PAN Card Photo Size for a Protean DSC Upload
Protean’s digital-signature PAN application asks for a colour JPEG photograph at 200 DPI, 3.5 cm by 2.5 cm, and at most 20 KB. That table is for the DSC route on Protean’s site. Paper forms and UTIITSL can differ. This page compresses a photo toward 20 KB in your browser. It does not crop the frame or file a PAN.
Verified on 2026-10-28. Protean — guidelines for DSC-based PAN applications
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Privacy, formats & limitations
Files are processed in your browser and are not uploaded to our servers.
Your files stay on your device. We do not store or access your documents.
Supported formats
JPEG, PNG, WebP
Limitations
- Compresses toward 20 KB. It does not crop to 3.5 × 2.5 cm or set 200 DPI.
- The 20 KB and 3.5 × 2.5 cm figures are from Protean’s DSC-based PAN table, not every PAN route.
- Output is JPEG. Check the downloaded size before you upload.
Specification
Verified on 2026-10-28
| Item | What the source says |
|---|---|
| Which application | Protean (formerly NSDL) DSC-based PAN application. Not every paper Form 49A and not a claim about UTIITSL. |
| Photograph | Colour JPEG, 200 DPI, 3.5 × 2.5 cm, maximum 20 KB |
| Signature on the same Protean table | Colour JPEG, 200 DPI, 2 × 4.5 cm, maximum 10 KB. Resize that file on the signature page, not here. |
| What this page changes | File size, toward a 20 KB ceiling. It does not crop to 3.5 × 2.5 cm and it does not set DPI. |
How to prepare the file
- Confirm you are on Protean’s DSC application. If you are printing a form or using UTIITSL, use that provider’s own photo rule.
- Crop the portrait to about 3.5 cm by 2.5 cm in Resize Image or Crop Image. This page does not crop centimetres.
- Upload the cropped photo here. The page opens at a 20 KB ceiling, which matches the maximum in Protean’s table.
- Download the JPEG and check that it is at or under 20 KB before you upload it with the application.
Questions
Which PAN application uses a 20 KB photograph?
Protean’s DSC-based guidelines table says the photograph is a colour JPEG at 200 DPI, 3.5 × 2.5 cm, maximum 20 KB. Verified on 2026-10-28. Other PAN routes can ask for a different file.
Does this page crop the photo to 3.5 by 2.5 cm?
No. It compresses the file toward 20 KB. Crop the frame first if the form needs those centimetres.
What is the signature size on that Protean table?
Colour JPEG, 200 DPI, 2 × 4.5 cm, maximum 10 KB. Use Resize Signature for that file. This page is the photograph.
Will every PAN centre accept this JPEG?
Only if their current instructions match this table. Paper forms and UTIITSL publish their own photograph rules. Read the form you are submitting.