The ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) is the travel permission that people from Visa Waiver Program countries need before they fly to the United States. Many people search for "ESTA photo requirements" expecting a passport photo size. ESTA has none: it asks for a picture of your passport's data page, and a selfie. This guide explains both, from the pages of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The short answer

What ESTA asks forWhereWhat it must show
A photo of your passport's data pageThe ESTA website and the ESTA Mobile appThe whole page, with the machine-readable zone (MRZ) across the full width, level, sharp and not too dark; a GIF, PNG, JPG or JPEG file
A selfieThe ESTA Mobile app (a live selfie), and a selfie step on the ESTA websiteYour full face, head and shoulders, on a plain white or off-white background, with no glasses, hat, mask or filter

You do not need a printed passport photo, and the FAQ gives no size in millimetres or pixels for either picture.

The passport page photo

You must upload your passport to continue with an ESTA application. With a camera, CBP's FAQ asks you to:

  • take a picture of the passport's entire biographic page, the page with your photo and details;
  • keep the machine-readable zone (the two lines of letters, numbers and < signs at the bottom of that page) across the full width of the picture, and horizontal;
  • check that the picture is not blurry or too dark and that the MRZ is readable, then accept it or take it again.

Without a camera, you upload an image of the page instead. Only GIF, PNG, JPG and JPEG files are accepted. The website then reads your first and last name, date of birth and passport number from the MRZ and fills them in for you to check.

The selfie

The ESTA Mobile app asks for a selfie: in a news release about the app in June 2023, CBP said app users "upload a live video selfie to confirm their identity". A CBP notice in the Federal Register of 10 December 2025 explains that the app compares that live selfie with the portrait stored on the passport's chip, and that CBP would also require a selfie on the ESTA website. On 5 October 2026 the website's own instructions included a selfie step after the passport page. They ask for a selfie that is:

  • taken in front of a plain white or off-white background, without shadows, textures or lines, in even light;
  • a full-face view, facing the camera, showing your head and shoulders only;
  • taken with a neutral expression and both eyes open, without glasses, a hat, a mask, headphones or anything else covering your face (a head covering is allowed for religious or medical reasons);
  • an original photo, not a screenshot or photocopy, with no filters or editing;
  • different from the photo in your passport: the website warns that an application whose selfie is identical to the passport photo will be cancelled.

If someone else fills in the application for you, the selfie must still be of the traveller.

A proposal: apply only in the app

The same notice proposed closing the ESTA website for new applications, so that the ESTA Mobile app would be the only way to apply; the website would stay for information and status checks. CBP's reasons: the app reads the passport's chip and compares a live selfie with the chip photo, while poor-quality uploads on the website had let some applicants avoid the face check. Comments were open until 9 February 2026. On 5 October 2026 the website still offered new applications, so check esta.cbp.dhs.gov for the current way to apply.

Babies and children

Every traveller needs their own approved ESTA, children included. CBP's FAQ says that even infants without a ticket need one if they have no US visa, and that a child listed in a parent's passport does not qualify: the child needs their own passport. The steps are the same, with the child's own passport page, and a selfie of the child where one is asked for. The FAQ sets no separate photo rule for children.

Why uploads fail, and what to do

  • The passport page cannot be read. The website says when it could not process the image and asks for a clear picture of the entire biographic page. Take it again in good light, with the page flat and the whole MRZ in the frame.
  • The file type is not accepted. Only GIF, PNG, JPG and JPEG files are listed, and iPhones often save photos as HEIC. Check my file shows a file's real type, whatever its name says.
  • The selfie is refused. The website can report that no face was found, or that the selfie does not meet the requirements. Face the camera on a plain, light background, with nothing covering your face, and do not use the photo from your passport.
  • The photo service is busy. The website can show "Photo Service is unavailable" and ask you to try again after 5 minutes.

If you need a visa instead

Travellers who cannot use ESTA apply for a US visa with the DS-160 form, and that needs a real visa photo: square, from 600 × 600 to 1200 × 1200 pixels. The US visa photo page makes one, and US visa photo requirements explains the rules.

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