Portugal citizen card photo requirements
The 35 × 45 mm photo rules set by Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado for the Portugal citizen card, with the official wording and sources.
Quick answer
What size is the Portugal citizen card photo?
You do not need a printed photo for a Cartão de Cidadão. Your picture and fingerprints are captured at an IRN counter, Loja do Cidadão or consulate, and automatic renewal reuses the photo already on file. The exception is a baby's first card: parents send a colour JPEG of the child's face, taken from the front at 60 to 80 cm on a light, neutral background, with no one holding the child.
The Cartão de Cidadão is the identity card of Portuguese citizens, issued by the Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (IRN). It must be requested within 20 days of birth, is valid for five years up to age 25 and for ten years after that, and also serves as a travel document within the EU and the Schengen area. Since 11 June 2024 a redesigned card with a larger photo has been issued to meet EU Regulation 2019/1157; older cards remain valid until they expire.
The photo is not something you bring. Portaria 286/2017, republished in June 2024, sets the technical rules for capturing the facial image and fingerprints at the services that receive card requests. The image follows ISO/IEC 19794-5 and ICAO guidance and must be at least 240 x 320 pixels with 120 pixels between the centres of the eyes. The capture software straightens the image, adjusts face size, contrast and brightness and removes the background. The same regulation lets the equipment scan a passport-type print and take a picture on the spot when there is none to scan.
Portugal citizen card photo size and specifications
The requirements as published by Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado:[1]
| Print size | No print needed: captured at the counter. The capture scanners can also read passport-type prints up to 35 x 45 mm |
|---|---|
| Digital size | Counter capture: at least 240 x 320 pixels. Baby online request: JPEG attachment up to 5 MB |
| Background | Baby photo: neutral and light-coloured; at the counter the capture software removes the background |
| Colour | Colour |
| File size | Baby online request: attachments up to 5 MB each |
| File format | Baby photo: JPEG |
| Pixels when printed | 413 × 531 px at 300 dpi · 827 × 1063 px at 600 dpi (calculated) |
In the official words
Exact wording from the official sources, quoted because the details matter:
até 45 mm x 35 mm, segundo as recomendações ICAO
Key requirements
- Captured where you apply
Adults are photographed at the service point: an IRN registry counter, a Loja do Cidadão, an Espaço Cidadão or a Portuguese consulate. The capture standard checks contrast, the area taken up by the face and the visibility of the eyes against ICAO recommendations.
- Automatic renewal keeps the old photo
From age 25, automatic renewal issues the new card with the same photograph and biographical data. It is offered only if your photo and fingerprints were updated at the previous renewal.
- New capture every five years until 25
Up to age 25 the card lasts five years and the biometric data must be updated each time, so young people renew in person at a counter rather than online.
- A new photo means renewing
The IRN lists wanting to change the printed photo or signature as a reason to renew. The online route covers changes of surname, address and contact details, not the picture.
- Parents supply a baby's photo
When the mother, father or another person with parental responsibility asks for a child's card, a digital photo of the child's face is enough. The online request for babies under one attaches it to the birth registration.
- Baby photo framing
Colour, taken from the front 60 to 80 cm away, centred and sharp, on a neutral light background, with a neutral expression: no frown and mouth closed. Under one, the baby may lie on a white or light blanket and may have eyes closed.
- Nothing else in the baby picture
No prop or support behind the child, no other person holding them, no reflections or shadows on the face or background, and no accessories such as a bonnet or headband.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Book an appointment or take an online ticket for an IRN service point.
- Renew in person if you want a new photo on your card.
- Photograph a baby from the front, 60 to 80 cm away.
- Lay a baby under one on a white or light-coloured blanket.
- Attach the baby photo as a JPEG to the online birth and card request.
- Check that your last renewal updated your photo and fingerprints before relying on automatic renewal.
Don't
- Do not expect online renewal to replace an outdated photo.
- Do not let anyone hold the baby in the picture.
- Do not put a bonnet, headband or other accessory on the baby.
- Do not leave shadows or reflections on the face or background.
- Do not wait for automatic renewal if you are under 25.
Sample photos
How a Portugal citizen card photo should look, and the mistakes that most often get photos rejected. Each example is drawn to this document's 35 × 45 mm and background colour.
Illustrations, not real photos. The official rules above always take priority; some documents do not allow glasses at all.
Babies and children
The card must be requested within 20 days of birth, and a first card for a child up to one year old is free. For a baby under one, the parents can register the birth and request the first card online, signing in with the Chave Móvel Digital or a citizen card in a reader, and attach a photo of the child's face. The service also covers babies born in 58 other countries, provided Portuguese nationality is requested at the same time; both parents have to make the online request.
From the age of one, the first card has to be requested at an IRN counter. The government's guide for new parents says that when a parent asks for the card, a digital photo of the child's face, handed over by email or another convenient means during the appointment, is enough. The child should be upright, or lying on a light blanket if under one, with no accessories, props or other people in view. The Macau and Hong Kong consulate asks that children under 12 come with a parent.
Printed and digital photos
Adults hand in no print in the normal process. The image is captured digitally at the service point, by fixed equipment or by the mobile kits used for home visits, checked against ICAO quality criteria and then printed on the card. Annex III of the capture regulation still allows the scanner to read a passport-type print of up to 45 x 35 mm, height first, with a photo taken on the spot if there is no print or the scan is not good enough. The Macau and Hong Kong consulate's document list asks for identity papers and copies, but no photo.
