A Chinese visa photo from your phone, 33 x 48 mm, checked against the rules.

The China visa application, and the COVA online form it starts with, use their own size and their own rules, and a US passport photo does not fit them. We crop to 33 x 48 mm with the head 28 to 33 mm tall, put it on white, and check every rule before you pay. $9.95 by email, $12.95 with prints ready at a Walgreens, CVS, Walmart or Target near you, $14.95 mailed.

Price band: Email delivery $9.95. Email plus prints picked up at Walgreens, CVS, Walmart or Target $12.95, plus about 50 cents to the store for the print, paid at the counter. Email plus prints mailed to you $14.95. One payment, no account.

The rules, in plain words

  • 33 mm wide by 48 mm tall. Head 28 to 33 mm from chin to top of head, with 3 to 5 mm of space above the head.
  • White background, color photo, no shadows.
  • No glasses of any kind. Both ears visible, hair off the forehead and the face, no jewelry covering any part of the face.
  • Neutral expression, mouth closed, eyes open, looking straight at the camera.
  • No hat or head covering except for religious reasons, and even then the full face showing.
  • Taken in the last 6 months.

The digital file for COVA

JPEG, 354 to 420 pixels wide, 472 to 560 pixels tall, 40 to 120 KB. That band is narrow, and a file outside it fails the upload, so we size and compress inside it before you pay.

How to take it

1. Take the photo. Stand a few feet in front of a plain white wall, in daylight if you can. Glasses off, hair tucked behind both ears, nothing on your head, mouth closed, look straight at the camera. Have someone take it from four to six feet away, or use the timer. The frame on screen tells you if you are too close, too dark or tilted before you press the button.

2. We do the photographer's job. Head height, the space above the head, centering, tilt, ears, glasses, expression, background, sharpness, exposure, color, one face only. Each rule checked on its own, with a plain fix if it fails. Nothing about your face is changed.

3. Get your photo. The COVA file and the print sheet arrive by email within a minute of paying. Prints, if you chose them, are ready at the pharmacy in about an hour or mailed the same day.

What you get

  • The 33 x 48 mm digital file as a JPEG inside the COVA limits, ready to upload.
  • A 4x6 print sheet with two 33 x 48 mm photos and cut guides, for the printed copy the visa center asks for. Print it at home or at a pharmacy kiosk for under a dollar. [Confirm whether the visa center still requires a pasted print alongside the COVA upload, and how many.]
  • A results card showing every check that passed.
  • Prints, if you chose them: ready at the pharmacy in about an hour, or mailed the same day in a rigid mailer.

FAQ

Can I use my US passport photo? No. A US passport photo is 2x2 inches, square, and the head sits differently in it. The Chinese visa photo is taller than it is wide, with its own head height and its own space above the head. Send us the same original phone photo and we crop it to the Chinese spec.

COVA rejected my last upload. Why? Usually the file, not the face. COVA takes a narrow band, 354 to 420 by 472 to 560 pixels and 40 to 120 KB, and a photo straight from a phone is far outside it. Our file is sized and compressed to fit.

Can I keep my glasses on? No. Glasses of any kind are not accepted. Take them off for the photo.

Do my ears really need to show? Yes, both of them, and the forehead too. Tuck hair behind your ears and off your eyebrows before you shoot; our checks flag it if hair covers either.

Do I pay anything at the pharmacy? About 50 cents for the print itself, at the counter. Everything else is paid here, and the digital file is in your inbox within a minute either way.

Is the double money back guarantee on this page? [Decision needed before this page goes live: the guarantee and the terms currently cover State Department rejections only. Confirm whether a Chinese visa rejection is covered, and on what proof.]