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1. I am receiving "Format Errors" - what does this mean?

When a filing is not successfully processed and is identified as having a “Format Error,” this means that the filing has one or more document files that are not valid for filing document conversion. The underlying cause of the issue is typically either that the document was not successfully uploaded, or the document has a characteristic that prevents the standard processing of the file.

Tthese types of errors can be minimized if filings comply with a standard format that includes the following:

• Use 8.5x11-inch paper with portrait orientation.
• Set the DPI resolution lower than 300.
• Do not use unintelligible images (i.e., all-black images).
• Use non-secured document properties (i.e., not password-protected).
• Remove external references in the documents, such as URLs and shortcuts.

2. Causes of Typical Format Errors

Format errors are typically caused by the following submissions:

• Corrupt files (i.e., files with 0 bytes of data).
• Secured or password-protected PDFs. This includes electronic certificates that prevent a document from being modified. These are typically used on documents containing electronic signatures.
• File types other than PDF.
• Files with non-standard image compression. Standard is CCIT; this is usually a scanner setting.
• A document that has Optical Character Recognition (OCR) associated with it; usually determined by a larger  file size.
• Any file that experienced an upload issue or time out on the file transfer on behalf of the filing party; usually appearing as an incomplete image or file when opened.
• A document scan that is in landscape orientation, noticeably off-center, or of an irregular size.
• Any scan (PDF) that is unreadable or has large black images in the document where pictures may have been.
• A file that contains an invalid table; usually a result of importing or pasting table data into a word processing application.

3. Actions to Identify the Format Error Issue

The first action is to determine whether the document uploaded successfully. To determine this, do the following:

• Open the document files using the Filing Queue link on the left menu.
• Click the icon under the Details column for your case.
• Scroll down to the Documents section of the Filing Details page to locate the document uploaded.
• Click on the document link under the File Name column to open the document.

Note: If the file does not open using the original authoring tool, cancel this filing and create a new filing.

Prior to uploading documents for new filings, confirm the document files will open successfully from their original source.

Corrupt Files

Corrupt files, for example, files with zero (0) bytes of data are one of the many reasons a filing has format errors.

Document Security

PDF files have security settings that can prevent documents from being e-filed. A file with document security has a padlock icon on the document and/or has “SECURED” shown in the file name.

The document security can include several different options, any of which will prevent the document file from being processed. To ensure successful document processing, recreate the PDF with no security options.

Unsupported Fonts

Font resources are included in newly created documents. This is a standard with PDF/A files. Document generating tools use non–supported fonts when creating documents, which results in the inability to convert the document into the standard e-filing format.

There are multiple ways to examine the fonts embedded in the file. PDF viewers can show the fonts, or the file editors can allow you view the fonts used.

The JBig font is not a supported font.