Mongolia Residence Card Photo — Official 30×40 mm Standard Explained

A Mongolia residence permit is issued by the Immigration Agency of Mongolia, and the photo specification is precise: 30×40 mm (354×472 px at 300 dpi) with a pure white background. Getting this format exactly right matters — the 30×40 mm frame is smaller than the 35×45 mm passport size used by many other countries, and submitting the wrong size is one of the most common reasons an application package is returned for correction. Having a correctly prepared, print-ready image means you walk into your appointment knowing your paperwork already meets the standard.

What sets Mongolia's residence card process apart is how the biometric photo is actually captured. First-time applicants must appear in person at the Immigration Agency to register biometric data, including fingerprints and a live digital photo taken by agency staff on-site. The residence card photo is therefore not a printout that you hand over in an envelope — it is captured digitally at the office. That said, you will typically need to include three printed 30×40 mm photos in your supporting application paperwork. The head dimensions within the frame are strictly defined: the distance from the chin to the top of the hair must be exactly 30 mm, and there must be a 2.5 mm gap between the top of the hair and the upper edge of the photo. These measurements leave very little margin for error and are the main reason a professionally prepared reference image is worth having before your appointment.

• Photo size: 30×40 mm (354×472 px at 300 dpi)
• Background: pure white (#FFFFFF), uniform and shadow-free
• Face coverage: head occupies 70–80% of the frame height
• Head measurement: chin to top of hair 30 mm; 2.5 mm gap from hair to upper edge
• Expression: neutral, mouth closed, both eyes open and clearly visible
• Glasses: permitted only when both eyes are fully visible, no tinted lenses, no lens glare
• Headwear: not permitted except for documented religious observance
• Recency: taken within the last 6 months, reflecting current appearance

• Common reasons photos are rejected in Mongolia:
• Wrong dimensions — submitting a standard 35×45 mm photo instead of the required 30×40 mm is the single most frequent error
• Head position out of spec — chin-to-crown distance too short, too long, or insufficient gap at the top edge
• Off-white or shadowed background — cream, light grey, or a white background with visible facial shadow all fail the pure-white requirement
• Glasses with tint or glare — any lens that partially obscures the eyes, regardless of how mild the tint, is grounds for rejection

Our online tool automatically resizes your photo to the exact 30×40 mm frame, positions the face to satisfy both the 70–80% height rule and the 30 mm chin-to-crown measurement, and applies a clean white background. Because the Immigration Agency captures your biometric photo digitally in the office, the prepared image serves as your compliant reference: you can verify your appearance meets every requirement before you arrive, use the printed copies for the three-photo supporting package, and keep the file ready for any other visa or permit application that does accept a submitted photo. Preview your result for free before choosing to download — no payment needed to see whether your photo is on spec.