Finland ID card photo requirements
The 36 × 47 mm photo rules set by Police of Finland for the Finland ID card, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Finland ID card photo?
The Finnish identity card takes the same photo as the passport: 36 x 47 mm on paper, or a 500 x 653 pixel JPEG of no more than 250 KB on the police photograph server. The head must measure 32 to 36 mm from crown to chin, the background must be plain and light, and the photo may be no more than six months old. Most applicants attach it with a retrieval code sent by a photo studio.
The police issue Finnish identity cards: the standard card, a minor's identity card without travel right, a foreigner's identity card and a temporary card. Finnish citizens who live abroad get their card from a Finnish embassy or consulate instead. The photo falls under the same Ministry of the Interior decree as the passport photo (1168/2016), so one set of measurements serves both documents.
The card's chip stores your facial image, so the photo is a biometric record and not just a picture on the card. Cards accepted as travel documents and issued from 2 August 2021 also hold fingerprints, except for children under 12, whose only biometric identifier is the facial image.
You can apply online or at any police station, whatever your home address. Online, you attach the photo with the retrieval code a studio sends you after uploading it to the police. The temporary identity card is the one card you cannot apply for online.
Finland ID card photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Police of Finland:[1]
| Print size | 36 x 47 mm (1.42 x 1.85 in) paper photo, accepted at a police station |
|---|---|
| Digital size | Photo server: 500 x 653 pixels exactly, with no deviation allowed |
| Head height | 32 to 36 mm crown to chin (445-500 px), hair and beard not counted |
| Background | Plain light background, flat and in a neutral colour; light grey recommended |
| Colour | Black and white or colour |
| Photo age | Taken no more than 6 months before the application |
| File size | Up to 250 KB on the photo server |
| File format | JPEG file (.jpg or .jpeg); JPEG2000 is not accepted |
| Print quality | Printed on high-quality photo paper, clean and free of scratches, smudges or creases |
| Pixels when printed | 425 × 555 px at 300 dpi · 850 × 1110 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
Key requirements
- Face must match earlier photos
An online application can skip the police station visit only when the processing officer can establish that your new photo shows the same person as your previous passport photos. You must also have been identified, and fingerprinted for a passport or identity card, within the past six years, at 12 or older, and still have the same name. All four conditions must be met.
- One photo for card and passport
If you were recently issued a passport or identity card and its photo is less than six months old, the same photo can be attached automatically to the new card application, so you do not need a new sitting.
- Millimetres for prints, pixels for files
Millimetre measurements apply only to paper photos and pixel measurements only to photos on the server; the positioning is otherwise the same. Allow 4 to 6 mm (56 to 84 px) above the crown and 7 to 9 mm (96 to 124 px) below the chin, with the face centred to within 1.5 mm (21 px).
- Stand out clearly
Face, hair, clothes and accessories must stand out from a single-coloured, flat background, and there must be no shadows on it. The portrait laser-engraved on the card is greyscale, so similar tones merge. Lighting must be even and natural in colour, with no bright spots or red-eye.
- Neutral face, eyes open
Keep a neutral expression with your mouth closed and your eyes open, not squinting. Hair must not cover the face, and the eyes must be clearly distinguishable. Accessories must not cover the face either.
- No manipulation
Edits that change even minor details of your appearance, or that could raise doubts about the photo's authenticity and make the card harder to use, are not allowed. The image must also be free of optical distortion and colour errors.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Order the photo from a studio that sends it to the police.
- Book a station visit if the online service asks for one.
- Bring one paper photo if you apply at a station without the online service.
- Bring your previous passport or identity card for identification.
- Check that the photo is under six months old on the day you apply.
- Keep your shoulders square and your eyes on the lens.
Don't
- Do not expect a pre-check: photos are judged only when the application is processed.
- Do not ask for an older photo to be uploaded weeks after it was taken.
- Do not let any part of your glasses frame reach the eyes.
- Do not pick a background as light or as dark as your clothes.
- Do not try to apply online for a temporary identity card.
- Do not smile or open your mouth.
Sample photos
How a Finland ID card photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 36 × 47 mm, head height and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Glasses
Glasses can stay on when your eyes are fully visible through them. The decree on passport and identity card photos says frames must not go over the eyes at any point, must not be so thick that your features are hard to make out, and must not cast shadows on the face. Lenses and frames must show no reflections. If in doubt, take them off; the police say that is always an option.
Tinted lenses or an eye patch are accepted only for medical reasons.
Headwear and religious dress
Under the same decree, a scarf or other head covering may be worn only when religious reasons or an established custom require it, and the police also allow one for health or medical reasons. The covering must leave enough of the face visible and must not shade it. A medically needed wig counts as hair and must not hide the eyes.
