Babies need their own passport, and their photo has to meet the same 2x2 inch specification as an adult’s — with one official exemption. The U.S. State Department states that it is acceptable if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open. Every other child must have their eyes open.
That single exemption is narrower than most parents expect. There is no exemption for background, for other people appearing in the frame, or for shadows. Those three are where infant photos actually get rejected.
The Infant Eyes Exemption
The State Department’s photo guidance says it is okay if your baby’s eyes are not entirely open. This applies to infants only. A sleeping newborn, a mid-blink, or eyes that are partly closed will not disqualify the photo.
The exemption does not extend to toddlers or older children. Once a child is past infancy, the standard applies: eyes open, facing the camera.
Nothing else about the specification changes for a baby. The photo is still 2x2 inches, still taken within the last six months, still on a white or off-white background, and the head still has to fall within the standard size range.
No Other Person in the Photo
This is the most common reason an infant photo gets rejected, and it catches parents who did everything else right.
A hand steadying the baby’s head counts as another person. So does an arm supporting the shoulders, a lap the baby is sitting on, or a reflection in a glossy surface behind them. The frame must contain the baby and nothing else.
The practical consequence is that you cannot hold your baby for this photo. You have to put them down.
The White Sheet Method
The State Department’s own recommendation is to lay your child on a plain white or off-white sheet. This solves the background and the no-other-person problem at once.
- Spread a plain white sheet on the floor or a bed. Smooth out wrinkles and folds — texture and creases read as background pattern.
- Lay the baby on their back on the sheet, looking straight up.
- Hold the camera directly above, parallel to their face, and fill the frame with their head and shoulders.
- Check that no hands, arms, toys, or blanket edges appear anywhere in the frame.
Photograph in daylight near a window, but not in direct sun. Overhead light creates shadows in the eye sockets, and direct sun creates hard shadows across the face. Neither is acceptable.
The Car Seat Method
If your baby cannot lie flat comfortably, the State Department also suggests covering a car seat with a white sheet and placing your child in the seat. This works well for babies with some head control, because it props them upright at a slight angle.
Drape the sheet so it covers the entire visible background, including the sides of the seat and the headrest. Any strap, buckle, or patterned fabric showing at the edge of the frame is a background failure.
Neutral Expression Applies to Babies Too
The requirement is a neutral facial expression with the mouth closed. This is not waived for infants.
In practice this is the hardest rule to satisfy, because babies babble, yawn, and smile without warning. Take many more photos than you think you need — a burst of thirty gives you a realistic chance of one with a closed mouth. Photograph after a feed and before a nap, when babies are calm and least likely to cry.
If the mouth is slightly open but the expression is neutral and not a smile or grimace, the photo is usually still workable. A wide open mouth or a broad smile is not.
No Shadows on the Face
There is no infant exemption for lighting. Shadows across the face, dark eye sockets, and a shadow cast onto the background behind the head are all rejection reasons.
Shooting from directly above a baby lying down is the most common cause, because your own body blocks the room light. Position yourself so the window light falls on the baby’s face rather than being blocked by you, and check the photo for a shadow line before you move on.
Head Size and Framing
The specification is the same as for adults. In the final 2x2 inch photo the head measures between 1 and 1-3/8 inches from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head, and the eyes sit between 1-1/8 and 1-3/8 inches from the bottom edge.
You do not need to measure any of this while shooting. Frame the baby’s head and shoulders so the head fills a comfortable portion of the frame and there is space above it, then let the sizing be handled when the file is prepared. The file you download from uspassportphoto.com is already positioned and cropped to the specification.
What matters at capture time is resolution. Fill the frame with the baby rather than shooting from across the room and cropping in later — a small head in a large photo does not contain enough detail to enlarge.
Key Details
Eyes. May be partly or fully closed for infants. All other children must have eyes open.
Other people. Not permitted. No supporting hands, arms, or laps anywhere in the frame.
Background. Plain white or off-white. A smooth sheet, or a sheet draped over a car seat.
Expression. Neutral, mouth closed. No exemption for infants.
Shadows. Not permitted on the face or the background.
Recency. Taken within the last six months. Infants change quickly, so an older photo is more likely to be questioned.
Size. 2x2 inches, head between 1 and 1-3/8 inches.
Validity. Passports issued to children under 16 are valid for five years, not ten.
After You Have the Photo
Once you have a usable shot, the remaining work is formatting it to the specification and printing it at the right size. Upload the photo to uspassportphoto.com and you get back a 4x6 print file containing two correctly sized 2x2 photos for $7, which you can print at any photo counter for well under a dollar. If you are not satisfied, you get a full refund.
For a walkthrough of the printing step, see our guides to printing at CVS and printing at Walgreens, or compare prices across retailers in our passport photo price comparison. Our guide to taking a great passport photo covers the general requirements that apply to adults and children alike.
Sources: U.S. Department of State, Passport Photos and Apply for a Child’s Passport Under 16.