Why edited passport photos get rejected (and what we do instead)

Many photo apps remove the background, smooth the skin or "fix" the lighting. Passport offices don't accept that, because the photo has to show what you look like to a camera, not to a filter. Here is what they say:

Document	Official wording
Australia passport	“No retouching. "Background not plain and edited" is an unacceptable example.”
Austria passport	“Not addressed on the official page.”
Canada passport	“Altered includes cropping around the head and shoulders and changing the background. Photos must be taken by a commercial photographer.”
Canada online passport application	“Taken in person by a commercial photographer; must not be altered in any way.”
Canada visa	“If the photographs are digital, they must not be altered in any way.”
China visa	“Photos must not be modified or composited.”
France passport	“The photo must be taken by an approved professional or in an approved booth.”
Germany passport	“Retouching and filters are listed as unacceptable (Anlage 8 PassV).”
Hong Kong passport	“Not addressed on the official page.”
India e-Visa	“Not addressed on the official page.”
India passport	“Photos should be unaltered by computer software.”
Ireland passport	“Digital enhancements or changes are not acceptable.”
Italy passport	“Not addressed on the official page.”
Japan passport	“Not addressed on the pages we read.”
Netherlands passport	“Niet bewerkt (not edited).”
New Zealand passport	“Crop it to the correct head size before submitting. Do not edit, apply filters, or use AI tools to modify how you look.”
Russia visa	“Not addressed on the official page.”
Schengen visa	“The EU requires an ICAO-compliant photo; consulates may add rules.”
South Korea passport	“Removing the background with editing software or compositing onto white is not accepted.”
Spain passport	“Not addressed on the official page.”
Taiwan passport	“Resampling of the original image or alteration of the image size before printing is not permitted.”
United Kingdom passport	“Photos must not be a cut down version of a larger picture and must be unaltered by computer software.”
United Kingdom online passport application	“Unaltered by computer software. If you use your own device, do not crop your photo: it will be done for you.”
United States DV Lottery	“Photos must not be digitally enhanced or altered to change your appearance in any way.”
United States passport	“Do not change your photo using computer software, phone apps or filters, or artificial intelligence.”
United States online passport application	“Submit the original, unedited photo without filters or digital changes. You can reposition or crop your photo in the application.”
United States visa	“Photos must not be digitally enhanced or altered to change your appearance in any way. The State Department's own tool resizes, rotates and crops to 600 x 600 px.”

That is why Passport Sorted only crops, straightens and resizes. If a check fails, the fix is a new photo, not an edit.