How to archive a PDF for the long term: all about PDF/A
1 min read·25 July 2026
Want to store a PDF for decades and be certain it can still be read in 20 years? PDF/A is the international standard for long-term archiving. Here is what you need to know.
What is PDF/A?
PDF/A (ISO 19005) is a subset of PDF designed for archiving. It forbids elements that could cause problems over time: external links, encryption, dependencies on special software, audio/video. Everything needed to read the document is embedded in the file itself.
What is PDF/A used for?
Legal documents, business records, government files, academic publications. Governments and courts sometimes specifically require PDF/A-1b for submitted documents. Check requirements with the relevant authority.
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Regular PDF vs PDF/A
A regular PDF can contain encryption, rely on external fonts, or include multimedia. PDF/A requires all fonts to be embedded, no encryption present, and no external dependencies. Compressing via PDFrust uses a broadly compatible PDF structure but is not certified PDF/A.
Creating PDF/A
For formal PDF/A compliance use Adobe Acrobat Pro (convert via Preflight) or LibreOffice (export as PDF/A-1). PDFrust is not certified for PDF/A production, but optimal compression and correctly embedded fonts improve durability.
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