diff --git a/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.test.tsx b/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..137a2d8ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+import { fireEvent, render, screen } from '@testing-library/react';
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+import { BackgroundCheckAttachForm, type AttachFormValues } from './BackgroundCheckAttachForm';
+
+function renderForm(overrides: Partial<Parameters<typeof BackgroundCheckAttachForm>[0]> = {}) {
+  const values: AttachFormValues = { vendor: 'other', reportDate: '2026-06-01', file: null };
+  const props = {
+    values,
+    onChange: vi.fn(),
+    onSubmit: vi.fn(),
+    submitting: false,
+    canSubmit: true,
+    ...overrides,
+  };
+  render(<BackgroundCheckAttachForm {...props} />);
+  return props;
+}
+
+function fileInput() {
+  return screen.getByLabelText(/background check report or identity document/i);
+}
+
+describe('BackgroundCheckAttachForm', () => {
+  it('accepts a passport photo (the manual identity fallback)', () => {
+    const onChange = vi.fn();
+    renderForm({ onChange });
+
+    const passport = new File([new Uint8Array([0xff, 0xd8, 0xff])], 'passport.jpg', {
+      type: 'image/jpeg',
+    });
+    fireEvent.change(fileInput(), { target: { files: [passport] } });
+
+    expect(screen.queryByText(/only pdf files are accepted/i)).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(onChange).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expect.objectContaining({ file: passport }));
+  });
+
+  it('lets the native picker offer images, not just PDFs', () => {
+    renderForm();
+
+    const accept = fileInput().getAttribute('accept') ?? '';
+    expect(accept).toContain('application/pdf');
+    expect(accept).toMatch(/image\/png/);
+    expect(accept).toMatch(/image\/jpeg/);
+    expect(accept).toMatch(/image\/heic/);
+  });
+
+  it('still accepts a PDF report', () => {
+    const onChange = vi.fn();
+    renderForm({ onChange });
+
+    const pdf = new File(['%PDF-1.7'], 'report.pdf', { type: 'application/pdf' });
+    fireEvent.change(fileInput(), { target: { files: [pdf] } });
+
+    expect(screen.queryByText(/upload a pdf or image/i)).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(onChange).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expect.objectContaining({ file: pdf }));
+  });
+
+  it('rejects unsupported types and oversized files', () => {
+    const onChange = vi.fn();
+    renderForm({ onChange });
+
+    const exe = new File([new Uint8Array([0x4d, 0x5a])], 'malware.exe', {
+      type: 'application/x-msdownload',
+    });
+    fireEvent.change(fileInput(), { target: { files: [exe] } });
+    expect(screen.getByText(/upload a pdf or image/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(onChange).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+
+    const huge = new File(['x'], 'huge.png', { type: 'image/png' });
+    Object.defineProperty(huge, 'size', { value: 26 * 1024 * 1024 });
+    fireEvent.change(fileInput(), { target: { files: [huge] } });
+    expect(screen.getByText(/exceeds 25 mb limit/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    expect(onChange).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.tsx b/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.tsx
index cc7a4fb3f..eb004434a 100644
--- a/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.tsx
+++ b/apps/app/src/app/(app)/[orgId]/people/[employeeId]/components/BackgroundCheckAttachForm.tsx
@@ -43,6 +43,21 @@ interface AttachFormProps {
 
 const MAX_FILE_BYTES = 25 * 1024 * 1024;
 
+// Reports are usually PDFs, but the manual identity fallback is a passport
+// photo (JPEG/PNG/HEIC). The API accepts these same types — see
+// validateFileContent in apps/api/src/utils/file-type-validation.ts.
+const ACCEPTED_MIME_TYPES = [
+  'application/pdf',
+  'image/png',
+  'image/jpeg',
+  'image/webp',
+  'image/heic',
+  'image/heif',
+];
+
+const FILE_ACCEPT_ATTR =
+  'application/pdf,image/png,image/jpeg,image/webp,image/heic,image/heif,.pdf,.png,.jpg,.jpeg,.webp,.heic,.heif';
+
 export function BackgroundCheckAttachForm({
   values,
   onChange,
@@ -65,8 +80,8 @@ export function BackgroundCheckAttachForm({
       setFileError('File exceeds 25 MB limit.');
       return;
     }
-    if (file.type && file.type !== 'application/pdf') {
-      setFileError('Only PDF files are accepted.');
+    if (file.type && !ACCEPTED_MIME_TYPES.includes(file.type)) {
+      setFileError('Upload a PDF or image file (PDF, PNG, JPG, HEIC).');
       return;
     }
     setFileError(null);
@@ -125,10 +140,10 @@ export function BackgroundCheckAttachForm({
       <input
         ref={inputRef}
         type="file"
-        accept="application/pdf"
+        accept={FILE_ACCEPT_ATTR}
         className="sr-only"
         onChange={handleFileChange}
-        aria-label="Background check PDF"
+        aria-label="Background check report or identity document"
       />
       <div
         onDragOver={(event) => {
@@ -151,7 +166,7 @@ export function BackgroundCheckAttachForm({
             <>Selected: {values.file.name}</>
           ) : (
             <>
-              Drop the PDF here, or{' '}
+              Drop the file here, or{' '}
               <button
                 type="button"
                 onClick={handleBrowse}
@@ -163,7 +178,7 @@ export function BackgroundCheckAttachForm({
           )}
         </Text>
         <Text size="xs" variant="muted">
-          PDF · up to 25 MB · stored encrypted in your evidence vault
+          PDF or image (PNG, JPG, HEIC) · up to 25 MB · stored encrypted in your evidence vault
         </Text>
         {fileError && (
           <p className="mt-2 text-xs text-destructive">{fileError}</p>