Convert PDF to PDF/A, the archive format courts, governments and universities ask for. Pick PDF/A-1b, 2b or 3b, and every font and a colour profile are packed into the file so it looks the same decades from now. Scanned pages? Make them searchable with OCR PDF first, and use Merge PDF to file everything as one document.
Every file gets the same PDF/A level and colour setting.
The checks above are a quick self-check, not a formal validation. If your archive or court wants a validation report, run the file through veraPDF (free and open source, at verapdf.org).
No PDF at hand? Try a sample for the archives - it uses fonts that are not embedded, exactly the kind of thing PDF/A fixes.
| Level | Based on | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| PDF/A-1b | PDF 1.4 (2005) | No transparency or layers - those get flattened. Pick it only when it is asked for by name. |
| PDF/A-2b | PDF 1.7 (2011) | Keeps transparency, layers and JPEG 2000. The safe default for archives and e-filing. |
| PDF/A-3b | PDF 1.7 (2012) | Same as 2b, but other files may be attached - the base of ZUGFeRD and Factur-X e-invoices. |
Not sure? Look for the words "PDF/A" in the upload rules of the portal you are filing with. If no level is named, PDF/A-2b is the one to send.
Courts that accept electronic filings, national and state archives, land registries and many public tenders ask for PDF/A, because the file must still open in decades.
Universities often want theses in PDF/A, and e-invoice formats such as ZUGFeRD and Factur-X are built on PDF/A-3. Writing in Word? Save the document with Word to PDF first, then convert it here.
Have paper pages? Scan them, run OCR PDF so the text is searchable, and finish with PDF/A. Files too big for the portal? Try Compress PDF before converting - compressing afterwards can break the PDF/A rules.
PDF/A is the ISO 19005 version of PDF made for long-term archiving. Everything needed to show the document - fonts, colour profile, metadata - is stored inside the file, and features that could break later (JavaScript, encryption, links to outside content) are not allowed.
The idea: the file should look exactly the same in 30 years as it does today.
Pick PDF/A-2b unless someone tells you otherwise. It keeps transparency and layers and is accepted almost everywhere.
Choose PDF/A-1b only when a court, archive or portal asks for it by name, and PDF/A-3b when you need to embed other files, as e-invoice formats like ZUGFeRD and Factur-X do.
b (basic) means the document will always look the same. a (accessible) also requires a full tag structure for screen readers, which usually has to be built by hand in the program that made the document.
This tool creates the b level, which is what most archives and courts ask for.
The file is written by Ghostscript in PDF/A mode, with all fonts and a colour profile embedded. After converting we check that the PDF/A identification, the colour profile and the pages are all there.
That is a quick self-check, not a formal validation. If your archive needs a validation report, open the file in veraPDF, the free validator recommended by the PDF Association.
PDF/A stores every font and a colour profile inside the file, so small PDFs often grow a little. PDF/A-1b also does not allow transparency, so see-through elements are flattened into images, which can make the file noticeably bigger - PDF/A-2b avoids that.
No - PDF/A does not allow encryption at all. Remove the password first with Unlock PDF (you need to know it), then convert the unlocked copy.
Your PDF travels over HTTPS, is converted on our server and is deleted as soon as the PDF/A copy has downloaded to your browser. Anything left behind is removed within the hour. We never look at or keep your documents.