The article reviews the current status and challenges of hole-selective poly-silicon (p+) passivating contacts in silicon solar cells. Doped polysilicon passivating contacts are emerging as a key technology for the next generation of silicon solar cells due to their excellent performance and compatibility with existing passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) technology. However, the current solar cell architecture based on rear-side electron-selective (n+) poly-Si contacts is approaching its practical limit of efficiency (~26%) in mass production. To realize the full potential of passivating contacts, both electron-selective (n+) and hole-selective (p+) poly-Si contacts are necessary. While studies on both types of contacts have been conducted simultaneously, significant performance differences have emerged. Phosphorus-doped poly-Si contacts consistently outperform boron-doped counterparts, with lower recombination current density (J0) values (1–5 fA/cm² vs 7–15 fA/cm²). This discrepancy is attributed to inadequate optimization of p+ poly-Si contacts and fundamental limitations related to boron doping, such as boron segregation into the interfacial oxide layers, compromising interfacial oxide integrity and reducing chemical passivation effectiveness. The review critically examines the progress of p+ poly-Si contacts, characterized by cell efficiency and J0 values, identifies existing challenges, and explores potential solutions. Key challenges include boron-induced damage in SiOx interlayers, poor passivation on textured surfaces, amorphization during in situ doping, and limited compatibility with screen-printed fire-through metallization processes. Mitigation strategies discussed include using alternative dopants like gallium (Ga), employing multilayer configurations, pre-annealing, and optimizing metallization techniques. The review also highlights the importance of controlling dopant in-diffusion and the impact of surface morphology on passivation performance. The future outlook suggests that high-quality p+ poly-Si passivating contacts can significantly reduce recombination losses, thereby improving cell efficiency. The article concludes by emphasizing the need for further research and optimization to overcome the challenges and realize the full potential of p+ poly-Si passivating contacts in silicon solar cells.The article reviews the current status and challenges of hole-selective poly-silicon (p+) passivating contacts in silicon solar cells. Doped polysilicon passivating contacts are emerging as a key technology for the next generation of silicon solar cells due to their excellent performance and compatibility with existing passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) technology. However, the current solar cell architecture based on rear-side electron-selective (n+) poly-Si contacts is approaching its practical limit of efficiency (~26%) in mass production. To realize the full potential of passivating contacts, both electron-selective (n+) and hole-selective (p+) poly-Si contacts are necessary. While studies on both types of contacts have been conducted simultaneously, significant performance differences have emerged. Phosphorus-doped poly-Si contacts consistently outperform boron-doped counterparts, with lower recombination current density (J0) values (1–5 fA/cm² vs 7–15 fA/cm²). This discrepancy is attributed to inadequate optimization of p+ poly-Si contacts and fundamental limitations related to boron doping, such as boron segregation into the interfacial oxide layers, compromising interfacial oxide integrity and reducing chemical passivation effectiveness. The review critically examines the progress of p+ poly-Si contacts, characterized by cell efficiency and J0 values, identifies existing challenges, and explores potential solutions. Key challenges include boron-induced damage in SiOx interlayers, poor passivation on textured surfaces, amorphization during in situ doping, and limited compatibility with screen-printed fire-through metallization processes. Mitigation strategies discussed include using alternative dopants like gallium (Ga), employing multilayer configurations, pre-annealing, and optimizing metallization techniques. The review also highlights the importance of controlling dopant in-diffusion and the impact of surface morphology on passivation performance. The future outlook suggests that high-quality p+ poly-Si passivating contacts can significantly reduce recombination losses, thereby improving cell efficiency. The article concludes by emphasizing the need for further research and optimization to overcome the challenges and realize the full potential of p+ poly-Si passivating contacts in silicon solar cells.