How to convert a PDF to PDF/A
Open Archive copy (PDF/A), add the PDF and press Make the archive copy. You get a PDF/A-2b copy; the pages look exactly the same.
Archive copy (PDF/A)Free. Nothing is uploaded.
How to do it
- Open Archive copy (PDF/A) and add one or more PDFs.
- Press Make the archive copy.
- Read the result line, which says what was changed and anything a strict checker would flag.
- Save the copy, and check it with the portal’s own validator if it has one.
What PDF/A is
PDF/A is the form of PDF made for keeping. It must carry everything needed to show it the same way in decades, and nothing that depends on outside programs. Some court e-filing systems, government offices and record keepers ask for it.
What changes
A colour profile and the archive details go inside. Scripts and attached files come out, as the standard asks, and a password is removed, because an archive must open for anyone. The pages themselves stay exactly as they are.
Fonts, honestly
PDF/A needs every font the file uses to be inside it. A font that is missing cannot be added without the font itself, so the result says so rather than claiming the copy passes. Saving the document again from the program that made it, with fonts embedded, and then making the archive copy fixes that.
If the filing also needs a digital signature, make the archive copy first and sign it afterwards: any change after signing breaks the signature. If the portal also has a size limit, see compress to 1 MB.
A worked example
A court’s e-filing portal asks for petitions in PDF/A. Finish the petition, number its pages with Page numbers, and save it as PDF from your word processor with fonts embedded. Open Archive copy (PDF/A), add it and press Make the archive copy. If the result line mentions no missing fonts, sign it if the portal requires a signature, and upload it, running the portal’s own checker if it has one.
The letters and numbers in PDF/A
PDF/A comes in parts, 1, 2 and 3, and in levels: b for basic, a for accessible, and u for text that can be copied reliably. Level b promises that the pages will look the same years from now; level a also needs the document’s structure tagged for screen readers. This tool makes PDF/A-2b. If a portal asks specifically for PDF/A-1 or for level a, check its instructions, or use the tool it recommends.
If nobody tells you which kind to make, PDF/A-2b is a sensible choice: it is widely accepted, and it allows the compression that modern files use, so the archive copy does not have to be much bigger than the original.
Common mistakes
Making an archive copy of a scan and expecting it to be searchable: PDF/A keeps what is there, so run Make searchable first if search matters. Signing first and archiving afterwards, which breaks the signature. And expecting a locked PDF to stay locked: an archive must open for anyone, so the password comes off.
Questions people ask
Which PDF/A version does it make?
PDF/A-2b, the level most portals that ask for PDF/A accept.
Is my document uploaded?
No. The archive copy is made in your browser.
Will it pass a validator?
If the file has its fonts inside it, it is built to. If not, the result tells you before you find out from the portal.
Does it change how my pages look?
No. The pages are kept exactly as they are; only what the file carries around them changes.
Can I make PDF/A from a Word file?
Yes. Make a PDF first, ideally with your word processor’s Save as PDF and fonts embedded, then make the archive copy from that.
Is my original kept?
Yes. The archive copy is a new file, and the PDF you picked is never changed, so you can keep both.
Your file stays on your device. Foolscap does the work inside your browser, so nothing is uploaded and there is nothing for anyone to keep. How you can check