Skip to main content
why does it repeatedly state “validation of PDF failed”? how to fix?

Please provide additional details of when you receive the error, or what you are doing when the error appears? Also is this the full error (perhaps you could add a screenshot to the post)?


Hi got the same problem, and it occurs completly randomly (some pdfs work others don't). In my case the error occurs during the upload process. Is there a quick fix to this? cannot use DocuSing like this as there is no document that can be uploaded otherwise... (see screenshot: pic says " Error while uploading of FILENAME.pdf <br> The calidation ot the PDF file failed.

ThanksBildschirmfoto 2020-02-20 um 18.24.46


Well the way I troubleshoot is to get information on what created the file, whether its protected through file restrictions or password protection. I then try to open the file and Re-save the file under a new filename which sometimes can show other errors or issues in the application that you are using. Lastly I convert to a Word document and then back to PDF then try to upload again.


Thank you, already tried all of the above but still no solution 😞 Its strange as there is no difference to the PDFs that are uploadable without any error and the ones that just won't work (which then sometimes - without any changes to the file are uploadable the next day, thus it seems to be an error on DocuSings side)


It could be possible but not being able to reproduce the issue consistently could be difficult to troubleshoot. I would suggest opening a DocuSign case and provide them with several files so they can try to reproduce. Beyond my suggestions I would need to have a file with the issue to see if I can reproduce in order to review the file.


Thank you for your help! I dont feel that I can share confidential contract material, the error is not really reproduceable. One last questions: where do I open a case within DocuSign?


Understandable....this link should allow you to login and open a new case...

https://support.docusign.com/en/caseOverview


Thank you for your help - much appreciated!


Was using the API createEnvelope and was getting this error from the PDF's I was trying to include with the envelope.

I kept receiving this error, even when I tried a variety of documents from various sources.

The problem was that the link didn't point directly to the file. The URL I was providing probably had an invisible redirect in it or something like that. As soon as I was able to provide the API call with a URL for each PDF that was a direct url to the file, the problem went away.

If you're experiencing this error my suggestion is to troubleshoot the files, the origin of the files, and the nature of the links you are providing to the API to source the documents.


Reply