How to get a UK passport photo code online for £2.99

If you are renewing or applying for a British passport online, the form will ask for a digital photo. One way to provide it is a UK passport Photo Code: a short reference you type in, after which your photograph appears on the application. You can get that code from home, without a booth and without a trip to a shop, for a one-time £2.99.

This guide explains what the code is, when you need one, and how to get it with Passport Photo Code. You take a photo on your phone, upload it, and we check and format it. You then receive a Photo Code and the finished digital passport photo. The code can be used for an HMPO online application. We are an independent service, not GOV.UK, and HM Passport Office makes the final decision on every photograph.

What a UK passport Photo Code is

A Photo Code is not your passport number and it is not an application reference. It is a short code that points to a digital photograph held by a photo provider. During the online application you choose the option to provide a photo with a code, enter the code, and wait for the picture to load. You then check it is the right photograph of you and carry on.

Shops and booths have offered this for years. An online service does the same job from a phone photo: prepare the image so that it meets GOV.UK photo rules, and give you a code the application can use. The screens are explained on the GOV.UK help page for a photo with a code. Follow the wording you see on the form.

You also get the digital photograph itself. The code is what you type into the application. The file is your copy of the picture the code refers to.

When you need a Photo Code

You need a way to supply a digital photo when you use the online UK passport service. That includes:

• an adult renewal done online
• a first adult passport applied for online
• a child passport application done online, using a photo of the child that follows the child rules
• replacing a passport online, for example after a change of name, where the service asks for a new photo

A code is the route to choose when you would rather not crop, resize and upload a file yourself on the passport website. You can still upload a digital photo directly on GOV.UK if you prefer. A code is simply the other option on that screen: the application fetches the picture for you.

A Photo Code is for the online service. This £2.99 order prepares the UK digital passport photo and the code. It does not post a sheet of prints. If a paper form asks for printed photographs, use a shop. The picture should be a good likeness taken within the last month, and you need a new one for each application. Rules are on GOV.UK photos for passports, including different rules for babies and young children.

How to get one from home for £2.99

The order flow lives on the create page. From the Passport Photo Code homepage, choose Create my photo & code. The price is £2.99, paid once. There is no subscription and no account to keep.

1. Take a photo on your phone

A recent phone is enough. People often start with a selfie. GOV.UK would rather someone else took the photo: an arm’s-length front-camera shot often distorts the face and crops the shoulders. Stand about half a metre from a plain, light-coloured wall. Ask a friend to use the rear camera, level with your face, from about a metre and a half away. On your own, prop the phone up and use a short timer.

Include your head, shoulders and upper body. Do not crop the picture to a passport shape yourself. Face the camera with a plain expression, mouth closed, eyes open, and no hair across your eyes. Take glasses off unless you have to wear them. If they must stay on, there should be no glare. Face a window for soft daylight, and avoid a bright ceiling light that throws a shadow on the wall behind you. No filters and no beauty mode.

The guide to taking a UK passport photo at home covers light and expression. A plain wall matters more than the phone model.

2. Upload it and let us check and format it

On the create page, upload the original JPG or PNG from your phone or computer. We prepare it to the UK digital passport specification: the framing and file the online application expects, checked against common problems such as a missing face, poor clarity, pose and background.

Look at the preview before you pay. If you see a shadow, a busy background or closed eyes, take another photo and upload that. The checks help you spot problems. They are not a decision by HM Passport Office. You do not need to resize the file yourself. Upload the original, with space around the head.

3. Pay £2.99 once

Enter an email address so we can send the finished photo and the Photo Code. Then pay £2.99 as a one-time card payment. There is nothing to cancel afterwards, because there is no plan. The amount is the whole price of the digital passport photo and the code together, not a fee on top of a shop visit.

When payment is verified, the result page shows your Photo Code and the digital photo, with a way to copy the code and download the image. The same items go to the email you gave. Copy every letter, number and dot. An example looks like IDFOTO.NET/P5E9E47P — that string is only an example.

