Canada Quebec health insurance card photo requirements
The 50 × 70 mm photo rules set by Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec for the Canada Quebec health insurance card, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Canada Quebec health insurance card photo?
A Quebec health insurance card photo is 5 cm wide by 7 cm high (2 x 2 3/4 inches), in colour, on a solid white or light-coloured background, printed professionally and dated on the back with a date stamp. It must be less than 6 months old. You bring it in person to a CLSC service point, or have it taken at an SAAQ outlet. RAMQ refuses and destroys photos sent by mail.
The Quebec health insurance card is issued by the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ). It usually shows the holder's photo and signature from age 14 to 74. Children under 14 are exempt, and from 75 the photo and signature are optional.
How you supply the photo depends on the service point. At a health network service point (CLSC), which handles registration for health insurance, renewals, replacements and identity corrections, you bring a photo, and RAMQ says the fee depends on the pharmacy or photographer that takes it. At a Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) outlet, which renews or replaces the card alone or together with a driver's licence, the photo is taken on the premises. Either way you attend in person so that your identity can be checked.
Many renewals need no new photo at all. If your card already has a photo, RAMQ asks you to mail back the completed and signed renewal form, and except in some cases it uses the photo already in your file. RAMQ introduced this in March 2023 as a temporary measure, and its photo page still describes renewal by mail with the photo on file.
Canada Quebec health insurance card photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec:[1]
| Print size | 5 x 7 cm (2 x 2 3/4 in), width x height |
|---|---|
| Digital size | No digital file: bring a printed photo to a CLSC, or have it taken at an SAAQ outlet |
| Background | Solid white or light-coloured |
| Colour | Colour photo |
| Photo age | Taken in the past 6 months, dated on the back with a date stamp |
| Print quality | Printed professionally; not overexposed or underexposed, correct contrast |
| Pixels when printed | 591 × 827 px at 300 dpi · 1181 × 1654 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- In person, never by mail
Photos sent by mail are refused and destroyed. Unless you are exempt, you go to a CLSC or SAAQ service point, where your identity is checked.
- Professional print and date stamp
A photo you bring must be printed professionally and dated on the back with a date stamp, which shows it was taken in the past 6 months.
- Format and exposure
The photo is 7 cm high by 5 cm wide, in colour, on a solid white or light-coloured background. It must not be overexposed or underexposed, and the contrast must be correct.
- Whole face visible
Face centred and facing the camera straight on, shoulders visible, head straight. Hair and decorative items must not cover your eyes or part of your face, or cast a shadow or reflection.
- Neutral, eyes open
Keep your mouth closed and do not smile. Your eyes are open and clearly visible, with no red-eye effect.
- Glasses stay on
RAMQ asks you to keep your eyeglasses on unless you are asked to remove them, with clear lenses and no frames or glare masking your eyes.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Check whether your renewal notice lets you reuse the photo on file.
- Ask the pharmacy or photographer to date-stamp the back.
- Book an SAAQ appointment online to have the photo taken there.
- Keep your glasses on unless you are asked to remove them.
- Take the photo to a CLSC service point yourself.
- Get the medical certificate if you cannot provide a photo or signature.
Don't
- Do not mail your photo to RAMQ.
- Do not print the photo at home.
- Do not use a photo taken more than 6 months ago.
- Do not wear tinted lenses unless an exception applies to you.
- Do not rest your glasses on top of your head.
- Do not smile.
Sample photos
How a Canada Quebec health insurance card photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 50 × 70 mm and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Glasses
Keep your eyeglasses on for a RAMQ photo unless you are asked to take them off. Your eyes must be clearly visible, with no frames or glare masking them, the lenses must not be tinted, and glasses must not sit on top of your head.
Visually impaired people are the exception and may wear dark or tinted glasses. People with photophobia or light intolerance may also wear dark or tinted lenses, but must provide a medical certificate.
Headwear and religious dress
Your head must be uncovered, with your whole face visible and free of shadows, unless you cover your head every day for medical or religious reasons. Hair and decorative accessories must not hide your eyes or any part of your face, and must not cast shadows or reflections.
Babies and children
Children under 14 are exempt from providing a photo and signature, so RAMQ's photo rules apply from age 14.
At the other end, people aged 75 and over choose whether their card shows a photo and signature. If they want one, they renew in person at a CLSC or an SAAQ outlet.
