You upload your photo to the SSC or IBPS portal, click submit, and the page throws it back: "Photo is not as per specification." No detail, no reason — just a red error and a closing deadline. The good news: portals reject for a small, predictable set of reasons, and every one has a quick fix. Here's the full list.
1. The file size is wrong — too big or too small
This is the single most common rejection. Exam portals specify a band, not just a ceiling — SSC wants the photo between 20 and 50 KB, the signature between 10 and 20 KB. A 2 MB phone photo is rejected for being too large; a heavily compressed 12 KB one is rejected for being too small. Most people only fix the "too big" half and get caught by the floor.
Fix: use a resizer that targets the exact band, not just a maximum. Pick your exam from the exam requirements directory — for example the SSC CGL resizer or IBPS PO resizer — and it lands your file inside the band automatically.
2. The pixel dimensions or aspect ratio don't match
Portals check width × height, not just KB. SSC expects roughly 350×450 px (a 3.5:4.5 ratio); a square crop or a landscape selfie is rejected even at the right file size. Cropping your face out of a wider photo usually leaves the wrong shape.
Fix: the exam resizers above keep the correct dimensions and never shrink below the portal's pixel minimum — so the shape is right and the photo isn't too small to read.
3. The signature has paper or shadow behind it
Signature uploads are rejected when the scan shows the grey of the paper, a shadow, or a coloured background instead of clean ink on white. Portals expect a crisp black-or-blue signature on a plain white field.
Fix: clean it before uploading. The signature tool removes the paper background, trims the empty space around your signature, and compresses it into the required KB band in one step.
4. The wrong file format
Nearly every Indian portal wants JPG/JPEG. A PNG, a WebP, or an iPhone HEIC file is rejected at upload — and phones now shoot HEIC by default, so this catches a lot of people without warning.
Fix: our tools output JPG automatically. If you have a HEIC or PNG from elsewhere, the format converter turns it into a clean JPG first.
5. Missing name and date on the photo
UPSC, the Indian Army and a few others require your name and the date the photo was taken to be printed on the photo itself. A perfectly sized photo without that text is rejected at document verification.
Fix: add it cleanly with the name & date photo tool — no Photoshop needed. (We wrote a step-by-step guide for this one.)
6. The background or the photo itself
A non-white background, heavy shadows, glasses glare, a smiling expression, or an old/blurry photo will fail a manual check even when the file specs are perfect. These can't be fixed by resizing — they need a better source photo (plain wall, even light, neutral face).
The reliable order of operations
To avoid the back-and-forth entirely, prepare the file before you open the form:
- Take a clear, front-facing photo against a plain, evenly lit wall.
- Run it through your exam's resizer so the size, KB band and format are all correct at once.
- Clean and size your signature the same way.
- Add name and date if your exam requires it.
Everything runs entirely in your browser — your photo and signature are never uploaded to a server. Find your exact requirement in the exam requirements directory, each linked to the official notification so you can confirm before you submit.