Schengen Visa Photo — 35×45 mm EU Visa Code

Schengen Visa Photo Rules (2026): One Standard for 29 Countries

As of 2026 the Schengen Area comprises **29 member states**: Croatia joined in 2023, Bulgaria and Romania in 2024/2025 (air/sea in March 2024, land borders in January 2025), replacing the classic 27. A Schengen Type C visa is valid across **all 29 states** and grants 90 days of travel within a rolling 180-day window. The photo standard is unified across all 29 countries by the EU Visa Code (Regulation EC 810/2009, Annex VI): 35×45 mm portrait, ICAO 9303 compliant, a plain light background that separates clearly from the face, 32-36 mm head height.

The same standard is shared with UK visa (BRP), Australia visa and 35×45 mm passports; see the 35×45 mm photo page for size details. **Since 2026 the photo also goes through the automated VIS biometric quality score**: a score below 0.6 on the 0-1 scale flags the photo as "retake required" and adds 2-4 weeks to processing. vesikalik.com.tr checks exactly the criteria VIS measures — head angle, face ratio, background uniformity and eye alignment. The comparative list is in the full table of document photo sizes.

VFS Global, TLScontact, iDATA, BLS: Which One Applies to You?

For applicants **living in Turkey** the practical distinction is not strictness but **which centre you walk into**: Germany runs through iDATA, France and Switzerland through TLScontact, most of Italy/Netherlands/Greece and Spain through VFS Global, some Spanish regions through BLS. On photo criteria they all apply the same EU baseline; the genuine differences are the **digital upload spec** (pixel range, file-size ceiling) and whether they name a background colour at all — BLS says white, iDATA names no colour.

vesikalik.com.tr runs the **same ICAO check for every Schengen country**, because the rule really is shared — there is no hidden country-specific "strict mode". The one thing that changes per country is the output background colour: the analysis measures whether the background is plain and uniform, and the preparation step removes it entirely and paints the tone you pick (white, light grey, grey, blue). So **one shoot** yields a white frame for the Spanish file and a light grey one for Germany; no second studio visit.

The Most Critical Measurement: 32–36 mm Head Height and VIS Scoring

The most common technical reason for Schengen rejections is head height: 32–36 mm from chin to crown, with the face covering **70–80%** of the frame height. The eyes must also sit within a specific band above the bottom edge. Since 2025, the **VIS (Visa Information System) automated biometric quality score** has been live: a score below **~0.6** on the 0-1 scale flags the photo as "retake required" and adds 2-4 weeks of delay to processing.

vesikalik.com.tr measures this distance with sub-millimetre precision using MediaPipe FaceLandmarker's 478-point face mesh, automatically re-frames the crop, and scores every parameter VIS checks (head angle, face symmetry, eye alignment, expression neutrality) in one report. No more manual cropping, ruler measuring or template alignment. See the 35×45 mm size guide for general background.

Is Germany the "Strictest" Country? Three Claims and the Official Text

The three claims that circulate about Germany — "light grey only", "glasses fully banned", "32-36 mm fixed" — have no basis in the official text. The binding form of the German photo template is Anlage 8 PassV, and it judges the background by **contrast**, not colour: "Der Hintergrund muss einfarbig hell sein (idealerweise neutral grau) und einen Kontrast zum Gesicht und zu den Haaren aufweisen." Light grey is called **ideal**, not mandatory — the template even varies the tone by hair colour (mid grey for light hair, light grey for dark hair) and its error example is not "white background" but "Hintergrund ohne Kontrast". Glasses sit under a separate "Brillenträger" heading and are **conditionally allowed**; what is banned is lens glare, tinted or dark lenses and frames covering the eye. On head height, 32-36 mm is the **optimal band**, not a hard threshold: rejection arrives only below 27 mm or above 40 mm, so 31 mm is not rejected. Details on the Germany visa photo page.

The real difference is not degree of strictness but **the kind of criterion**. Inside the same 35×45 mm frame four countries measure four different things: **Spain (BLS)** names the background colour — white; **Czechia** accepts white or light blue and sets a 13 mm minimum on the eye-to-chin distance; **Austria** calls grey the ideal tone (which varies with hair colour) and sets an 8 mm minimum between the eyes; **Germany** names no colour at all and asks for a measurable outcome — contrast. On glasses the genuinely strict country is not in Schengen at all: **the United States has banned them without exception since 2016**, while Schengen states follow the ICAO baseline and allow glare-free prescription lenses. If you do not know which consulate will decide, the safe common denominator is: plain light background, hair contour clearly separated from it, 32-36 mm head, neutral expression, no glare on the lens.

What Changed in 2026? EES, ETIAS and the Fee Increase

Schengen saw its biggest changes in a decade during 2026: **(1) EES (Entry/Exit System)** went fully operational on 10 April 2026 — manual passport stamping ended at the 29 Schengen borders; instead **fingerprints + face image** biometric checks apply. This speeds up crossings but adds no new photo requirement on the visa application side. **(2) ETIAS** launches Q4 2026 (€20, valid 3 years); but ETIAS is **only for visa-exempt countries** — since Turkish citizens are in the visa-required group, they do not apply for ETIAS.

**(3) Fee increase**: 2025 raised €80 → €90 for adults and €40 → €45 for children (6-12) — the first increase since 2020. Under-6 remains free. **(4) Express processing dropped from 7 to 5 working days**. **(5) Fingerprint validity extended from 4.5 to 5 years**. **(6) The digital Schengen visa pilot continues** — some embassies accept fully online forms; a full physical-to-digital visa sticker rollout is targeted for 2027-28. The same 35×45 mm size can be re-optimised from a single shot for Russia visa, UK visa and US visa via vesikalik.com.tr; the same 6-month freshness applies to the general passport photo. The full country breakdown is in the visa photo sizes by country guide.