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Kazakhstan ID card photo requirements

The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan for the Kazakhstan ID card, with the official wording and sources.

Based on 6 official sources · last checked Official sources Page history

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Quick answer

What size is the Kazakhstan ID card photo?

The Kazakh national ID card uses a 35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in) photo. To renew online on eGov you attach a photo that meets the official parameters: 413 x 531 pixels, up to 30 KB, 24-bit colour, no more than 6 months old, on a plain light background, with the face filling 70 to 80% of the height. At a Public Service Centre the photo is taken for you.

The national ID card of a citizen of the Republic of Kazakhstan is issued from the age of 16 and is valid inside the country; every citizen who lives permanently in Kazakhstan must hold one. It is produced by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and handed over through the State Corporation Government for Citizens. Kazakh embassies and consulates abroad do not issue it: their consular pages state that the ID card is outside a consular office's competence.

How the photo reaches the card depends on the channel. At a Public Service Centre (TsON), staff photograph you on site, free of charge, and record your signature on a scanner. On the eGov portal the card can be renewed online, but only when it expires within 30 calendar days or expired no more than 10 days ago; you fill in the application, attach a photo and signature sample in line with the rules, and sign with a digital signature or an SMS one-time password. eGov announced in June 2025 that the same service also runs in the eGov Mobile app, after biometric identification. A paper form, used for instance on admission to citizenship, needs two printed photos.

The photo rules are Appendix 2 to the Ministry of Internal Affairs rules for issuing passports and ID cards, drawn up to the ICAO standard. Besides the 35 x 45 mm size, they give the file parameters that matter for an upload.

Kazakhstan ID card photo size and specifications

The requirements as published by Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan:[1]

Print size35 x 45 mm (1.38 x 1.77 in)
Digital size413 x 531 pixels
Head heightFace 70 to 80% of the photo height, 32 to 36 mm from chin to crown
BackgroundPlain light background, ideally grey: medium grey for fair hair, light grey for dark hair; no patterns
ColourColour, 24-bit depth, with neutral tones and a natural skin colour
Photo ageTaken no more than 6 months before the application
File sizeUp to 30 KB
Print qualityPaper form only: two photographic prints on thick photo paper; matte, 300 dpi or more
Pixels when printed413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated)
35 mm45 mm32–36 mm
35 × 45 mm photo drawn to scale, with the 32–36 mm head height from chin to crown. Background: plain light background.

In the official words

Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:

Art retouching and other manipulations are not allowed.

Requirements to photographs when drawing up identity documents (archived 4 February 2026)[2]

It is not allowed to use images made by computer scanning, modeling or photocopying.

Issuance of passports, identification cards for citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan[1]

Key requirements

  • Online only near expiry

    The eGov service is available when 30 or fewer calendar days remain before the card expires, or when it expired no more than 10 calendar days ago. You also need permanent registration at your address and no change to your name or date of birth; otherwise apply at a Public Service Centre.

  • File parameters for the upload

    The photo requirements set 3.5 x 4.5 cm at 413 x 531 pixels, a file size of up to 30 KB and a colour depth of 24 bits. The eGov application asks you to attach a photo and a signature sample that follow these rules.

  • Photographed at the TsON

    If you apply in person through the electronic registration point, the service rules say you are photographed there free of charge to international standards. The photo is entered directly into the electronic form, so you do not bring one.

  • Face fills most of the frame

    Show the face from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head and from one side of the face to the other. It takes up 70 to 80% of the height, 32 to 36 mm, or 27 to 40 mm where the crown is hard to judge; keep the whole hairstyle inside the picture.

  • Light, plain background

    Use one light, even colour with no pattern. The requirements prefer grey, advise against blue, and match the shade to your hair: medium grey for fair hair, light grey for dark hair. Nobody else and no objects may appear, and there must be no shadows.

  • Unaltered, sharp image

    The image must be sharp and contrasty, with every facial feature clearly visible, neutral colours and a natural skin tone. Artistic retouching and other manipulation are not permitted, and a photo in uniform is not accepted.

  • Facing the lens

    Keep your head level and turned neither left nor right, look directly into the camera, close your mouth and keep a neutral expression. Your eyes must be open and must not be hidden by hair. Light the face evenly, without red-eye or a blue or red colour cast.

Do's and don'ts

Do

  • Check your card's expiry date before you try to renew online
  • Save the upload at 413 x 531 pixels and no more than 30 KB
  • Use a sharp photo in which every facial feature is clear
  • Pick a light grey background that contrasts with your hair
  • Keep your eyes open and your hair away from them
  • Have your electronic signature or SMS password ready to sign

Don't

  • Do not ask an embassy or consulate for an ID card
  • Do not upload a retouched or otherwise manipulated image
  • Do not use lighting with a blue or red tint
  • Do not wear a hat unless it is a religious or medical covering
  • Do not let other people or objects into the frame
  • Do not wear a uniform for the photo

Sample photos

How a Kazakhstan ID card photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 35 × 45 mm, head height and background colour.

Correct
Open-mouth smile
Head tilted
Too close: head too big
Too far: head too small
Busy background
Shadows on face or background
Glare on glasses

Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.

