Dwai

Just one data point, but our family of five received visas this month using a standard US passport photo. The courier service we used had a lengthy list of dos and don'ts, but they just asked for the "regular" photo.

alhcfp

Just got visa using regular passport pics.

Chicago Consulate

chrisny2

Just got my visa using a standard US passport size photo taken at CVS.
Washington DC Embassy Visa Office.

moondog

The visa agency (Oasis?) on the third floor of the same building as the visa office also does pictures, and guarantees they'll be accepted.

uanj

I was is the AAA Alexandria VA office renewing my international license this Tuesday. The woman ahead of me was getting China visa photos taken for the third time. The woman helping her said she had been hearing a lot of this type of problem recently.

drewguy

Haven't they been doing that for years (at least manually)? When departing Beijing they take a picture at immigration/security checkpoint, and that pops up on the screen when you board the plane.

YuropFlyer

That's for security (and also to make boarding faster) - so you can't swap boarding passes (and passports) with someone else. This check does actually make sense.

Otherwise, pax A (with a Visa to country 1) booked on a flight to country 1 could swap with pax B (Booked to country 2 which doesn't require a Visa) - at the Gate, they'd either have to extensively check the passport again (And your passport picture could be close to 10 years old, try to properly check every pax boarding.. that's what the immigration officers are for) - or just double-check if the pic recently taken at immigration is the one from the pax showing up at the gate. Second solution is definitely faster

davetravels

I don't have the time and energy, unfortunately, to deal with taking my own picture, uploading it to a website, and hoping it works, so, I called the Walgreens near me. They told me that they take a digital photo of you, then they enter the specific country that you're traveling to in their kiosk computer, and, it supposedly knows the specific dimensions for the photo requirements for that country. Then, it shows a template of where they line up your pic on top, and print the pic. The only thing the clerk didn't know is, if their software has been updated to the new measurements.

So, tomorrow, I'll go to Walgreens and hope for the best. If they won't accept it when I get to the NYC visa office, for some reason, I guess I'll have my picture taken on the second floor of the NYC visa office. They say they do them there, but, I plan to arrive there first thing in the morning when they open, and I really don't want to be too far back in the queue so I won't spend my only day in NYC waiting in line!

anacapamalibu

Switcheroo


Police arrest passenger who boarded plane in Hong Kong as an old man in flat cap and arrived in Canada a young Asian refugee

The agency refused to reveal several details about the man's disguise but did disclose he had embarked with a boarding pass belonging to another passenger.

John Isaac

We sent off 18 Visa applications to the Chinese Embassy last week---4 of the pictures were rejected.

matthewak

can i use the same picture that i have on my passport? i'm in the process of renewing my passport, then to get chinese visa thereafter, so wondering. thanks,

mrjay

You should be ok using an extra copy of your passport photo.
Here's some more explanation: http://visa.ywpw.com/forms/visaphoto.html

Notsofreq

As long as it was taken within 6 months. If your passport is more than 6 months old and you use the same picture they will very likely notice and reject your application.

matthewak

thanks, it's nice that the 2x2 inch one is still accepted according to that link. i was thinking i would have to prepare a different size of it, as the samples shown there and elsewhere don't indicate the 2x2, which is strange isn't it...

from the link you gave, it points out about the off-white not being accepted; here's a tool i found that can make the background white: https://burner.bonanza.com

karennickerson47

These new China reqirements are serious! You can cut down a 2x2 photo to the correct dimensions. My friend in LA tried to get a China visa last week, and after waiting in line all day, got the bad news. And you can't cut them at the consulate! They tell you to come back tomorrow!!!