How to scan a passport to PDF (data page done right)

Visa applications, hotel check-ins, HR onboarding — everyone wants a copy of your passport, and they want the data page: the spread with your photo, details and the two machine-readable lines at the bottom. Here's how to produce a copy that gets accepted first time, without your passport touching anyone's server.

Scanning the data page

1. Open the passport flat on a dark, plain surface — the pale page pops against it.
2. Photograph it from directly above, both pages of the open book in frame, in good sideways light (near a window beats overhead lamps on glossy laminate).
3. Open ToPDF and pick the photo. The document is detected and cropped — and here's the nice part: if you photographed the whole open book, ToPDF finds the machine-readable zone and keeps just the data page, verifying it's the right half by actually reading the MRZ's check digits.
4. The page comes out upright with the holder's name suggested as the file name, read from the MRZ itself.
5. Tap Download PDF or Share.

Why the MRZ must survive intact

The two <<<-filled lines at the bottom are what border systems, airlines and many verification services actually read. A copy with the MRZ clipped or blurred often gets rejected. Check your PDF: both lines fully visible, all characters crisp. ToPDF pads its crops slightly outward specifically to protect these lines — but glare or a thumb over the corner can still cost you characters. (Curious what those lines encode? See what the MRZ is.)

Beating laminate glare

Passports are glossy. If a white streak washes out part of the page:

• Kill the overhead light or move away from it; use window light at an angle.
• Tilt the book a few degrees while keeping the camera square to it.
• Never use flash at point-blank range — it guarantees a hotspot.

Our glare guide goes deeper.

Handle the copy like the document

A passport scan is sensitive by nature. Scanning with an on-device tool means no third party ever holds it — but once you share the PDF, treat it with care: send only to the party that needs it, through a channel you trust, and delete stray copies from chat exports later. Full guidance: scanning passports safely and sharing ID copies.

Frequently asked questions

Do embassies accept phone-scanned passports?

Generally yes — requirements are about clarity and completeness, not the device. The whole data page must be visible, in colour, unedited, with the MRZ legible. Always check the specific checklist of the embassy or service.

Should I scan both open pages or just the data page?

Photograph the open book; ToPDF keeps the data page automatically when it can verify it via the MRZ. If a requester explicitly wants the full spread, re-crop to both pages with Adjust crop.

Is it safe to scan a passport with an online tool?

It is safe when the tool provably does not upload. ToPDF processes everything in your browser — the passport image never leaves your device. Avoid tools that process files on a server.