How to Resize a PAN Card Photo for NSDL

NSDL, now operating as Protean eGov Technologies, has its own photo and signature spec for PAN applications — and it's a different set of numbers from UTIITSL's, not just a rebrand of the same requirement.

The NSDL photo spec

NSDL asks for a photo that's 3.5cm × 2.5cm, which works out to roughly 197×276 pixels at 200 DPI, kept under about 50KB in JPEG format. Note this is a rectangular photo, not the square 213×213 that UTI uses.

The NSDL signature spec

The signature should be 4.5cm × 2cm, or roughly 354×157 pixels, also at 200 DPI. As with the photo, sign clearly in black or blue ink on plain white paper.

Step by step

1. Take or choose your photo. Front-facing, plain white background, natural lighting.

2. Open the NSDL resizer. It defaults to 197×276 for the photo and 354×157 for the signature.

3. Download and check the reported file size. NSDL is strict about JPEG only, which this tool always outputs, and the compression step targets the ~50KB limit automatically.

4. Upload to the NSDL portal and confirm the current limit shown on the form, since these figures can be revised.

Why this trips people up

A lot of generic advice online quotes UTI's 213×213 figure as if it were universal, because it's a rounder, more memorable number. If you're on the NSDL portal and use that spec instead, the upload will likely fail on dimension mismatch. See our NSDL vs UTI guide if you're not sure which portal you're actually using.