Passport Photos - Glasses

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naumank4273

Registered Users (C)
I am going to apply for a passport the day after my oath date because I need to travel in two weeks.

I read the photo requirements at the travel.state.gov site, and it says I should wear glasses since I wear them on a daily basis. However, I can't seem to get rid of the reflections. The FAQ for photographers (http://travel.state.gov/passport/guide/faq/faq_881.html) uses the word "can" as opposed to "shall" or "should" in the answer to the question of "Can eyeglasses be worn for the photo?" So it's confusing to me.

Do I absolutely have to wear glasses for passport photos?

Anyone with such experience? (I don't want to have to get new photos since appointments at the passport agency are not easy to get these days.) Thanks!
 
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My 2c.....

State Department wanted to tell you that they would prefer if you would wear your glasses on the photo, so that you can "look like" yourself. However, they are not comfortable forcing you to do that and you will have to admit that it is quite difficult for someone in the government to enforce and/or judge if you wear glasses on a daily basis.

Passport officers are swamped and no one will even raise an eyebrow about this issue. They are struggling to keep up with the record demands.

If you literally follow SD, you should take photo with your glasses on. Ultimatelly, it is your call.

However, my advise to you would be to have the same photo as on your naturalization certificate (in terms of glasses use).

Good luck!

P.S.: I'm not an lawyer or an immigration expert. I'm just an ordinary guy. You are soley responsible for your actions.
 
I wear glasses on a regular basis. And when you go to a photo center and tell them you want a passport photo, they automatically tell you to take off your glasses. That's what happened to me too.
 
If you are attempting to take the pictures yourself, try using a polarizing filter, or put a diffuser on the flash and bounce it off the ceiling.
 
Ever since I had a set of passport pictures (different country) bounced for the reflections off of my glasses I've been removing them whenever I need to get pp photos.

If a border guard wants to see me without glasses, they are very easy to remove. However, if I took the pics with glasses and then got contacts or Lasic (or even just drastically changed my eyeglass style), it would be much harder to make myself look like my pictures.
 
I have always taken my glasses off for all immigration photos and did so on my N-400 application. I really doubt whether USCIS care about the percentage time I have them on or off.

Suggest you do the same.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I had my glasses off when I took my N-400 photos, so I will do the same for my passport photos.
 
I have not taken my glasses out and have taken Passport photos in (AAA/Sears) no one has rejected the photos.
 
I never took off my glasses.
Sometimes, they did photo with or without reflection... asked me to move my head to minimize reflection. Once or twice, they offered me an empty frame (without any lenses in it) which they had specifically for the purpose of removing reflection.
 
I had my glasses on for both N-400 and the passport pictures. I go to Sears for thr photos and they try to minimize the reflection from your glasses. Even if there is little bit of reflection, it is from the corners of glasses and does not obstruct the eyes and never had my photos rejected for any reason.
 
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