New Zealand visa photo size

The photo must be natural and unaltered. The page lists what not to use: filters, beautification features and AI editing tools, changes to colour, brightness, contrast or sharpness, skin smoothing or face slimming, and digitally removing objects. It also names cropping your head and shoulders out to place them on a plain background.

That last point rules out the "Replace the background" switch for this page, so leave it off. Choosing the 3:4 frame and saving the file at a set size does not alter colours or your features, but the decision rests with Immigration New Zealand.

The background must be neutral and plain and show only you, with no other people or objects. Patterned clothing and flowery backdrops can cause technical problems with the recognition system, so wear something plain. There must be no shadows on your face or behind you, and good contrast between the two.

The page gives distances that solve most lighting problems: stand half a metre in front of the background, with the photographer one and a half metres in front of you.

A selfie rarely meets the rules, according to the page, and the example it shows fails on background, position and lighting at once. Ask someone else to take the photo. If you must take it yourself, hold the camera at eyebrow height with the light coming from behind it.

Immigration New Zealand says a photo is more likely to be accepted when a professional takes it. Give the photographer the requirements and make sure the file they send is under 10 MB. If their file is larger than 3.14 MB for an online form, add it here with the digital preset to bring it inside the range without cutting off anything you need.