PAN Card Photo and Signature Requirements Online (India)

For the online PAN application and correction forms, the photo and signature uploads must be in JPEG format — PNG and PDF are not accepted for these two specific fields, according to the application instructions published on the Protean (NSDL) PAN services site. This is a common point of confusion, since most people default to PNG when saving a phone screenshot or a scanned signature.

If your photo or signature is currently a PNG, screenshot, or PDF, convert it to JPEG before starting the form — trying to upload the wrong format usually just gets rejected by the upload field itself, costing you time mid-application.

The most reliable way to get a signature ready is to sign your name on a plain white sheet of paper, photograph it in good lighting, and crop it down to just the signature. If you're doing this from a phone photo, converting straight from your camera roll to a properly cropped JPEG keeps the file clean and readable.

You'll see specific pixel dimensions and kilobyte limits — like particular width/height ratios or size caps — repeated across many third-party PAN-application guide sites. We weren't able to independently confirm an exact figure directly from Protean's own published instructions, so rather than repeating a number that might be outdated or inaccurate, the safer approach is to check the live upload screen at the time you apply: it will typically state the exact pixel dimensions and file size it expects for that specific field, and will reject an upload that doesn't match.

A rejected upload on this form is almost always a format or dimension mismatch rather than a content problem. Double-check that the file is genuinely saved as a JPEG (not a PNG renamed with a .jpg extension), and that you're uploading it to the correct field — photo and signature are separate uploads and easy to swap by mistake.

Use a recent colour passport-style photo: face forward, plain light background, even light, no sunglasses or cap. A photo taken for the purpose is better than one cropped out of a group picture, which is usually too small and too soft once enlarged. If you have a printed passport photo, photograph or scan the print flat and crop to its edges.

PDFAreUs works with PDF files and does not have an image resizer. To match the pixel size and file size shown on the upload screen, use the editor you already have:

If your signature or photo was scanned and saved as a PDF, PDF to JPG turns that page into a JPG image you can then crop and resize. The supporting documents for a PAN application, such as proof of identity, address and date of birth, are a different matter: when you are asked to upload scans of those, combine multi-page proofs with Merge PDF and reduce large scans with Compress PDF, following the format and size shown beside each field.

The PAN application sites offer more than one way to submit. In the paperless Aadhaar-based option, your details are taken from Aadhaar, and the form explains whether you still need to upload a photo and signature. Read the description of each option on the first screen before you prepare files, because the answer changes what you need.

Save the final photo and signature in a folder with the acknowledgement you receive after submitting. If the application is returned for a clearer image, you will know exactly which file to replace, and the same signature image is often useful for other forms later.