PAN card photo (2.5 × 3.5 cm)

PAN card photo requirements

Official source: Income Tax Department, India. Rules can change, so check it before you apply.

For paper Form 49A, you paste a printed photo in the box on the form. It must not be stapled or clipped, and you sign across part of it on the left-side photo only, as the form shows.

For online applications, you upload a scanned or digital photo. The tool keeps the file under 50 KB while keeping your face sharp.

How to take the photo

1. Find a plain, light wall

   Stand about half a metre in front of it so your shadow falls behind you, not on the wall around your head.

2. Face the light

   Daylight from a window in front of you works best. Avoid overhead lights that cast shadows under the eyes.

3. Have someone take it at eye level

   The camera should be about 1.2 m (4 ft) away, level with your eyes. Leave space above your head and include your shoulders.

4. Crop it here

   Add the photo above, check that the top of your head and your chin sit on the red lines, and download.

Tips for this document

• Plain white background.
• Don't sign across your face on the printed photo.

Common reasons photos are rejected

• Correct
• Head too small
• Head too large
• Head tilted
• Shadow behind
• Busy background

Printing your photos

Download the print sheet and print it at a photo shop, a pharmacy photo counter or at home on photo paper. Choose actual size or 100% in the print settings; “fit to page” shrinks the photos and they will be the wrong size. Cut along the small corner marks so each photo measures exactly 25 × 35 mm.