passport photo older than that does not qualify, and an office can ask for a receipt showing when and where it was taken.

Glued. The Japanese embassy in New Zealand says to paste the photo on the form with glue, not to use staples or tape, and not to submit a scan printed on plain paper. The embassy in Serbia says a photo pasted digitally into the form will not be accepted.

It varies by office. The Chicago consulate says to take your eyeglasses off. The embassy in Serbia rules out thick frames and sunglasses. Because the pages we read do not agree, remove your glasses unless your embassy's page says they are allowed.