ocrmypdf/OCRmyPDF · error · InputFileError

This PDF has a user fillable form. --redo-ocr (or --mode red

Error message

This PDF has a user fillable form. --redo-ocr (or --mode redo) is not currently possible on such files.

What it means

Raised when the input PDF has an AcroForm (user-fillable form) and --redo-ocr/--mode redo is requested. Redo mode works by distinguishing text from content, and form field overlays break that assumption.

Source

Thrown at src/ocrmypdf/_pipeline.py:248

def validate_pdfinfo_options(context: PdfContext) -> None:
    """Validate the PDF info options."""
    pdfinfo = context.pdfinfo
    options = context.options

    if pdfinfo.needs_rendering:
        raise InputFileError(
            "This PDF contains dynamic XFA forms created by Adobe LiveCycle "
            "Designer and can only be read by Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader."
        )
    if pdfinfo.has_signature:
        if options.invalidate_digital_signatures:
            log.warning("All digital signatures will be invalidated")
        else:
            raise DigitalSignatureError()
    if pdfinfo.has_acroform:
        if options.mode == ProcessingMode.redo:
            raise InputFileError(
                "This PDF has a user fillable form. --redo-ocr (or --mode redo) "
                "is not currently possible on such files."
            )
        else:
            log.warning(
                "This PDF has a fillable form. "
                "Chances are it is a pure digital "
                "document that does not need OCR."
            )
            if options.mode != ProcessingMode.force:
                log.info(
                    "Use the option --force-ocr (or --mode force) to produce an "
                    "image of the form and all filled form fields. The output PDF "
                    "will be 'flattened' and will no longer be fillable."
                )
    if pdfinfo.is_tagged or pdfinfo.has_structure_tree:
        log.warning(
            "This PDF contains structural markup (it is a Tagged PDF or "

View on GitHub (pinned to 5074a0b0e1)

Solutions

1. Use default mode or --skip-text instead of --mode redo
2. Flatten the form fields first (pdftk in.pdf dump_data... or qpdf --flatten-annotations=all) then run redo mode

Example fix

# before
ocrmypdf --redo-ocr form.pdf out.pdf
# after
qpdf --flatten-annotations=all --generate-appearances form.pdf flat.pdf
ocrmypdf --redo-ocr flat.pdf out.pdf

import pikepdf
with pikepdf.open(src) as pdf:
    has_acroform = '/AcroForm' in pdf.Root
    if has_acroform and opts.mode == 'redo':
        opts.mode = 'skip'  # or flatten form first

When it happens

Trigger: pdfinfo reports has_acroform=True and options.mode == ProcessingMode.redo; checked in validate_pdfinfo_options.

Common situations: Trying to re-OCR fillable government or business forms with --redo-ocr.

Related errors

• --redo-ocr (or --mode redo) is not currently compatible with
• --mode strip removes the OCR text layer without rasterizing
• Since you specified `--output-type none`, the output file {s
• Input file is an image, but the resolution (DPI) is not cred
• Input file is an image, but has no resolution (DPI) in its m

AI-assisted analysis of ocrmypdf/OCRmyPDF@5074a0b0e1 (2026-08-27). Data as JSON: /api/errors/2f6e5038f8e700e6. Report an issue: GitHub.