Glasses

Keep your eyes clearly visible. Sunglasses are not allowed, nor are lenses that reflect the light, and the frame of your glasses must not cross your eyes. An eye patch may be worn only on health grounds.

For an online renewal, check the photo for glare on the lenses before you attach it; if there is any, retake it with the light placed differently or without glasses.

Headwear and religious dress

Headwear is not allowed in an ID card photo. The one exception is a religious or medical head covering, which must leave your face uncovered between the bottom of the chin and the forehead without casting shadows on it.

Babies and children

The ID card is issued from the age of 16; children under 16 cannot get one, and the document available to them is the passport, which is issued at any age. For the first card, a parent or legal representative presents the birth certificate, a parent's identity document and the young person's passport if there is one.

A first card cannot be ordered through the online service, which only replaces a card close to its expiry date, so a 16-year-old has the photo taken at the TsON when the documents are checked.

For an online renewal the photo is a digital file. Under the photo requirements it should be 413 x 531 pixels (the 3.5 x 4.5 cm format), no larger than 30 KB, with 24-bit colour. A phone photo can be cropped and resized to that pixel size and saved as a compressed file below 30 KB, provided it still meets the sharpness and lighting rules.

At a TsON you need neither file nor print. Prints are only for applications on a paper form, for example a first card issued against a 1974 Soviet passport or a birth certificate after 18, or after admission to citizenship: bring two 3.5 x 4.5 cm photos made by photographic printing on thick photo paper. Computer-scanned, modelled or photocopied images are refused, and a digital photo printed for a paper form should be on high-quality matte paper at 300 dpi or more.

Where to submit the photo

For an online renewal, log in to the eGov portal, choose the ID card service and use the "Request online" button. You need permanent registration, registration in the mobile citizens database if you sign by SMS, and unchanged personal details. The processing result appears in your personal account, and the card is collected from a Public Service Centre.

For any other case, apply at a Public Service Centre. It is normally the one for your place of permanent registration, but on expiry, loss, a change of surname after marriage or divorce, damage and several other grounds you can also apply where you are actually staying. Book a place in the electronic queue on eGov. If a card is not collected within a year, the centre hands it back for destruction.

How to get your Kazakhstan ID card photo

  1. Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Kazakhstan ID card: 35 × 45 mm print, 413 × 531 px digital file, plain light background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
  2. Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: online only near expiry; file parameters for the upload; photographed at the TsON; face fills most of the frame.
  3. Prepare a print or digital file. For an online renewal the photo is a digital file. Under the photo requirements it should be 413 x 531 pixels (the 3.5 x 4.5 cm format), no larger than 30 KB, with 24-bit colour.
  4. Submit the photo with your application. For an online renewal, log in to the eGov portal, choose the ID card service and use the "Request online" button. You need permanent registration, registration in the mobile citizens database if you sign by SMS, and unchanged personal details.

Make this photo online

Kazakhstan ID card photo FAQ

Yes, on the eGov portal, but only when your card expires within 30 calendar days or expired no more than 10 days ago, you have permanent registration, and your name and date of birth have not changed. Otherwise go to a Public Service Centre.

A photo meeting the official requirements: the 3.5 x 4.5 cm format at 413 x 531 pixels, up to 30 KB, 24-bit colour, taken within the last 6 months, full face with a neutral expression on a plain light background, the face filling 70 to 80% of the height.

No. At a Public Service Centre you are photographed for free through the electronic registration point, and your signature is captured on a scanner. Printed photos are needed only for paper-form applications.

No. Embassy pages, such as the one in Berlin, state that issuing the ID card is outside a consular office's competence. Missions handle passports for citizens abroad instead.

From 16. Every citizen permanently living in Kazakhstan must have one. Children under 16 can have a passport, which is issued at any age.

No. The Ministry's rules let you present identity documents in digital form, through the digital documents service, when you apply. That is a way of showing documents; the new card's photo still comes from the TsON camera or from the photo you attach online.

Yes, if you wear it for religious or medical reasons. Your face must stay visible from the bottom of the chin to the forehead, and the covering must not cast shadows on it.

Related photo specifications

Other Kazakhstan documents

Identity cards nearby

Also 35 × 45 mm

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Official sources

  1. Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Issuance of passports, identification cards for citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan gov.kz. Checked 2 November 2026.
  2. Electronic Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan (eGov), Internet Archive copy. Requirements to photographs when drawing up identity documents (archived 4 February 2026) web.archive.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
  3. Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, via the Adilet legal database. Rules for public services on documentation and registration of the population (Russian) adilet.zan.kz. Checked 2 November 2026.
  4. Electronic Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan (eGov), Internet Archive copy. Replace national ID via eGov.kz and eGov Mobile app (archived 27 November 2025) web.archive.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
  5. Electronic Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan (eGov), Internet Archive copy. Obtaining an identity card and passport of Kazakhstan (archived 25 November 2025) web.archive.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
  6. Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Germany. Issuing a passport of a citizen of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Russian) gov.kz. Checked 2 November 2026.

Requirements can change, so always confirm with Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.

Cite this page

"Kazakhstan ID card photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/kazakhstan/id-card-photo

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