Printed and digital photos
RAMQ takes no digital photo file. At a CLSC you hand over a printed photo of 5 x 7 cm, printed professionally and date-stamped on the back. At an SAAQ outlet the photo is taken on the premises, so you do not bring one. The service-point fee is not refundable.
A photo that breaks the rules is refused, and you have to come back. Replacing a damaged, lost or stolen card needs no new photo: the new card reuses the same photo, signature and expiry date.
Where to submit the photo
CLSC service points handle registration for health insurance, card renewal, card replacement and correction of identity, and they are where you bring your own photo. SAAQ service outlets renew and replace the card, alone or with your driver's licence, and take the photo themselves. RAMQ's site lists the service points that check identity.
If you are exempt from both the photo and the signature, you mail the completed form and any documents instead of going in, and originals are returned. People exempt from only one of the two still go to a service point to be identified. A medical exemption needs RAMQ's medical certificate for a photo or signature exemption, completed by a physician at your own cost.
How to get your Canada Quebec health insurance card photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Canada Quebec health insurance card: 50 × 70 mm print, solid white or light-coloured background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: in person, never by mail; professional print and date stamp; format and exposure; whole face visible.
- Prepare a print or digital file. RAMQ takes no digital photo file. At a CLSC you hand over a printed photo of 5 x 7 cm, printed professionally and date-stamped on the back. At an SAAQ outlet the photo is taken on the premises, so you do not bring one. The service-point fee is not refundable.
- Submit the photo with your application. CLSC service points handle registration for health insurance, card renewal, card replacement and correction of identity, and they are where you bring your own photo.
Canada Quebec health insurance card photo FAQ
It is 5 cm wide by 7 cm high (2 x 2 3/4 inches); RAMQ writes it as 7 cm high by 5 cm wide. It must be a colour photo on a solid white or light-coloured background, printed professionally, with correct contrast and no overexposure or underexposure.
No. RAMQ says photos sent by mail are refused and destroyed. Unless you are exempt, you go to a CLSC or SAAQ service point, where your identity is checked when the photo is handed in or taken.
Usually not, if your card already has a photo. RAMQ asks you to mail back the completed and signed renewal form, and except in some cases it uses the photo already in your file. If you renew in person instead, an SAAQ outlet takes a new photo, or a CLSC accepts one you bring.
Yes. RAMQ asks you to keep your glasses on unless you are told to remove them. The lenses must not be tinted and no frames or glare may hide your eyes. Dark or tinted lenses are allowed only for visually impaired people, or for photophobia with a medical certificate.
At an SAAQ service outlet, which takes the photo on site; you can book an appointment online. For a CLSC service point you bring your own photo, and RAMQ says the cost depends on the pharmacy or photographer that takes it. A photo you bring must be printed professionally and date-stamped on the back.
No. Children under 14 are exempt from providing a photo and signature. The card usually shows a photo and signature from age 14 to 74.
People staying outside Québec who remain covered by the Health Insurance Plan are exempt from the photo and signature. They complete, sign and mail back the card renewal notice.
Related photo specifications
Other Canada documents
- Passport photo 50 × 70 mm
- Visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Secure certificate of indian status photo 50 × 70 mm
- Driver's licence photo
- Permanent resident photo 50 × 70 mm
- Study and work permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Citizenship photo 50 × 70 mm
- NEXUS card photo
- Permanent resident travel document (PRTD) photo
- Firearms licence photo 45 × 57 mm
- Personnel screening photo 43 × 54 mm
- Security licence photo 50 × 70 mm
- Provincial health card photo
- Veteran's service card photo
Other documents nearby
Also 50 × 70 mm
- Brazil passport photo 50 × 70 mm
- Brazil passport or visa photo 50 × 70 mm
- Comoros visa photo 50 × 70 mm
- All Canada photo specifications
- Other documents: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 50 × 70 mm photo
- Photo specifications in North America
Official sources
- Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec. Photo and signature (Health Insurance Card) ramq.gouv.qc.ca. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec. Photo et signature (carte d'assurance maladie) ramq.gouv.qc.ca. Checked 1 November 2026.
- Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec, via Québec.ca. Allègement pour le renouvellement de la carte d'assurance maladie (news release, March 9, 2023) quebec.ca. Checked 1 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Canada Quebec health insurance card photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/canada/quebec-health-insurance-card-photo