The standards of passport photos

Passports are among the most widely accepted forms of identification in the world. One of the reasons for this is that passports are given only after the background of the applicant has been thoroughly verified and his or her bona fides have been established. A key element of the passport as a means of identification is the passport photograph. Very few countries now accept black and white photos for passports and photographs are now starting to be be gathered by some countries in a digital form so that it can be used for computerized facial recognition. The digital photograph is validated against the actual appearance of the person either by a physical verification at the time the passport is collected, or through internal processes and interviews – the procedure varies from country to country but still always requires the validation against an actual passport photo..