Photos are kept only as long as the service needs them, normally 48 hours. Use the code while it still retrieves the picture. Do not wait weeks and assume it will still be there.

4. Use the code on the online application

When the passport service asks how you want to provide your photo:

1. Choose the option for a photo with a code.
2. Enter your Photo Code exactly as it is shown.
3. Wait until your photograph appears.
4. Check it is you, and that it is the photo you expect.
5. Continue with the rest of the application.

If the wrong person appears, stop and check you have not pasted an old code. If the photo does not load, check each character before you try a different route. The how it works page on this site walks through the same steps beside the official link.

The code can be used for an HMPO online application. Entering it does not submit the passport by itself. You still complete the form, pay the passport fee to HM Passport Office, and wait for their decision. Our £2.99 is only the photo and the code.

What you are paying for

£2.99 covers a single order:

• a check of the photo you upload
• formatting so the result meets GOV.UK photo rules for a UK digital passport photo
• the Photo Code for the online application
• the finished digital photo to download and to receive by email

It does not cover the HM Passport Office fee, posted prints, or filling in the passport form. A shop is the better stop if you want someone else to take the picture and hand you a sheet. The homepage button Create my photo & code is the same £2.99 order as create your photo and code.

A simple check before you upload

Use this list once, in the room, before you open the website:

• The photo was taken in the last month and looks like you now.
• The background is a plain, light colour, with no shelves, switches or other people.
• Light is even. One side of your face is not much darker, and there is no hard shadow behind your head.
• You are facing forward, looking at the camera, with a plain expression.
• Eyes are open and not covered. No red-eye.
• Glasses are off, or free of glare if you must wear them.
• Nothing has been filtered, smoothed or retouched.
• Head, shoulders and upper body are in the frame. You have not pre-cropped it.

Children must be on their own in the photo. Babies should not hold a toy or use a dummy, and a supporting hand should not show. Very young children follow different expression and eye rules from adults. Read the requirements summary before you upload a child.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the Photo Code and the digital photo?

The digital photo is the image. The Photo Code is the reference you type into the online passport application so that image can be retrieved. You receive both after the £2.99 payment. Use the code on the form. Keep the file as your copy of the prepared photo.

Do I have to pay £2.99 as well as the passport fee?

Yes, they are different payments to different organisations. £2.99 is the one-time price for the photo preparation and the Photo Code on this website. The passport application fee is paid to HM Passport Office on GOV.UK, and it is separate.

Can I use a selfie?

You can start with a photo taken on your phone at home. A front-camera selfie at arm’s length is the version most likely to need a retake, because the face can look distorted and the shoulders get cut off. Use the rear camera, stand back, and ask someone else to take it if you can. Upload that original and we will check and format it.

Is this an official HM Passport Office service?

No. Passport Photo Code is independent. We are not part of GOV.UK and we are not affiliated with HM Passport Office. The photo is prepared to meet GOV.UK photo rules, and the code can be used for an HMPO online application. HM Passport Office makes the final decision.

How do I enter the code?

On the online application, choose the photo-with-a-code option, paste or type the code, and wait for your picture to show. Confirm it is the right photo, then continue. The official GOV.UK instructions match that pattern. Character by character is worth the extra ten seconds.

How long do you keep the photo?

Uploaded and finished photos are kept only as long as we need them to provide the service, normally 48 hours. After that the code may no longer retrieve the picture, so use it when you are ready to apply, or at least while the file is still available. Details are in our privacy notice.

What if I would rather visit a shop?

Do that if you want prints, or if you would rather not take the photo yourself. Studios, camera shops and pharmacies that use a studio workspace can hand you a code at the counter. The home route on this page is the £2.99 option when the photo is one you take yourself.

Get the code

Take the photo at home, upload it, and review the checks. Pay £2.99 once. You leave with a digital passport photo that meets GOV.UK photo rules and a Photo Code you can use for an HMPO online application.

Create your photo and code when you are ready. If you want the steps beside you while you apply, keep the how it works page open in another tab.