Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has laughed off a Photoshop fail found in a portrait that was on his website.

The photo of Mr Morrison and his family showed the prime minister wearing rather suspicious-looking sneakers.

It didn't take long for internet users to point out that the shoes were fake, prompting much amusement.

In a light-hearted response, Mr Morrison blamed the doctored image on staff in his department.

"Message to my Department (PM&C): I didn't ask for the shoeshine, but if you must Photoshop, please focus on the hair (lack thereof), not the feet!" he tweeted.

The original picture - which showed him wearing older, striped sneakers - had previously been seen in a video released by Mr Morrison's office and elsewhere.

To make things more awkward, people also pointed out that he appeared to be wearing two left shoes.

Some internet users began editing their own images, adding fake shoes to Mr Morrison and his government colleagues.

Another observer used the blunder to joke about Australia's recent revolving door of prime ministers.

Mr Morrison responded by tweeting an image of his original shoes, and saying he had not known about the altered image.

The PM&C (Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet) has blamed the dodgy Photoshop on a graphic designer, with a spokesman telling the Canberra Times the person had been involved in "developing design options for the prime minister's Christmas card".

The photo was "inadvertently published by the department, which manages pm.gov.au on behalf of the prime minister".

The original photo is now visible on Mr Morrison's website.

It is not the first social media faux pas to engulf Mr Morrison. His personal website was briefly taken over last year by an internet prankster.

He also recently apologised after a video which featured a rap song with explicit lyrics was tweeted from his official account.