US passport card photo requirements: what the card is for, how to apply, and the photo you need
The US passport card is a smaller, cheaper cousin of the passport book, and plenty of people who live near a border or cruise from a US port want one. It also leaves people with a small practical question that the official pages answer less directly than you might expect: does the card need its own kind of photo? This guide explains what the card is for, how you apply, what the State Department says about the photo, and where its pages are silent. It then walks through preparing a photo that you can use whether you apply for the card, the book or both.
Before you apply
Fees, rules and procedures change. Check travel.state.gov for the current passport card and photo pages before applying, and check the current fee page before you pay. This guide was checked on October 30, 2026. Where the pages do not expressly answer a card-specific photo question, the guide distinguishes the published requirements from the practical reading of them.
The practical answer
The State Department describes the passport card as proof of US citizenship and identity. It allows you to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, some Caribbean destinations and Bermuda by land or sea. It is not valid for international air travel. If you ever expect to fly abroad, you need a passport book.
You apply with the same forms as for a passport book. First-time adult applicants who are 18 or older can apply for a passport book, a passport card, or both. Children under 16 can get a book, a card, or both, with the approval of both parents or guardians. The State Department says applying for both documents together saves money.
On the photo, the honest position is this. The State Department's passport card page gives no photo requirements of its own and shows a sample card with the owner's picture. Its general photo page, which sets out the rules for passport photos, does not mention the card by name and uses the word "passport" throughout. Because you apply for the card on the same forms as the book, and because the card carries your photo, the reasonable approach is to prepare one photo to the standard the State Department publishes and use it for whichever document you apply for. If you want certainty for your own case, check the State Department's current pages before you apply.
That standard is the familiar one. The photo is in colour and taken in the last six months. It is 2 by 2 inches (51 by 51 mm), with the head measuring between 1 and 1 3/8 inches (25 to 35 mm) from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head. The background is white or off-white, without shadows, texture or lines. You face the camera directly without tilting your head, with a neutral expression, both eyes open and your mouth closed. The photo must be the original, unchanged image, and the State Department says not to alter it with computer software, phone apps, filters or artificial intelligence.
The size of the finished card is not the size of the photograph you prepare. Seeing a small portrait on the sample card can make it tempting to crop a smaller picture yourself, but the comparison page does not instruct you to do that. Start with the published passport photo standard rather than trying to recreate the portrait as it appears inside the sample card.
How much the card costs
The fee figures below were checked on the State Department's fee page and passport card page on October 30, 2026. Fees change, so check the current pages before you pay.
For a first-time adult application with Form DS-11, the passport card has a State Department application fee of $30, and the passport book and card together have an application fee of $160. A separate acceptance facility fee of $35 is paid at the facility in either case, so the total for an adult card is $65. Expedited service is an optional extra of $60.
For a child under 16, the card has an application fee of $15 and the book and card together $115, again with the $35 facility fee. The passport card page gives the first-time totals as $65 for adults and $50 for children under 16.
For eligible renewal by mail or online, the fee page lists $30 for the passport card and $160 for the passport book and card together. The passport card page says adult renewal costs $30, that children under 16 cannot renew and must apply again in person, and that if you have an adult passport card you may apply for a passport book by mail as a renewal even if it is your first book.
The card is valid for 10 years for adults and 5 years for children under 16.
The distinction between an application fee and a total matters when you compare the prices. The adult card's $30 application fee is not the whole first-time cost: the separate $35 facility fee is why the comparison page shows $65. Likewise, the book-and-card application fee is the amount listed for that combination before the separate facility fee for an in-person first-time application. Read the column headings as well as the dollar figures.
The renewal figures describe a different situation. A lower renewal price does not make a first-time application a renewal, and the fee table's mention of an online route does not establish that every applicant can use it. Match the fee and application route to your own circumstances using the State Department's current instructions.
Where people get surprised
The first surprise is the air travel limit. The card is useful at a land crossing or for eligible sea travel between the United States and the destinations listed above. It is not valid for international air travel. People sometimes buy the cheaper card and discover the limit only when they plan a flight. If there is any chance you will fly abroad, consider the book, and remember that the State Department says you can apply for both together.
The second surprise is that the card page does not describe a separate kind of photo. It shows a picture on the sample card, but it does not publish a different set of rules. Preparing one photo to the standard photo rules and using it for the card, the book or both is the practical reading. You do not need to invent a second photographic format simply because you decide to request both documents on the same application.
The third surprise is the in-person step. First-time applicants apply in person, and the acceptance facility fee applies to the card as it does to the book. That means a trip to an acceptance facility, so have the photo ready when you go.
