PDF para PDF/A — Arquivo de longo prazo
Convert your PDF documents into ISO-compliant PDF/A format, ensuring long-term digital preservation and regulatory compliance. This tool embeds all necessary fonts, color profiles, and metadata, guaranteeing that your documents will render identically decades into the future. Ideal for archiving legal records, government documents, or any content requiring immutable storage.
Drop PDF file here
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Supports PDF files up to 50MB
document.pdf
0 MB
Output Format
Your PDF will be converted to PDF/A format (.pdfa) which can be opened in PDF/A viewers like Adobe Acrobat or Foxit.
Converting...
Processing PDF to PDF/A...
Conversion Complete!
Your archive is ready
Why Convert PDF to PDF/A?
Ensure your documents meet archival standards with PDF/A — the ISO-certified format designed for long-term digital preservation.
Long-Term Preservation
PDF/A guarantees your documents render identically in 10, 50, or 100 years. All fonts, color profiles, and metadata are embedded — no broken layouts, no missing images, regardless of which software opens the file.
Regulatory Compliance
Meets ISO 19005, EU eIDAS electronic document regulations, US federal records requirements, and healthcare HIPAA archiving standards. PDF/A is the accepted standard across industries worldwide.
Self-Contained Files
Unlike regular PDFs that may reference external fonts or color profiles, PDF/A embeds everything within the file itself. No external dependencies means no risk of rendering differently on another system.
Legal Admissibility
Courts worldwide accept PDF/A documents as reliable digital evidence. The format's tamper-evident nature and standardized structure make it ideal for contracts, filings, and legal archives.
Consistent Rendering
Regular PDFs depend on system-installed fonts, which vary between Windows, Mac, and Linux. PDF/A embeds font subsets directly, ensuring pixel-perfect text display on every platform and device.
Universal Compatibility
PDF/A opens in Adobe Acrobat, Apple Preview, Chrome, Firefox, and every major document management system (DMS). Archiving software like Alfresco, SharePoint, and DocuWare natively support PDF/A indexing.
How to Convert PDF to PDF/A
Our converter validates your PDF, embeds required resources, and outputs a compliant PDF/A file that passes standard validation tools.
Upload PDF
Drag and drop or select your PDF file. We support files up to 50MB with up to 20 pages.
PDF Analysis
We analyze font embedding status, color space usage (RGB/CMYK), and metadata completeness. Non-compliant elements are flagged for automatic correction.
Convert
Missing fonts are embedded, transparency is flattened (for PDF/A-1), color profiles are converted to PDF/A-compliant ICC profiles, and XMP metadata is generated.
Download & Edit
Download your PDF/A file and verify it with tools like veraPDF or Adobe Preflight. The output passes standard PDF/A validation checks.
Common Use Cases
PDF to PDF/A conversion is essential in many professional scenarios.
Government Archives
Federal and state agencies require PDF/A for permanent records retention. Convert existing PDF documents to meet NARA (National Archives) digital preservation standards.
Legal Document Storage
Law firms archive contracts, court filings, and case documents as PDF/A to ensure they remain readable and legally admissible decades after creation.
Healthcare Records
Medical institutions convert patient records, imaging reports, and compliance documents to PDF/A for HIPAA-compliant long-term storage in electronic health record (EHR) systems.
Marketing Materials
Transform PDF brochures and catalogs into archive format for sales meetings and trade shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about PDF to PDF/A conversion.
What is PDF/A and how does it differ from regular PDF?
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PDF/A is an ISO-standardized subset of PDF (ISO 19005) designed for long-term digital preservation. Unlike regular PDFs, PDF/A files must embed all fonts, use device-independent color spaces (ICC profiles), and cannot contain JavaScript, audio/video, or external references. This makes them self-contained — guaranteed to render identically on any system, indefinitely.
Which PDF/A conformance level should I choose?
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PDF/A-1b is the most widely accepted baseline — it ensures visual preservation and is required by most government agencies. PDF/A-2b adds support for JPEG2000 compression, transparency layers, and PDF layers (OCGs), making it ideal for modern documents. PDF/A-3 allows embedding original source files (like Excel or XML) within the PDF/A container.
Will my fonts and images look the same in PDF/A?
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Yes. PDF/A requires all fonts to be embedded (or subset-embedded), ensuring text renders identically everywhere. Images are preserved at their original resolution. The only visual difference may be in transparency handling — PDF/A-1 flattens transparency, while PDF/A-2 preserves it natively.
Is PDF/A legally required for archiving?
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Many jurisdictions mandate PDF/A for official records. The EU's eIDAS regulation references PDF/A for qualified electronic documents. US federal courts accept PDF/A filings. NARA (National Archives) requires PDF/A for permanent federal records. While not universally required, it's considered best practice for any document intended to be preserved long-term.
How do I validate that my PDF/A file is compliant?
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After conversion, you can validate your file using free tools like veraPDF (the industry reference validator), Adobe Acrobat's Preflight tool, or online validators like PDF/A Validator. FastlyConvert's output is designed to pass these standard validation checks.
Can I convert scanned documents to searchable PDF/A?
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Yes, but scanned-only PDFs (image-based) require OCR processing first to create a searchable text layer. Once OCR is applied, the document can be converted to PDF/A-2b with the embedded text layer, making it both archival and searchable — ideal for digitizing paper records.
Understanding the PDF/A Standard
PDF/A was first published in 2005 as ISO 19005-1, born from a collaboration between the Association for Information and Image Management (AIIM) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The driving motivation was simple: regular PDFs depend on external resources — system fonts, linked images, embedded JavaScript — that may not exist in 20 years. PDF/A eliminates these dependencies by requiring everything to be self-contained.
The standard has evolved through several parts. PDF/A-1 (ISO 19005-1:2005) is based on PDF 1.4 and is the most restrictive — no transparency, no JavaScript, no embedded files. PDF/A-2 (ISO 19005-2:2011) is based on PDF 1.7 and adds support for JPEG2000 compression, transparency, and layers. PDF/A-3 (ISO 19005-3:2012) goes further by allowing arbitrary file attachments — you can embed the original Word document or spreadsheet data inside the PDF/A wrapper. The newest part, PDF/A-4 (ISO 19005-4:2020), aligns with PDF 2.0.
In practice, PDF/A-1b and PDF/A-2b cover the vast majority of archiving needs. The "b" suffix indicates "basic" conformance (visual preservation), while "a" suffix indicates "accessible" conformance (requiring tagged document structure and Unicode text mapping). Government agencies, legal firms, and healthcare organizations worldwide rely on PDF/A as the cornerstone of their digital preservation strategies.
Privacy & Security
Your documents are processed securely. We take your privacy seriously.
- check_circleAutomatic Deletion: Files deleted within 24 hours after processing.
- check_circleEncrypted Transfer: HTTPS/SSL encryption for all file transfers.
- check_circleNo Human Access: Automated processing without viewing your content.
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