Lock a PDF behind a password that stops working after a date you choose — 100% in your browser. Your file is never uploaded. ⏳🔐
Password + self-expiring viewer
AES-GCM with PBKDF2 key stretching — without the password the document genuinely cannot be opened.
After your chosen date the built-in viewer refuses to unlock and shows your expiry message instead.
Encryption happens in your browser. Your PDF and password are never sent to any server.
Want to password-protect a PDF with an expiration date — a quote that should lapse in 30 days, a draft contract that shouldn't circulate forever, or a sensitive document you only want readable this week? This free tool wraps your PDF in a self-expiring, password-protected viewer, right on your device. You set the password and the deadline; it produces one self-contained file that anyone can open in a browser, no software required.
The protection has two layers. First, your PDF is encrypted with AES-GCM using a key stretched from your password with PBKDF2 — so without the correct password, the bytes are unrecoverable. That part is genuine cryptography. Second, the built-in viewer checks the current time against your expiry and, once that moment passes, stops unlocking and shows your custom message instead.
It's important to be honest about what time-based expiry can and cannot do. A file, once downloaded, lives on the recipient's device — so the expiry is enforced by the viewer and the device clock. That makes it a strong, practical deterrent for normal recipients, but a determined technical user could change their clock or tamper with the file. For guaranteed, audited expiry you need a server-based document-rights system. Use this tool for everyday "please don't keep this forever" situations, not for material where a breach would be catastrophic.
Everything runs 100% in your browser — nothing is uploaded, stored, or seen by anyone. It works on Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android and Chromebook. Need plain protection instead? Use our Protect & Unlock PDF tool for a standard password that opens in Acrobat, or Sign & Fill PDF to sign before you lock.