This concise guide shows how to flatten PDF form fields in Java. Flattening is perfect when your forms are pre‑filled and you need to display them as read‑only content. By the end of the tutorial, you’ll know how to load a PDF, flatten PDF form in Java, and save the result as a PDF file.

Steps to Flatten PDF Form Fields in Java

1. Install Conholdate.Total for Java into your application to flatten PDF in Java
2. Instantiate the Acro Form class object for flattening Adobe PDF
3. Bind source PDF file with the Form object by calling bindPdf function
4. Flatten form fields using the Form object after binding the source PDF file
5. Save the flattened PDF file on disc

This detailed tutorial walks you through the process of flattening fillable PDF in Java. It involves creating an object of the Acro Form class and associating it with the source PDF file. Once linked, you can utilize the flattenAllFields() function from the Form class to flatten the PDF, ultimately allowing you to save it as a flattened PDF in Java.

Code to Flatten Fillable PDF in Java

In the sample above we instantiate a Form object with its default constructor—though you can equally initialize it with a PDF Document instance or by supplying the source file name. Flattening every field is optional; you can target only the fields you need by calling FlattenField( fieldName ) instead of using flattenAllFields().

By now you’ve mastered how to flatten PDF file in Java. If you also need to extract text and images from PDFs, be sure to check out our guide on how to read PDF file in Java.