EditMyPDF is a document processing tool, not a permanent file-storage service. The product is designed to help you upload a document, process it, download the result, and continue your work outside EditMyPDF.
This page explains the main retention windows in a practical way.
Summary
The most important rule is simple: download anything you need to keep. EditMyPDF should not be used as your only copy, archive, legal record, or backup system.
The current retention model separates temporary uploads, submitted runs, outputs, operational metadata, billing records, account records, logs, and backups.
Retention table
| Data category | Current retention approach |
|---|---|
| Temporary staging uploads before submission | Retained for 30 minutes after the last real activity on the item. If a residual object-storage copy remains after expiry, cleanup is designed to hard-delete it no later than 24 hours after the expiry time. |
| Submitted run content, prompts, outputs, and processing artifacts | Retained for 72 hours after the run reaches a terminal state, such as success, failure, cancellation, or automatic abandonment. If residual object-storage artifacts remain after the main content window, cleanup is designed to hard-delete them no later than 24 hours after content expiry. |
| Detailed OCR debug payloads for normal user runs | Not retained as a durable record by default. Internal admin or test debug payloads, where used, are stored separately and purged after 30 days, with a hard-delete grace period of up to 24 hours. |
| Minimal run metadata | May be retained for up to 180 days for reliability, abuse prevention, finance reconciliation, and operational debugging. |
| Application and observability logs | Kept for up to 30 days in production. |
| Security and authentication audit events | Retained for up to 365 days. |
| Anti-abuse records and device-intelligence signals | Retained for up to 180 days, with some controls much shorter-lived. |
| Open, failed, or expired checkout sessions | Retained for up to 90 days. |
| Checkout marketing attribution fields | Retained for up to 90 days. |
| Checkout risk or fraud fields | Retained for up to 180 days. |
| Payload-free Stripe webhook idempotency markers | Retained for up to 365 days to prevent duplicate processing. |
| Accounting and restricted billing archive records | Assigned a 10-year retention period where required for bookkeeping, invoicing, tax, and finance obligations. |
| Guest saved signatures | Retained in active systems for 30 days, with final cleanup designed to complete no later than 24 hours after expiry if deletion must be retried. |
| Account-linked saved signatures | Retained while the account remains active, then deleted within 30 days after account closure or closure for inactivity. |
| Account and authentication data | Retained while the account remains active. If an account is closed, or inactive for 24 months without meaningful activity and without an active paid entitlement, operational account data is scheduled for deletion or irreversible anonymization within 30 days. |
| Personal-data exports | Once generated, exports are generally downloadable for up to 7 days. |
| Consent preference storage | Stored for 180 days unless the user changes preferences sooner. |
| Backups | Deleted live data may remain for a limited period in encrypted backups and disaster-recovery media before aging out through normal rotation. |
What counts as a temporary upload?
A temporary upload is a file that has been selected, uploaded, staged, or prepared before the user fully submits a document-processing run.
For example, you might add a PDF, preview it, decide what you want to do, and then start an AI edit, OCR, conversion, split, merge, or compression workflow. Before submission, the file may exist in a temporary staging area so the product can validate it and keep the workflow usable.
Temporary staging uploads are retained for 30 minutes after the last real activity on that item.
Real activity may include:
- opening the item;
- previewing the item;
- releasing it;
- consuming it into a submitted run;
- performing a pre-submit transformation that keeps the item alive.
What is a submitted run?
A submitted run is a document-processing job that has been launched. Examples include:
- AI editing;
- OCR;
- file conversion;
- compression;
- metadata editing;
- splitting pages;
- merging files;
- generating an output for download.
For submitted runs, EditMyPDF retains run content for 72 hours after the run reaches a terminal state.
A terminal state can include:
- successful completion;
- failure;
- cancellation;
- automatic abandonment when a run stops progressing.
If a run becomes stuck, it may be automatically abandoned after 24 hours without worker heartbeat or progress, or after 7 days of absolute age. The 72-hour retention window then applies.
What is included in submitted run content?
Depending on the feature, submitted run content may include:
- uploaded source files;
- prompts and instructions;
- extracted text;
- user-visible OCR outputs;
- generated outputs;
- downloadable artifacts;
- editor assets;
- intermediate processing artifacts;
- run-linked snapshots that still contain or reflect document content.
Minimal metadata after content deletion
After the main content window closes, EditMyPDF may keep a reduced operational record for up to 180 days.
This minimal metadata may include:
- run identifiers;
- a short normalized prompt excerpt, where needed for support or debugging;
- timestamps;
- status transitions;
- file size;
- page count;
- selected preset;
- route information;
- synthetic error information;
- synthetic cost or usage information that does not contain the document itself.
The goal is to support reliability, finance reconciliation, abuse prevention, and debugging without keeping full document content.
Billing and legal records
Billing, payment, tax, and accounting records have longer legal retention obligations. For example, restricted billing archive records may need to be retained for up to 10 years where required for bookkeeping, invoicing, tax, and finance obligations.
This does not mean EditMyPDF keeps your document content for 10 years. Billing records are separate from the files you process.
Account deletion
If you request account deletion, the account enters a restricted state immediately and the operational deletion or anonymization path is scheduled after a 30-day cancellation window, unless you cancel the request in time.
During that restricted window, ordinary authenticated product usage is blocked. Certain self-service actions may remain available, such as checking deletion status, cancelling the pending deletion request in time, or downloading an available personal-data export.
Signing in again does not automatically cancel a pending deletion request. Cancellation must be explicit before the deadline.
Backups
When data is deleted from live systems, it may remain for a limited period in encrypted backups and disaster-recovery media before those backups age out through normal rotation.
Backups are intended for operational resilience, not as a user-accessible archive. EditMyPDF does not guarantee restoration of any specific file, run, workspace, or version history unless separately agreed in writing.
Practical advice for users
- Download your finished file as soon as it is ready.
- Keep your own copy of any document you need.
- Do not rely on EditMyPDF as your only storage location.
- Avoid uploading documents that are more sensitive than necessary for the task.
- Delete or close your account if you no longer need it.
- Contact support if you need help with account deletion or data rights.
FAQ
Can I recover an edited PDF later?
Maybe, but only during the applicable retention window and only if the file is still available. EditMyPDF is not designed as a permanent storage service, so you should download the output promptly.
Are temporary uploads deleted immediately?
Temporary staging uploads are retained for 30 minutes after the last real activity on the item. Residual object-storage copies are designed to be hard-deleted no later than 24 hours after expiry.
How long are completed outputs kept?
Submitted run content, prompts, outputs, and processing artifacts are retained for 72 hours after the run reaches a terminal state, with a hard-delete grace period for residual object-storage artifacts.
Do billing records follow the same retention window as files?
No. Billing and accounting records may be retained for longer periods where required by law. That does not mean your processed PDF content is kept for the same period.