Legal requirements for printing passport photos

 

The Electronic Passport

 

The electronic passport is issued by Italian diplomatic and consular offices abroad and by
Questure in Italy; it is equipped with special anti-counterfeiting printing features and a microprocessor.
The novelty of the electronic model concerns the inclusion of citizens' biometric data in the same RF/ID proximity microprocessor installed in the passport cover, with a minimum capacity of 64/72Kb and a durability of at least 10 years.
The chip stores, in an interoperable format, the facial image and the fingerprints of the index finger of each hand (this data may be inserted into the microprocessor, starting in 2008, after the adoption of a specific regulation currently under discussion at the European level).
The chip also stores information already present on the paper document concerning the passport and its holder, as well as the computer codes necessary to enable reading by control bodies.
The realization of the “Electronic Passport” project was contributed to by the State Printing Office and Mint, which made its feasibility possible, the C.N.I.P.A. (National Center for Information Technology in Public Administration) of the Department for Innovation and Technologies of the Presidency of the Council, and the Office of the Guarantor for Privacy.

 

What is ICAO?

 

The acronym stands for the International Civil Aviation Organization, a private organization headquartered in Montreal, Canada, which has been responsible for worldwide civil aviation safety regulations since 1996.
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations charged with developing principles and techniques of international air navigation,
of routes and airports and to promote the design and development of international air transport, making it safer and more orderly.
The ICAO Council adopts standards and recommended practices concerning air navigation and civil aviation. ICAO also defines protocols for air accident investigations carried out by the transport safety authorities of countries that are signatories to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, more commonly known as the Chicago Convention.
Since 2000, he has also been involved with the regulations and characteristics of documents to be used by beneficiaries.
airlines.
In recent years, ICAO has issued a series of documents [ICAO international standards – IS0 (ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 37 N506)] that have been adopted and transformed into guidelines by European institutions issuing regulations or instructions for traveling citizens.

 

What has ICAO established regarding compliant photos?

 

The photographs must:

 

– be recent (maximum 6 months);
– have a width of 35-40mm;
– Frame the subject’s face and shoulders in the foreground (the face should occupy 70–80% of the photo);
– be in focus and sharp;
- be of high quality;
- do not have ink stains or wrinkles.

 

The photographs must also:

 

1) portray the person with their gaze directed towards the lens;
Show the person's natural complexion;
3) have optimal brightness and contrast levels;
4)be printed on high-quality, high-resolution photographic paper;
5) Take the person with eyes open and clearly visible, not covered by hair;
6) photograph the person frontally, not from the side (portrait style) or tilted, clearly showing both sides of the face;
Be on a light, solid background.;
8) be photographed with uniform lighting and without shadows, reflections, or red-eye effect.

 

If the person wears glasses:

 

– the photograph must clearly show the eyes without reflections on the glasses;
– lenses should not be colored (if possible, avoid heavy frames and wear glasses with lighter frames);
– the frame must not cover any part of the eyes.

 

Headwear

 

– are not permitted except for religious reasons, but facial features must be clearly visible, from the tip of the chin to the entire forehead and both sides of the face.

 

Expression and framing

 

The photographs must:
– show only the person depicted (without a chair back, toys, or other visible people) while
Look at the lens with a neutral expression and your mouth closed.

 

Passport Issuance

 

The application for release may be submitted at the following offices in your place of residence, domicile, or dwelling:
– the police headquarters;
– The Passport Office of the Public Security Commissioner's Office;
– The Carabinieri Station (where there is no Police Station);
The Post Office;
– The Municipal Office (where a Police Station or Carabinieri Station is not present).

 

The documentation

 

The question needs to be accompanied by:
– a valid identification document;
– 2 identical, recent passport-sized photos (strictly adhere to the guidelines in this article to avoid photo rejection by the new machines that evaluate format correctness);
– €40.29 per passport government concessions;
– the payment receipt for €44.66 for the 32-page booklet, and €45.62 for the 48-page one.

The payment must be made to current account no. 67422808 in the name of: Ministry of Economy and Finance – Department of the Treasury. The payment reason is: “amount for the issuance of the electronic passport”.
If the person applying for the passport has minor children, even if they do not live together, it is necessary for both parents to sign the minor children declaration at the office where the documentation is submitted.
If the other parent is unable to appear for the declaration, they can attach a photocopy of the original signed document and their written consent.