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SSC Photo Maker — Photo + Signature for CGL, CHSL, MTS, GD (2026 OTR Spec)

Free SSC photo and signature maker matching the post-Feb-2024 OTR portal spec — 3.5×4.5 cm at 275×354 px under 50 KB photo, 140×60 px under 20 KB signature. Two tabs, one tool, hardcoded specs.

SSC Photo & Signature Requirements
SpecPhotoSignature
Dimensions275 × 354 px (3.5 × 4.5 cm)140 × 60 px (4 cm)
File Size20–50 KB10–20 KB
FormatJPEG (.jpg)JPEG (.jpg)
BackgroundLight / WhiteWhite
SSC Photo: 275×354px (3.5×4.5 cm), 20–50KB, JPEG, white background — matches post-Feb-2024 OTR spec
Upload your photo
JPG, PNG, or WebP

SSC Photo & Signature Specs — All Exams Compared

The photo spec is identical across every SSC exam, but signature width varies — CGL, MTS, GD, JE, CPO all use 4 cm wide signatures (140×60 px); CHSL and Stenographer use 6 cm wide (236×79 px). Background strictness also differs — GD demands pure white; other exams allow light grey. Full comparison below.

ExamPhotoPhoto KBSignatureSig. KBBackgroundNotes
SSC CGL3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB4×2 cm, 140×60 px10–20 KBWhite / light greyBlack or blue ink
SSC CHSL3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB6×2 cm, 236×79 px10–20 KBWhite / light grey6 cm wide signature variant
SSC MTS3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB6×2 cm, 236×79 px (some notifs 4 cm)10–20 KBWhite / light greySignature width varies by year
SSC GD Constable3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB4×2 cm, 140×60 px10–20 KBStrict white onlyStrictest bg enforcement
SSC JE3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB4×2 cm, 140×60 px10–20 KBWhite / light greySame as CGL
SSC CPO3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB4×2 cm, 140×60 px10–20 KBWhite / light greySame as CGL
SSC Stenographer3.5×4.5 cm, 275×354 px20–50 KB6×2 cm, 236×79 px10–20 KBWhite / light grey6 cm signature variant

All SSC exams use JPEG format only, photo taken within 3 months, no cap or dark glasses, plain white paper signature with black or blue ink. The tool above defaults to the CGL/MTS/GD/JE/CPO signature variant (140×60 px) — for CHSL or Stenographer, request a 236×79 px output manually or use the dedicated signature resizer with custom dimensions.

Top 12 Reasons SSC Photos Get Rejected

The SSC OTR portal's automated validator is stricter than the pre-2024 system — wrong KB, wrong aspect, or wrong background triggers instant rejection. Roughly 50,000 applications were rejected in the 2024 cycle for photo issues alone. The most common causes, in order:

  1. Photo file size outside 20–50 KB band — most common rejection. Even 1 KB over the cap triggers instant failure. Target 30–45 KB for safety.
  2. Wrong aspect ratio — square or landscape photos rejected. Must be portrait 3.5:4.5 (7:9). Phone photos default to 3:4 — need cropping.
  3. Coloured or patterned background — blue, red, sky-blue studio backdrops, kitchen, posters, bookshelves all auto-rejected. Plain white only.
  4. Cap, hat, or dark glasses — auto-rejected on every SSC exam. Religious head covering allowed if face from chin to forehead fully visible.
  5. Glare on clear spectacles obscuring eyes — even clear glasses get rejected if reflections hide your irises. Remove glasses for the photo.
  6. Photo older than 3 months — flagged on biometric verification at exam centre. Re-take if your last photo is older.
  7. Blurred, pixelated, or low-light photo — automated quality check rejects. Shoot in good daylight.
  8. Face below 70% or above 85% of frame — head-and-shoulders framing required. Too small (full body) or too zoomed-in both fail.
  9. Signature in pencil or red ink — only black or blue ink accepted. Pencil, red, green, gel-pen smear all rejected.
  10. Signature outside 10–20 KB band — same band rejection as photo. Target 14–18 KB.
  11. PNG, HEIC, or non-JPEG format — only JPG/JPEG accepted. iPhone HEIC and PNG screenshots are silently rejected. Always convert to JPEG first.
  12. Filename with special characters — use simple alphanumeric only. Special characters like spaces, commas, brackets can cause upload errors on the OTR portal.
Read the full guide
SSC CGL Photo Requirements 2026: A Complete Guide

How to Use

  1. 1. Pick Photo or Signature tab

    Switch between the two — photo tab outputs 275×354 px (3.5×4.5 cm) under 50 KB; signature tab outputs 140×60 px under 20 KB. Both use the post-Feb-2024 SSC OTR spec.

  2. 2. Upload and crop

    Upload your photo or signature, then use the aspect-ratio-locked crop guide to select the right area. The tool enforces 7:9 for photo and 7:3 for signature automatically.

