Students and employees getting a first ID card, or replacing a card that is more than 2 years old, must submit a new photo online before visiting the ID Center.
Photo submission is required for students and employees. BYU affiliates who are not students or employees can have their photo taken at the ID Center.
New students - if you plan to get an ID card shortly before or at the start of the semester, please submit your photo at least 1 month before your first semester!
NEW Summer students moving into Heritage, Helaman, Wyview, or Riviera: Make sure your photo is approved by June 16! If it is, we'll print your ID card and take it to your Housing area where you'll receive it when you check in. Then you won't have to come to our office and stand in line!
New employees will not be able to submit until 1 day after the hire is fully processed. Some CES/FSY employees will not be eligible for an ID card. Please contact your hiring manager to check.
If you should be eligible for an ID card but are unable to submit a photo, please email idcenter@byu.edu with a screenshot of the error. We cannot accept emailed photo.
If your photo is rejected, please review requirements and resubmit.
STEP 1: Review Photo Requirements:
• Meet all BYU Dress and Grooming expectations.
• You will take the photo live, on the submission website. We do not accept photos previously taken. We recommend you visit the submission website (step 2) on your smartphone as most smartphone cameras work great (make sure your browser settings allow camera).
• The photo will be cropped to a square - there must be space above your head with both full shoulders shown when cropped.
• The background will be removed when you submit the photo. Use a high contrast background to help background removal. Do not have other people or photos of people in the background.
• Find a well-lit space facing full, bright all-around light; do not have light behind or to the side, including a window. There should be no shadows anywhere on your face. Use a ring light if you have one.
• Try different locations to find the best lighting. Avoid warm lighting that tends toward orange, yellow, or pink. No filters or other artificial enhancements. No distortions. Make sure you look like you.
• Stand or sit with your whole body, including your shoulders and head, directly facing the camera. Hold the camera level with your head and shoulders. Look straight at the camera. Your face should be fully visible.
• Use a natural smile or neutral expression with your eyes open.
• Wear glasses if needed but no sunglasses, headphones, earbuds, or other distracting items.
• Head coverings are acceptable for religious or medical reasons only.
We need a photo of you – how you look on an average day, today. If your photo doesn’t look like you when you come to pick up your ID card, you’ll have to submit again and there may be a $10 fee.
STEP 2: Use your smart device to take and submit your photo at
If you get a BYU error page at this site, please clear your browsing data (cache & cookies) and try again.
NEW Students and Employees
(getting their first BYU ID card)
must also submit a color photo of your government issued photo ID (driver's license, passport, visa). Make sure it shows your picture and name in English. If you don't want other information on the ID to be visible, you can cover, blur, or crop out the rest of the ID.
CURRENT AND RETURNING Students and Employees
renewing an expired or soon to expire BYU ID card should submit a color photo of the expiring ID card instead of gov. ID, if prompted. You will need to turn in the ID card when you pick up your new card. Please renew no more than 1 month before your card expires.
If your card is lost, please submit a screenshot of your Y app digital ID card. Lost card replacements cost $10.
A new photo of you is required for the new ID card. The purpose of the card is to identify you so one of the reasons the card expires is so the photo can be updated. Use the Edit button to update your photo submission.
We ask for a new photo, taken specifically for the BYU ID card. The photo needs to be ID-card style with the subject directly facing the camera. We do not accept professional photos because we don’t know when they were taken, they are not ID-card style, and are often air-brushed or edited. Professional photos are great for department profiles, Linked-In, and other professional uses. The BYU ID card photo is for identification purposes, not professional purposes, and represents a person’s appearance on an average day.
STEP 3: Pick Up your ID card
Photos are usually approved or rejected minutes to hours after submission during office hours, depending on the time of year. After-hours and near the start of a semester or term, it will take longer, hours to days.
Make sure you get the "approved photo" email sent to your BYU email, login at outlook.byu.edu.
Once you receive the "approved" email, please wait 15 minutes and then visit the ID Center (students and employees) or Benefits Office (employees only) to have your ID card printed. No appointment needed. If you cannot visit right away, visit any day down the road at your convenience for up to 1 year.
NEW students moving into Heritage, Helaman, Wyview, or Riviera: If your photo is approved by June 16, you can pick it up at the ID Center thru 12pm, June 18. After 12pm June 18, your card will be taken to your Housing area and you'll get it when you check in. Then you won't have to wait in line at the ID Center!
Faculty, Staff, Retirees and family: Please visit the Benefits Office, D-240 ASB 1 week before and after the start of a term or semester.
BYU ID cards can also be picked up at the Salt Lake Center library, 2 weeks before the start of the term or semester. See the SLC website for hours, http://slc.byu.edu/library.
Lost card replacements cost $10, even if the card is expired.
Pickup Requirements:
• BYU ID cards are "valid for campus use only" under state law and must be picked up in-person by the cardholder.
• Students and employees should meet Dress and Grooming expectations to get an ID card, even if the photo was already approved. If your dress and grooming do not align with principles and expectations, you may be asked make adjustments and come back, or consult with the Honor Code office.
• You must present government ID when you pick up your first BYU ID card.
• You must pick up your ID card to use Cougar Cash or meal plans, ride UTA, take tests, or open campus doors.