Babies and children
A child's identity card application can be started online like an adult's, but a minor's card always needs a visit to a police station. The child must be there in person, even a baby. Children under 15 come with at least one guardian, and from 15 a minor may go alone with written consent. All guardians must agree to the application; without that consent, only a minor's identity card without travel right can be issued.
The photo rules do not change with age, apart from a small child's mouth being allowed to be slightly open when needed. The police check children's identity particularly carefully, because their faces change quickly.
Printed and digital photos
Online, only a server photo works: you enter the retrieval code in the application. A studio may upload only photos it took itself, and must do so straight after the shoot, because the photo's age is counted from the upload. You can upload your own photo too, but the police advise against it because many are rejected, most often for poor lighting or distortion from too short a shooting distance.
At a police station without the online service, bring one paper photo. Staff scan it into electronic form, which takes time and reduces quality, so the police recommend the electronic route.
Where to submit the photo
In Finland, apply online with Suomi.fi identification, or at any police station regardless of where you live. Mobile permit service units and some joint service points also take applications. The Helsinki Airport police point is the exception: it handles only emergency identity card applications from passengers transiting through the airport.
From abroad you can still send an online application if you can sign in with Suomi.fi. Studios outside Finland cannot submit to the photograph server, so you upload the studio's photo yourself through Suomi.fi e-Identification. Finnish missions cannot receive or complement online applications, so any identification visit must be at a police station in Finland, and the collection point must also be in Finland.
How to get your Finland ID card photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Finland ID card: 36 × 47 mm print, 500 × 653 px digital file, plain light background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: face must match earlier photos; one photo for card and passport; millimetres for prints, pixels for files; stand out clearly.
- Prepare a print or digital file. Online, only a server photo works: you enter the retrieval code in the application. A studio may upload only photos it took itself, and must do so straight after the shoot, because the photo's age is counted from the upload.
- Submit the photo with your application. In Finland, apply online with Suomi.fi identification, or at any police station regardless of where you live. Mobile permit service units and some joint service points also take applications.
Finland ID card photo FAQ
The same as for a passport: 36 x 47 mm on paper, or exactly 500 x 653 pixels as a JPEG of up to 250 KB on the police photograph server. The head measures 32 to 36 mm (445 to 500 px) from crown to chin, not counting hair or beard.
Yes, if the passport was issued recently and its photo is less than six months old. The police can attach that photo to the identity card application automatically, so you need no new photo. A retrieval code from a studio also works for either document while the photo is within the six months.
Not always. You can skip the visit if you were identified and fingerprinted for a passport or identity card in the past six years, were at least 12 at the time, still have the same name, and the officer can tell your new photo shows the same person. A minor's card always needs a visit.
No. The only exception is the police point at Helsinki Airport, which can photograph you for an extra fee but serves passengers transiting through the airport with urgent applications. Everyone else brings a studio retrieval code, uploads a photo, or hands in a paper photo.
Citizens living abroad get their card from a Finnish mission. The police online service can also be used from abroad with Suomi.fi, and you upload a foreign studio's photo yourself because studios abroad cannot reach the photograph server. Collection, and any identification visit, must be in Finland.
No. The same size and head measurements apply at every age. A small child's mouth may be slightly open if needed, the eyes must be open, and anyone supporting the child must stay out of the picture.
Yes, if your religion or an established custom requires it, or for health or medical reasons. The scarf must not cover too much of your face or cast shadows on it.
Related photo specifications
Other Finland documents
- Passport photo 36 × 47 mm
- Visa photo 36 × 47 mm
- Driving licence photo 36 × 47 mm
- Residence permit photo 36 × 47 mm
- Firearms permit photo 36 × 47 mm
Identity cards nearby
- Denmark ID card photo 35 × 45 mm
- Estonia ID card photo 40 × 50 mm
- Estonia resident digital identity card photo 40 × 50 mm
- Ireland public Services Card photo
- United Kingdom CitizenCard photo 720 × 1280 px
Also 36 × 47 mm
- Åland Islands passport photo 36 × 47 mm
- Albania eVisa photo 36 × 47 mm
- Albania visa photo 36 × 47 mm
- All Finland photo specifications
- Identity cards: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 36 × 47 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Europe
Official sources
- Police of Finland. Passport photographs (identity card) poliisi.fi. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Police of Finland. How to apply for an identity card poliisi.fi. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Police of Finland. Identity card for a minor poliisi.fi. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Police of Finland. Passport photograph instructions by the police (PDF) poliisi.fi. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Ministry of the Interior, published in Finlex. Decree 1168/2016 on photographs attached to passports and identity cards (Finnish, PDF) finlex.fi. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Police of Finland before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Finland ID card photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/finland/id-card-photo