US Visa Photo Requirements — the Official Digital Spec
The US Department of State's digital photo requirements apply to visa applications (DS-160) and the Diversity Visa lottery, and they're stricter than most countries': the system validates dimensions, file size, format and proportions automatically, and rejects on any failure. The spec below is verified against travel.state.gov's digital image requirements.
The exact numbers
Square aspect ratio, minimum 600×600 pixels, maximum 1200×1200. Format: JPEG, in the sRGB color space (what nearly all phones and cameras produce by default). File size: at least 54KB is a validated floor on many US systems, and no more than 240KB. Background: plain white or off-white. Head height: between 50% and 69% of the image's total height, eyes open, neutral expression, facing the camera directly, no glasses.
The mistakes that cause rejections
Non-square photos are the most common failure — a portrait-orientation phone photo must be cropped square before anything else. Second is background shadows: "white background" means evenly lit white; a shadow behind your head reads as gray and fails review. Third is over-compression: if you compressed the file below the size floor, some systems reject it as too small — a problem in both directions.
Getting it right in one pass
The PixKB US Visa preset applies the verified spec — 600×600, JPEG, compressed under 240KB — in one tap. Frame your head to fill roughly 50–69% of the frame height when taking the photo, use a plain white wall with light facing you (not behind you), and let the preset handle the technical rules.
DV lottery season note: applications typically open in early October and the deadline pressure spikes photo-rejection questions every year. The spec above applies to DV entries; verify framing rules on the official DV instructions page for the current year before submitting.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use the same photo for the DS-160 and the DV lottery?
The technical spec (600×600+, JPEG, ≤240KB) is the same. Recency rules differ — DV photos must be taken within the last 6 months, and reusing a photo from a previous visa application can cause rejection.
Are glasses allowed in US visa photos?
No. Glasses have been disallowed in US visa photos since 2016, except for rare documented medical reasons.
My photo is 3MB from my phone. Will it work?
Not as-is — 3MB is about 12× over the 240KB ceiling. Crop it square, then compress; the preset does both.