The digital route is for babies. Parents take the picture themselves and attach it to the online request as a JPEG; the form accepts attachments of up to 5 MB. Because no one at a counter checks it first, compare it with the framing and lighting rules before you send it.
Where to submit the photo
Apply or renew in person at an IRN registry counter, a Loja do Cidadão, an Espaço Cidadão, a Loja RIAC in the Azores or a Portuguese consulate abroad. People who cannot travel to a counter can ask for the external service, in which an IRN worker goes to them. From age 25 you can renew online with the Chave Móvel Digital or a card reader if the card is still valid or expired less than 30 days ago, or let automatic renewal start 60 days before expiry, with delivery to your home.
Cards requested in person are collected at the counter with the PIN letter posted to your address. At the Macau and Hong Kong consulate the card is handed over without an appointment and must be collected within a year of the request.
How to get your Portugal citizen card photo
- Check the official requirements. Read the official specification for the Portugal citizen card: 35 × 45 mm print, 240 × 320 px digital file, baby photo: neutral and light-coloured background. Check the rules on pose, expression, glasses and headwear below.
- Take the photo. Follow the key requirements: captured where you apply; automatic renewal keeps the old photo; new capture every five years until 25; a new photo means renewing.
- Prepare a print or digital file. Adults hand in no print in the normal process. The image is captured digitally at the service point, by fixed equipment or by the mobile kits used for home visits, checked against ICAO quality criteria and then printed on the card.
- Submit the photo with your application. Apply or renew in person at an IRN registry counter, a Loja do Cidadão, an Espaço Cidadão, a Loja RIAC in the Azores or a Portuguese consulate abroad. People who cannot travel to a counter can ask for the external service, in which an IRN worker goes to them.
Portugal citizen card photo FAQ
No. Your picture and fingerprints are captured at the IRN counter, Loja do Cidadão or consulate where you apply. The capture rules in Portaria 286/2017 require an ICAO-quality image of at least 240 x 320 pixels. The exception is a baby's first card, for which the parents supply a digital photo.
There is no print size to meet, because the picture is taken digitally when you apply. The capture equipment works to a minimum of 240 x 320 pixels and can scan passport-type prints of up to 35 x 45 mm. The card model issued since June 2024 prints a larger photo than before.
No. Online renewal, open from age 25, lets you change surnames, address and contact details, and automatic renewal reuses the same photo. The IRN lists changing the printed photo as a reason to renew, so renew in person when you want a new picture.
A colour JPEG of the baby's face, taken from the front at 60 to 80 cm, centred and sharp, on a neutral light background with a neutral expression. Under one, the baby may lie on a white or light blanket with eyes closed. No one may hold the child, and there must be no props, shadows, reflections or accessories.
Up to 25 the card is valid for five years and the biometric data must be updated every five years, so the photo and fingerprints are captured again at a counter. Online and automatic renewal are available from 25, when the card becomes valid for ten years.
Yes. Portuguese consulates in many countries take requests and renewals and hand over the card. Their checklists ask for identity documents and copies rather than photos; Macau and Hong Kong, for example, asks for the applicant's identity card, a local photo ID and copies on A4 paper.
You do not need to supply one either way. The electronic passport also has its picture captured when you apply, at the same IRN counters and consulates, and the passport request only asks you to show a valid citizen card or identity card.
Related photo specifications
Other Portugal documents
- Passport photo
- Visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- ID card photo 240 × 320 px
Citizenship and naturalisation nearby
- Belarus citizenship photo 30 × 40 mm
- Ireland irish citizenship (naturalisation) photo 715 × 951 px
- United Kingdom british citizenship (naturalisation) photo 45 × 35 mm
Also 35 × 45 mm
- Afghanistan visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria ID card photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria residence permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Algeria work permit photo 35 × 45 mm
- Andorra passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Anguilla passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Antigua and Barbuda passport photo 35 × 45 mm
- Armenia visa photo 35 × 45 mm
- All Portugal photo specifications
- Citizenship and naturalisation: photo rules by country
- Every document that uses a 35 × 45 mm photo
- Photo specifications in Europe
Official sources
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado. Cartão de Cidadão (novo modelo e perguntas) irn.justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Cartão de Cidadão justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Renovar o Cartão de Cidadão justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Renovar online o Cartão de Cidadão justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Renovação automática do Cartão de Cidadão com entrega em casa justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Registar nascimento justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça). Guia: como pedir online o registo de nascimento e o primeiro Cartão de Cidadão de um recém-nascido justica.gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- gov.pt (Agência para a Modernização Administrativa). Ter uma criança: registo de nascimento, Cartão de Cidadão e passaporte gov.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Diário da República. Portaria n.º 169/2024/1 (republishes Portaria n.º 286/2017, Annex III) files.diariodarepublica.pt. Checked 2 November 2026.
- Consulado Geral de Portugal em Macau e Hong Kong. Cartão de Cidadão cgportugal.org. Checked 2 November 2026.
Requirements can change, so always confirm with Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado before you apply. WorldPhotoSpecs is independent and not affiliated with any government.
Cite this page
"Portugal citizen card photo". WorldPhotoSpecs. Last updated 4 November 2026. https://worldphotospecs.org/portugal/citizen-card-photo