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Convert PDF to PDF/A (Archival Format) Online — Free

Convert standard PDF files to PDF/A-2b archival format for long-term preservation, regulatory compliance, and institutional archiving.

PDF/A-2b ISO 19005-2 compliant outputAutomatic font embeddingDevice-independent color conversionPreserves document layout and contentGhostscript-powered conversion engineFree for files up to 50MB
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How to Convert

1

Upload your standard PDF file

2

Select PDF/A version (PDF/A-2b recommended)

3

Click Convert to PDF/A

4

Download your archival-compliant PDF/A file

About Convert to PDF/A

PDF/A is an ISO-standardized subset of PDF designed for long-term digital preservation of electronic documents. Unlike standard PDFs that may rely on external resources (fonts, color profiles, multimedia), PDF/A files are completely self-contained — all fonts are embedded, color spaces are device-independent, and interactive elements are removed. This makes PDF/A the required format for government archives, legal document retention, healthcare records, and financial regulatory submissions.

Our converter uses Ghostscript to transform standard PDFs into fully compliant PDF/A-2b documents, embedding all fonts, converting color spaces, and stripping non-archival elements while preserving the visual appearance of your document. The process injects a compliant XMP metadata stream and validates the output against PDF/A specifications.

Organizations across industries rely on PDF/A for regulatory compliance: law firms archive case files in PDF/A for court submission requirements, financial institutions convert quarterly reports for SEC and FINRA retention mandates, healthcare providers store patient records in PDF/A for HIPAA-compliant long-term preservation, and universities require PDF/A for institutional repository deposits and thesis submissions.

The PDF/A-2b standard (ISO 19005-2) is the most widely accepted version, supporting JPEG2000 compression, transparency layers, and embedded file attachments while maintaining backward compatibility. Our converter handles all common PDF features including embedded images, vector graphics, custom fonts, and form field content.

Common Use Cases

  • •Convert legal documents to PDF/A for court filing requirements
  • •Archive financial reports in PDF/A for regulatory compliance
  • •Prepare government documents in PDF/A for national archives
  • •Convert healthcare records to PDF/A for HIPAA-compliant long-term storage
  • •Ensure academic papers are in PDF/A for institutional repository submission

How It Works

The converter uses Ghostscript with the -dPDFA=2 flag to produce PDF/A-2b output. All fonts are embedded using -dEmbedAllFonts=true, color spaces are converted to device-independent profiles, and a compliant XMP metadata stream is injected. The resulting file passes standard PDF/A validation checks.

Supported Formats

.PDF

Frequently Asked Questions

PDF/A is an ISO standard (ISO 19005) for long-term archiving of electronic documents. It ensures the file is self-contained and will look the same decades from now, regardless of what software or operating system is used to open it.
PDF/A-1b (2005) is the original standard with basic compliance. PDF/A-2b (2011) adds support for JPEG2000 compression, transparency, and layers. PDF/A-3b (2012) allows embedding arbitrary file formats as attachments. PDF/A-2b is recommended for most use cases.
The visual appearance is preserved. PDF/A conversion embeds fonts and converts color spaces, which may cause very minor color shifts in rare cases, but the layout and content remain identical.
The PDF must be unencrypted before PDF/A conversion. Use our Decrypt PDF tool first to remove the password, then convert to PDF/A.
You can validate PDF/A compliance using free tools like veraPDF (https://verapdf.org/) or Adobe Acrobat Pro's Preflight feature.