PDF tools for HR — CVs, contracts, onboarding packs and redaction

Updated 13 August 2026

HR documents are personal data by definition — CVs, contracts, ID scans, sickness notes. UnboundPDF redacts, merges, compresses and fills them entirely inside your browser, so no copy lands on our servers. What you are permitted to do with that data is your organisation's rule to check; this page is not legal advice.

Free PDF tools for HR: redact personal data, strip metadata, build onboarding packs and collect signed forms — in your browser, nothing uploaded.

1. Open Redact PDF and add the CV or contract you need to share onwards.
2. Drag boxes over names, addresses, dates of birth and any other identifying detail.
3. Leave 'Rasterize redacted pages' checked so the marked pages are re-rendered and the text underneath is removed.
4. Apply, then clear the document properties in Edit Metadata before you send the file.

Redact before you share, and know what it costs

Anonymising a CV for a hiring panel, or sending a contract to a third party with the salary removed, is the most common HR PDF job. Redact PDF lets you drag black boxes over the detail; keep Rasterize redacted pages checked, which is the default, and the marked pages are re-rendered so the text underneath is removed from the file rather than hidden behind a rectangle. Two consequences follow. First, a rasterised page is an image: its text is no longer selectable or searchable, and the file usually grows. Second, if you uncheck rasterise, you have drawn decoration and nothing more — the words remain extractable, which is exactly the failure described in can deleted PDF text be recovered. Do not reach for Crop PDF here either: cropping hides content outside the box, it does not delete it.

Clear the properties, not only the page

A redacted page can still carry the author name, the internal file title and the keywords of whoever exported it. Edit Metadata shows the current title, author, subject, keywords and creator, and lets you clear them before the file leaves the building. Pair it with Remove Annotations, which strips comments, highlights, sticky notes and form fields — the internal review chatter on a shortlist is exactly what you do not want a candidate reading. Markup drawn into the page content itself cannot be removed, and the tool says so rather than pretending.

Assemble the onboarding pack

New starters get a bundle: contract, policy handbook, IT form, benefits summary. Merge PDF assembles it in the order you set, Organize PDF drops the pages that do not apply to this role, and Add Page Numbers makes the pack referenceable in a call. Before it goes out by email, compress it: measured on 13 August 2026, a 3-page scan went 784KB to 418KB in Balanced and 238KB in Maximum, while text-first documents barely shrink — compressing for email limits covers the attachment side, and merging privately covers the assembly.

Collect signed forms without a signature platform

Fill & Sign types into both interactive and flat printed forms, because the text is placed on top of the page, and it drops a drawn, typed or uploaded signature where it belongs. Once the form is complete, Flatten PDF bakes the field values into fixed page content so they can no longer be edited, keeping the text selectable in its default mode. If the completed pack must be locked before it is stored, Protect PDF encrypts it with AES behind a password. A small correction to a returned form does not need a re-issue — editing the text in place handles it.

Scope

The signature here is a visible signature image, not a PKCS #7 certificate signature; if your process requires certified signing, use a tool that provides it. Redact PDF removes the text from the file and verifies on the finished bytes that it is gone. Password protection is AES encryption, and a forgotten password is not recoverable by design. The document is processed on your device and is not sent to us — checkable, not claimed. Retention, lawful basis and who may see what are your organisation's rules; this page is not legal advice.

Verify the architecture yourself

Before you put a real personnel file through any browser tool, prove the behaviour with a test file: open DevTools, watch the Network tab, and confirm nothing carries your document. The PDF Privacy Lab walks through it in two minutes, and it is a reasonable thing to attach to an internal tooling review. Adjacent desks: PDF tools for lawyers goes deeper on exhibits and archival, while students and teachers cover the education side.

Frequently asked questions

Does redaction actually remove the text, or just cover it?

With rasterize enabled — the default — the pages you marked are re-rendered as images, so the covered text no longer exists in the file. Unchecking it only draws boxes on top and the text underneath can still be extracted. Only marked pages are rasterised; the rest are copied through unchanged.

What does rasterising a page cost me?

The page becomes an image: its text is no longer selectable or searchable, and the file usually gets larger. That is the trade for the text genuinely being gone. Pages you did not mark keep their original text and quality.

Can I collect signed forms without a signature platform?

Fill & Sign types into interactive and flat forms and places a drawn, typed or uploaded signature, then Flatten PDF freezes the field values so they cannot be edited. It is a visible signature image, not a certificate-based digital signature — check whether your process requires one.

Is this GDPR compliant?

That is not a claim any tool can make for you. What we can state is architectural: the document is processed in your browser and is not sent to us, which you can verify in the Network tab. Whether your handling of that document meets your obligations is your organisation's call, and this page is not legal advice.