The fourth surprise is the children's rules. A card for a child under 16 needs the approval of both parents or guardians, lasts 5 years, and cannot be renewed. When it expires, a child must apply again in person, with a new photo.
The fifth surprise is the temptation to edit. A photo that is slightly dark or has an uneven background is a reason to retake it, not to fix it in software. The State Department says to submit the original, unchanged photo.
For someone planning a cruise, the important distinction is the journey rather than the fact that the ship leaves a US port. Keep the listed destinations and the land-or-sea limitation in view when reading about the card. A card's lower price does not turn it into a substitute for a book for international flights. PassSnap prepares photos; the State Department's travel document guidance is the place to check what the card covers.
What may change
Online passport services and application procedures may change. The fee page lists mail and online options for eligible adult renewals, while the passport card comparison page does not give a separate explanation of online card renewal. A fee table and a comparison page are not a complete eligibility assessment. Check the current instructions for the route you intend to use.
Announcements about future online services should not be treated as confirmation that a new first-time passport card route is already available. Until the official application guidance says otherwise, follow the route and forms the State Department gives for your situation. The practical photo question remains the same: prepare the photo for the application you are actually submitting, rather than for a possible future process.
How PassSnap fits
PassSnap helps you prepare the one photo you need. The guided capture checks head size, eye line and framing as you shoot, exports a 2 by 2 inch JPEG and a 4 by 6 print layout, and the optional AI verify step flags glasses, expression and background problems before you print. Nothing is retouched or beautified, which matters because altered photos are a problem under US rules.
PassSnap is not a government service. It cannot tell you whether a card or a book is right for your travel, choose a form for you, or say whether the State Department will accept a particular photo. It prepares the photo, and the decision belongs to the State Department.
An optional check is useful as a chance to notice a problem, not as a grant of approval. If it flags a shadow, glasses or an expression, look at the original image and the official photo guidance before deciding whether to take another photograph. Keeping the capture straightforward is more useful than making an edited image look closer to what you think a passport photo should look like.
Before you apply for a passport card
Decide whether the card is enough. It allows entry from Canada, Mexico, some Caribbean destinations and Bermuda by land or sea, and it is not valid for international air travel. If you might fly abroad, consider applying for the book or for both.
Check which application route applies to you. A first-time applicant applies in person with Form DS-11. An adult renewing a card may be eligible to renew by mail or online, and a child under 16 must apply again in person. Check the current renewal instructions before assuming an online route is available to you.
Take one new photo to the standard photo rules: colour, taken in the last six months, 2 by 2 inches, with your head between 1 and 1 3/8 inches from chin to top of head, on a white or off-white background with no shadows, texture or lines.
Face the camera directly without tilting your head, with a neutral expression, your mouth closed and both eyes open. Take off your glasses unless you cannot remove them for medical reasons, in which case include a signed note from your doctor. Turn off portrait mode, beauty filters and automatic enhancement, and do not edit the photo afterwards.
Print the photo and keep it loose. If you are applying in person, do not attach or staple it to the form, because the acceptance agent will review it and staple it for you. Do not sign the form until the agent asks you to.
Plan for the fees. For a first-time adult card the figures on the State Department pages are a $30 application fee and a $35 facility fee, with $60 more for expedited service. Check the current fee page before you go, because it may have changed.
If you are not sure whether the photo rules apply in exactly the same way to the card, check the State Department's current photo and passport card pages before you apply, and keep a copy of the photo you use.
Official State Department sources
FAQ
Do I need a different photo for a US passport card than for a passport book?
The State Department's passport card page does not publish separate photo rules, and its general photo page does not name the card. Because the card and the book use the same forms, the sensible approach is to prepare one photo to the published standard (colour, taken in the last six months, 2 by 2 inches, head 1 to 1 3/8 inches, white or off-white background) and use it for the document you are applying for. If you want certainty, check the State Department's current pages before you apply.
Can I use a US passport card to fly abroad?
No. The State Department says the passport card is not valid for international air travel. It allows you to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, some Caribbean destinations and Bermuda by land or sea. For international flights you need a passport book.
How much does a US passport card cost?
For a first-time adult applicant, the State Department's pages show $65 in total: a $30 application fee and a $35 acceptance facility fee. For a child under 16 the first-time total is $50. Renewal of an adult card is $30. Expedited service costs $60 extra. These figures come from pages that may have changed, so check the current fee page before you apply.
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About this guide
PassSnap helps prepare photos. It is not a government service and cannot guarantee acceptance.