San Marino National ID Card Photo (Carta d'Identita Elettronica) — Get the Exact 35x45 mm Standard
Everything you need to know about the photo for San Marino's electronic ID card: the exact 35x45 mm ICAO standard, the white background rule, and why the picture is now taken on-site.
This photo must be taken by an accredited service
For this document, San Marino does not accept a self-prepared photo. By law it must be captured on site by an authorised service and submitted electronically, so we cannot produce a submittable file for it. The official specification is shown below so you know exactly what to expect at your appointment.
This photo is captured on site — but we can make your San Marino photos online:
A document photo is a headache of its own
A San Marino National ID card photo has strict requirements, and a mistake costs time and money. We’ll show you how to pass on the first try.
It gets rejected
Wrong size, background or cropping — and the system returns the application.
Expensive and slow
A trip to a photo studio means a queue, time and €7–12 for a reshoot.
Confusing requirements
Exact size, head height, light background, facial expression — easy to get wrong.
Redo it all over
Rejected — take another photo, pay and submit again. Round and round.
«Below are the exact requirements from the official source, so you arrive at your appointment prepared.»
Ordinary photo → ready for submission
We remove the background and clutter, set the framing and lighting — keeping your face without «beautifying».
Your face stays yours — we do not change features, only the background, lighting and framing.
Your National ID card photo: what matters
The photo for the San Marino Carta d'Identita Elettronica (CIE) — the electronic national ID card with an embedded microprocessor — must meet the international ICAO biometric standard used for machine-readable documents. The issuing authority is the Anagrafe (civil registry office) of the Republic of San Marino, and the document is valid for 5 years. This page explains exactly what a compliant image looks like so you know what to expect before your appointment.
The crucial peculiarity for San Marino is that, for the electronic ID card, the portrait is normally captured digitally on-site at the Anagrafe counter at the moment of the request. The only exception is children aged 0-5, for whom a printed fototessera must be brought in. This means an adult applicant generally cannot submit a downloaded or self-made photo for the CIE itself — the official capture happens at the office to guarantee the biometric quality the microprocessor requires. Knowing this in advance saves a wasted trip.
The official biometric specification is precise:
- Size: 35x45 mm (413x531 px)
- Background: plain white (#FFFFFF), evenly lit
- Face height: the face must fill 69-80% of the frame height
- Expression: neutral, mouth closed, eyes open and looking straight at the camera
- Glasses: permitted only if the eyes are fully visible, with no glare and no tinted lenses
- Headwear: not allowed except for genuine religious reasons, and the full face must stay visible
- Recency: must be a recent likeness, taken within the last 6 months
Common reasons photos are rejected in San Marino:
- Off-white, grey or coloured backgrounds, or visible shadows behind the head — only pure white is accepted
- The face is too small or too large in the frame, breaking the 69-80% biometric ratio required for the chip
- Reflections or tinted lenses on glasses that obscure the eyes, or a smile that opens the mouth
- Bringing a printed fototessera for an adult, when on-site digital capture is mandatory for the CIE
Our tool automatically crops your own picture to the exact 35x45 mm San Marino standard with a correct white background and biometric face sizing. Be aware: for the electronic ID card the Anagrafe requires the photo to be taken digitally on-site, so a self-made image is generally not accepted for submission. Use the result as a reliable reference to see precisely how a compliant photo must look, to prepare for your appointment, or for other personal and official uses where a standard portrait is needed.
What an accepted National ID card photo looks like
San Marino · 35 × 45 mm. Tap any requirement to see what it means on a real photo.
- Size
- 35 × 45 mm · 413 × 531 px
- Background
- White plain
- Head in frame
- 69–80%
- Glasses
- Allowed
- Facial expression
- Neutral, mouth closed
- Headwear
- Only for religious reasons
- File
- JPG · ≤ 2 MB
Print size is 35 × 45 mm and the digital file is 413 × 531 px.
Official requirements source: gov.sm, ambsanmarino.esteri.it
Requirements verified: 08.2026
How to take a good photo
The most common reasons a San Marino National ID card photo gets rejected — and how to avoid them. Compare good and bad shots.
1Format and freshness
A color photo taken no more than 6 months ago.
2Lighting and background
Even light with no shadows on the face; a plain light background, without glare.
3Head position
Face head-on, head centered, no tilt or turn.
4Facial expression
Neutral, mouth closed, eyes open and looking at the camera.
5Glasses and accessories
No glasses (especially sunglasses); eyes fully visible, without glare.
6Headwear
Only for religious reasons and not covering the face — the face fully visible.
7Clothing
Ordinary everyday clothes; no uniforms or face-covering clothing.
Common questions about San Marino National ID card photos
What size must a San Marino ID card photo be?
Can I submit my own self-made photo for the San Marino ID card?
What background colour is required?
Can I wear glasses in the photo?
How long is the San Marino electronic ID card valid?
Is a smiling photo accepted?
Your photo is protected
A photo is personal data, so we handle it carefully and in line with GDPR. We process it only to prepare the document and delete it within clear deadlines.
- Only with consentWe process the photo only after your explicit consent before upload.
- Auto-deletionWe delete the source photo within a day, the ready file after 7 days.
- No sharing with third partiesYour photos are not sold or used to train any third-party systems.
- Deletion on requestYou can ask to delete your data at any time — with a single request.