  3. 3. Download SSC-ready file

    The spec checklist confirms every SSC requirement (dimensions, format, file size). Download — output is JPEG ready for SSC OTR upload.

Why Use This Tool

Every SSC exam — CGL, CHSL, MTS, GD Constable, JE, CPO, Stenographer — requires a photo and signature uploaded to the One-Time Registration portal at ssc.gov.in. Getting either one wrong means your application stalls or gets rejected during the OTR Correction Window. This tool has both specifications hardcoded to the post-Feb-2024 OTR spec — no guessing dimensions, no trial-and-error with file sizes.

What changed in February 2024 — the SSC portal migration

On February 17, 2024, SSC migrated from the legacy ssc.nic.in portal to a redesigned ssc.gov.in portal and introduced One-Time Registration (OTR). The canonical photo dimension changed from the old 100×120 px to 3.5×4.5 cm at 200×230 or 275×354 px. The OTR validator is significantly stricter — wrong KB, wrong aspect ratio, wrong background colour now trigger instant rejection. Coaching sites and tools that still cite the 100×120 px spec are using outdated copy from the legacy portal — uploading a 100×120 px photo to the new portal results in immediate failure because the file size typically falls below the 20 KB floor. This tool outputs at 275×354 px, which the OTR validator accepts and which matches the physical 3.5×4.5 cm passport-photo aspect ratio (7:9) exactly.

SSC One-Time Registration (OTR) workflow

OTR is mandatory before applying for any SSC exam. You upload your photo and signature once, and they auto-populate into every subsequent CGL/CHSL/MTS/GD/JE/CPO/Stenographer application. The OTR Correction Window (most recently reopened August 14, 2025) lets you re-upload if your photo gets rejected or expires (the 3-month recency rule). Practical advice: upload through OTR using this tool's output, and re-upload every 3 months if you're applying continuously. The same OTR photo+signature pair works across every SSC exam with the one exception that CHSL and Stenographer use a wider 6 cm signature.

Live photo capture — the MySSC app rule

Since March 2024, SSC also requires a live webcam or MySSC mobile app photo captureat the application step itself, in addition to the OTR photo upload. The OTR photo is used for the application form display and the printed admit card; the live-capture photo is what the exam-day biometric matcher uses to verify your identity at the centre. Selfies at arm's length often fail the AI face-match at exam centres because of distance distortion — use a webcam from 50 cm away, or have someone else hold the phone at 1.5 m distance and capture the live photo for you. This tool still matters because the OTR upload is required first; the live capture happens during the application after OTR.

SSC photo capture best practices

Background: plain white wall or A4 paper taped to the wall — never coloured backdrops. Lighting: soft diffuse daylight from a window at 90° to your face, no overhead fluorescent (yellow cast), no direct sun (harsh shadow). Framing:head-and-shoulders, face covers 70–85% of the frame, eyes one third from the top. Camera: rear camera of a smartphone from 1.5 m distance (not arm-length selfie which distorts faces). Expression: neutral, mouth closed, eyes open, looking directly at the lens. Clothing: dark or coloured solid clothing (white blends with white background). Avoid hair covering ears, glare on glasses, or any accessory covering the head or face.

The one per-exam difference — signature width

Photo spec is unified across all seven SSC exams (CGL, CHSL, MTS, GD, JE, CPO, Stenographer) at 3.5×4.5 cm / 20–50 KB. Signature width is the only thing that varies: CGL, MTS (some years), GD, JE, CPO use 4 cm wide signature (~140×60 px); CHSL and Stenographer use 6 cm wide signature (~236×79 px). Both variants share the 10–20 KB file size cap and the JPEG + black/blue ink rule. This tool defaults to the 4 cm variant since that covers the majority of SSC exams. For CHSL or Stenographer applications, use our dedicated signature resizer with 236×79 px custom dimensions.

Glasses, headwear, date stamp — recent rule changes

Glasses: discouraged but not auto-rejected for clear lenses without glare. Dark or tinted lenses auto-rejected. Best practice: remove glasses for the photo. Religious head covering: turban, hijab, kippah, dupatta worn for daily religious practice are explicitly allowed; face from chin to forehead must be fully visible. Cap: not allowed. Date stamp: no longer mandatory for SSC since 2024 — the requirement was replaced with a declaration checkbox during the application. UPSC still requires stamped name + date; SSC does not.

Free, no signup, no watermarks, no ads inside the tool, processes everything locally in your browser. Built specifically for the post-February-2024 SSC OTR spec — output ready for upload to ssc.gov.in without any further processing.

Instant Results

Runs entirely in your browser. No waiting in queues, no server round-trips — output appears the moment you act.

Private by Design

Your files and text never leave your device. Nothing is uploaded, stored, or logged on any server.

Free, No Signup

Use every feature without an account, watermark, or paywall. Open the page and start working.

