Back to top
Response to “Good if passport-renewal website has instant alerts”, (MyPaper, 04 May 2012)
MyPaper
15 May 2012
“Passport-renewal system alerts on photo file sizes”
I THANK Mr Allan Tan for the opportunity to elaborate on the passport-application process mentioned in his letter, “Good if passport-renewal website has instant alerts” (mypaper, May 4).
Mr Tan mentioned that the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) informed him that his submitted passport photo was “too big” and understood it to mean the photo exceeded the required file size of 150KB.
We would like to clarify that the message “photo image is too big” refers to the applicant’s facial image almost taking up the entire image box, and with the top of the shoulders cropped off.
The photo requirements for passport applications are stated on the ICA website. Among other requirements, an applicant’s face in the photo must be between 25mm and 45mm when measured from his chin to the crown of his head. The top of the applicant’s shoulders must also be visible in the photo.
To assist applicants, the digital-photo image guidelines and an online image-editing tool are included in the Application for Passport On-line Electronic System (Apples).
In addition, before submitting an application, the applicant’s photo will be automatically placed next to a specimen photo for the applicant to make his own comparison.
Mr Tan suggested that the Apples system incorporate instant alerts if photos did not meet requirements.
We thank Mr Tan for his feedback and are pleased to inform him that any photo with a file size exceeding ICA’s requirements will be rejected instantly by the system and the applicant will be alerted to submit another photo.
For photos which are successfully submitted through Apples, ICA manually checks them to ensure that the quality of the photographs meets international standards.
ICA will continue to refine existing technologies and explore new technologies to improve our electronic systems to serve customers more efficiently and effectively.
MR KOH WEE SING
HEAD, PUBLIC & INTERNAL COMMUNICATIAONS
CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
<Original Letter>
MyPaper
04 May 2012
“Good if passport-renewal website has instant alerts”
RECENTLY, I applied to renew my biometric passport online, and had to upload a photo as part of the process.
Overall, the website was helpful. It included a tool for resizing the image to the stipulated requirement.
But a few days after that, I received an email message and a letter from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, informing me that the photo was too big. As a result, I had to resubmit my application.
It would save users time and effort if the online system could detect that the size of an uploaded file is wrong and alert users immediately.
MR ALLAN TAN
15 May 2012
“Passport-renewal system alerts on photo file sizes”
I THANK Mr Allan Tan for the opportunity to elaborate on the passport-application process mentioned in his letter, “Good if passport-renewal website has instant alerts” (mypaper, May 4).
Mr Tan mentioned that the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) informed him that his submitted passport photo was “too big” and understood it to mean the photo exceeded the required file size of 150KB.
We would like to clarify that the message “photo image is too big” refers to the applicant’s facial image almost taking up the entire image box, and with the top of the shoulders cropped off.
The photo requirements for passport applications are stated on the ICA website. Among other requirements, an applicant’s face in the photo must be between 25mm and 45mm when measured from his chin to the crown of his head. The top of the applicant’s shoulders must also be visible in the photo.
To assist applicants, the digital-photo image guidelines and an online image-editing tool are included in the Application for Passport On-line Electronic System (Apples).
In addition, before submitting an application, the applicant’s photo will be automatically placed next to a specimen photo for the applicant to make his own comparison.
Mr Tan suggested that the Apples system incorporate instant alerts if photos did not meet requirements.
We thank Mr Tan for his feedback and are pleased to inform him that any photo with a file size exceeding ICA’s requirements will be rejected instantly by the system and the applicant will be alerted to submit another photo.
For photos which are successfully submitted through Apples, ICA manually checks them to ensure that the quality of the photographs meets international standards.
ICA will continue to refine existing technologies and explore new technologies to improve our electronic systems to serve customers more efficiently and effectively.
MR KOH WEE SING
HEAD, PUBLIC & INTERNAL COMMUNICATIAONS
CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION
IMMIGRATION & CHECKPOINTS AUTHORITY
<Original Letter>
MyPaper
04 May 2012
“Good if passport-renewal website has instant alerts”
RECENTLY, I applied to renew my biometric passport online, and had to upload a photo as part of the process.
Overall, the website was helpful. It included a tool for resizing the image to the stipulated requirement.
But a few days after that, I received an email message and a letter from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, informing me that the photo was too big. As a result, I had to resubmit my application.
It would save users time and effort if the online system could detect that the size of an uploaded file is wrong and alert users immediately.
MR ALLAN TAN