Poland Residence Card Photo (Karta Pobytu) — 684×883 px for the MOS Portal

Applying for a Poland temporary residence card (karta pobytu czasowego, sometimes abbreviated TRC) — or the permanent residence card, which shares the same photo rule? Upload a recent, front-facing photo and IDPhotoBy sizes and crops it to Poland's official 35×45 mm standard, checks your background against the required uniform light colour, and delivers a digital file ready to upload to the MOS portal — at least 684×883 pixels — with the Poland temporary residence card document already selected. Since 27 April 2026, this application is submitted exclusively electronically through Poland's MOS (Moduł Obsługi Spraw) system — there is no printed-photo channel for the general case.

The photo requirement for a Poland residence card is set out by the Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration (MSWiA) under the Act on Foreigners (ustawa o cudzoziemcach). Check your photo against this list:

• Colour photo, 35×45 mm — 35 mm wide by 45 mm high (3.5×4.5 cm), undamaged and of good sharpness, taken no earlier than 6 months before you apply.
• Whole head and upper shoulders — the photo shows the top of the head down to the upper part of the shoulders, with your face taking up 70–80% of the photo.
• Uniform light background — a single, evenly lit, light-coloured background ('na jednolitym jasnym tle'). That is a genuinely different word from the plain white background Poland's passport and ID card require — see below.
• Frontal position — looking straight ahead, eyes open and not obscured by hair.
• Natural facial expression, mouth closed — a natural look, not the stricter neutral, no-facial-gestures rule used on some of Poland's other documents.
• Eyes and pupils clearly visible, with the eye line parallel to the top edge of the photo.
• Natural skin colour reproduced, without colour correction.

The Poland residence card photo size is 35×45 mm — that is 3.5×4.5 cm, or about 1.38×1.77 inches — with your face at 70–80% of that height.

Because the application is filed through the MOS portal, the deliverable is a single JPG file at a resolution of at least 684×883 pixels (width × height) and a file size not exceeding 2.5 MB, keeping the same proportions as the 35×45 mm photo. IDPhotoBy outputs exactly that: a 684×883 px JPEG that keeps the required proportions, ready to attach to your MOS application.

Since MOS (Moduł Obsługi Spraw) went live on 27 April 2026, this application is submitted only electronically through the MOS portal — the deliverable is the single JPG file described above, not a printed photo. The competent voivode (Wojewoda) covering your area decides your application, under the Act on Foreigners — a different authority and legal basis from the Polish passport and ID card, which MSWiA decides under separate legislation.

A narrow set of specific categories — for example intra-corporate-transfer work permits, or family-reunification applications where the foreigner is abroad — still file on paper, under the previous rules. This page prepares the digital photo for the general, electronic MOS channel most applicants use.

Poland's temporary residence card and permanent residence card (karta pobytu stałego) are decided under related but separate regulations — yet both share a word-for-word identical photo requirement: the same 35×45 mm size, 6-month recency rule, 70–80% face ratio, uniform light background, natural-expression-and-closed-mouth rule, and MOS digital format (JPG, at least 684×883 px, up to 2.5 MB). If you are applying for either card, the photo you prepare here meets the same requirement.

IDPhotoBy has separate pages for a Poland passport photo and a Poland ID card photo — this page is for the residence card (karta pobytu) specifically, decided by the voivode under the Act on Foreigners, not by MSWiA under the passport or ID-card legislation.

The photo rules differ in two genuine ways: this document's background must be a uniform light colour, not the plain white background the passport and ID card require, and this document asks for a natural facial expression with a closed mouth, not the strict neutral, no-facial-gestures rule used on those other documents. Do not assume either sibling document's rule applies here.

• Upload a recent, well-lit, front-facing photo — the Poland temporary residence card document is already selected.
• IDPhotoBy resizes and crops your photo to 35×45 mm with your face at 70–80% of the frame, and checks that your background is a uniform, evenly lit light colour.
• Preview the result — check the size, the background, and that your eyes are clearly visible with a natural expression and closed mouth.
• Download the finished 684×883 px JPEG file, ready to attach to your MOS application.

The tool also works as a size checker for a photo you already have. There is no app to download — it runs online in your browser.

IDPhotoBy sizes and crops the photo you upload to the Poland residence card's 35×45 mm standard and checks your background against the required uniform light colour. It does not retouch, beautify or otherwise edit your face, and it does not add or swap backgrounds as a marketed feature — a clear, unedited, recent likeness reproducing your natural skin colour is what the rules ask for.

We make no acceptance promise: no online tool can honestly guarantee a photo will be accepted — the voivode's office reviewing your application makes that decision.

• A background that isn't uniform or isn't light. A patterned, dark or shadowed background does not meet the rule — but you do not need pure white; any uniform light colour works for this document.
• An old photo. It must be taken within the last 6 months.
• A forced neutral or overly serious expression. This document asks for a natural expression with a closed mouth, not a strict no-gestures rule.
• Trying to bring a printed photo. Since 27 April 2026, this document's application is submitted only electronically through MOS — a printed photo is not the deliverable for the general case.
• The wrong size or resolution. The digital file must be at least 684×883 px, up to 2.5 MB, keeping 35×45 mm proportions.

Requirements can change, and a narrow set of application categories still file on paper under the previous rules — check the official MOS portal and your voivodeship office's instructions before you submit; they are the final authority.