Frequently Asked Questions

As of the post-Feb-2024 OTR migration, the SSC photo must be 3.5×4.5 cm at 200×230 or 275×354 px in JPEG format, between 20 KB and 50 KB, with a plain white or very light background. The signature must be 4 cm wide × 2 cm tall at 140×60 px in JPEG, between 10 KB and 20 KB, with black or blue ink on white paper. CHSL and Stenographer notifications sometimes specify a 6 cm wide signature (~236×79 px) — check your exam notification. This tool defaults to 275×354 px photo + 140×60 px signature, matching what the SSC OTR uploader validates.
Yes. The old ssc.nic.in portal used a 100×120 px photo spec. When SSC migrated to ssc.gov.in on February 17, 2024 and introduced One-Time Registration (OTR), the canonical dimension changed to 3.5×4.5 cm at 200×230 or 275×354 px. The OTR portal's automated validator also became stricter — wrong KB, wrong aspect ratio, or wrong background now produces instant rejection. Coaching sites that still mention 100×120 px have outdated copy. If you used a 100×120 px photo against the new portal, expect rejection.
Photo spec is unified across all SSC exams — 3.5×4.5 cm, 20–50 KB, JPG, white background. Signature width varies by exam: CGL, MTS, GD, CPO, JE all use 4 cm wide signature (~140×60 px). CHSL 2025 and Stenographer 2024 notifications specify 6 cm wide signature (~236×79 px). All variants use 10–20 KB JPG, black or blue ink. Background strictness also varies — GD Constable demands pure white; CGL/CHSL/MTS are more lenient on light grey but white is universally safe.
SSC One-Time Registration (OTR) launched on the new ssc.gov.in portal in February 2024. Candidates upload photo and signature ONCE during OTR; the same files auto-populate into every subsequent CGL, CHSL, MTS, GD, JE application. The OTR Correction Window (most recently reopened August 14, 2025) lets you re-upload if rejected or if your photo expires. The OTR uploader's automated validator is stricter than per-exam validators — file naming, format, KB band, aspect ratio, and background uniformity all checked instantly.
Yes — since the March 2024 SSC portal redesign, applications require a live webcam or MySSC mobile app photo capture at the application step. The uploaded OTR photo is used for application-form display and the printed admit card, but the live-capture photo is the one the exam-day biometric matcher uses to verify your identity at the centre. Selfies arm-length distance often cause AI face-match mismatches at exam centres — use a webcam or have someone else hold the phone at 1.5 m distance.
White is universally safe across all SSC exams. SSC GD Constable enforces pure white (#FFFFFF) strictly — light grey, cream, or off-white triggers rejection. CGL, CHSL, MTS are more lenient and will accept light grey or very pale neutral backgrounds. Coloured studio backdrops (blue, red, sky-blue) are auto-rejected on all SSC exams. The safest practice: shoot against a plain white wall or a sheet of A4 paper, in diffuse daylight without shadow.
Discouraged but not auto-rejected for clear glasses without glare. Dark sunglasses or tinted lenses are auto-rejected on every SSC exam. The bigger risk with clear glasses is reflection or glare hiding your eyes — the OTR validator and human verifiers reject photos where the iris is obscured. Best practice: remove glasses for the photo. If medically necessary, ensure no glare and that both eyes are clearly visible.
No — the date-on-photo requirement was relaxed in most 2024-2025 SSC notifications, replaced by a declaration checkbox during the application. Some older guides still call this mandatory; it is not. UPSC still requires name + date stamped on the photo, but SSC does not. If you want to stamp the date for legacy compatibility, use our separate add-name-date-on-photo tool.
Most common reasons: (1) Wrong pixel dimensions or aspect ratio — must be 3.5:4.5 portrait at 200–275 px wide; landscape or square fails. (2) Background not pure white (cream, beige, grey on GD exam, coloured studio). (3) HEIC format from iPhone — convert to JPEG first. (4) Photo older than 3 months — flagged on biometric verification. (5) Face under 70% of frame or above 85%. (6) Cap, dark glasses, or face partially covered. (7) Signature uploaded as PNG instead of JPG. (8) Filename contains special characters — use simple alphanumeric only.
SSC notifications require the photo to be taken within 3 months of the application date. The OTR photo is reused across all subsequent SSC exams, so practically: re-upload via the OTR Correction Window every 3 months if you are applying continuously, or before each new exam application if your last upload is older. Exam-day biometric verification compares the uploaded photo against your live appearance — significantly old photos can flag you for disqualification.
Technically the dimensions are similar (3.5×4.5 cm white background), but in practice no — Aadhaar photos are stored at lower resolution and are typically older than 3 months. The SSC OTR validator may pass an Aadhaar-style photo on file-size grounds, but exam-day biometric verification will flag you if the photo no longer matches your current appearance. Always upload a fresh photo within the last 3 months specifically for SSC.
No — all processing happens entirely in your browser using the Canvas API. Your photo and signature never leave your device, never reach any server, never get logged. You can verify this by disconnecting from the internet after the page loads — the tool continues to work offline.

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