Driver Onboarding Documents: Merge, Shrink and Watermark Them Privately

What operators usually ask for

Joining a cab or fleet operator in India means handing over a stack of papers. Operators such as Orbitmiles, a Pune EV cab operator, collect these before a driver’s first trip. The exact list depends on the operator, the city and whether you drive your own vehicle, but it usually includes some of these:

• Driving licence, and the badge or authorisation for driving a commercial vehicle where your state requires one
• RC (registration certificate) of the vehicle
• Insurance certificate
• PUC (pollution under control) certificate
• Permit for the vehicle
• Aadhaar and PAN
• Police verification certificate

Most operators take these on WhatsApp, by email or through an app, and many set a size limit per file. One clear, small PDF is easier for them to check and easier for you to send again.

Why not use any online converter

Search “JPG to PDF” and most results upload your photos to a server, do the work there and send the file back. For a licence, an Aadhaar card and a police verification certificate, that means a stranger’s computer now holds a copy of your identity. You can’t check how long it is kept or who can read it. Our guide on whether it is safe to upload PDFs online explains what happens to an uploaded file.

Every tool below runs inside your browser tab. The photos and PDFs are read from your phone or computer, changed there and saved back. We never get your files.

Before you start: use a masked Aadhaar

An operator usually needs to confirm who you are, not your full Aadhaar number. UIDAI lets you download a masked Aadhaar from myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in: log in with your Aadhaar number and the OTP sent to your registered mobile, choose Download Aadhaar and tick the option for a masked copy. Only the last four digits of the number are shown.

The download is a password-protected PDF. The password is the first four letters of your name in capitals followed by your year of birth. InTheTab’s tools can’t merge a locked PDF, so remove the password with Unlock PDF first. If the operator asks for the full number, ask why before you send it.

Step by step

1. Photograph each document. Lay it flat on a dark, plain surface in good light, fill the frame and keep the phone straight above it. Check every number is readable before moving on.
2. Turn the photos into a PDF. Open JPG to PDF, pick the photos (front and back of the licence, the RC, and so on), put them in order and choose A4 with a small margin. Each photo becomes one page. iPhone HEIC photos work too.
3. Merge everything into one file. Open Merge PDF and add the PDF you just made plus any PDFs you already have, such as the unlocked masked Aadhaar, an insurance policy from email or a police verification certificate. Arrange them in the order the operator lists them. The pages are copied as they are, so nothing loses quality.
4. Tidy the pages. If a page is sideways or there is one you don’t want to share, such as the terms and conditions pages of an insurance policy, open Organize pages. Rotate, reorder or delete pages, then save.
5. Watermark it. Open Watermark PDF and type something like For ABC Cabs onboarding only, 5 Oct 2026, using the operator’s name and today’s date. The same text goes across every page. It can be up to 60 characters, in English letters, digits and common punctuation.
6. Shrink it under the limit. Open Compress PDF, start with Balanced and check the size it shows. Go to Strong only if you are still over. Compressing after watermarking has a bonus: each page is redrawn as an image, so the watermark becomes part of the picture rather than text that can be selected and deleted.

If the operator wants separate images

Some apps ask for one photo per document instead of a PDF, often with a size limit in KB. Use Resize image: pick JPEG or WebP, set a maximum width such as 1600 px and lower the quality a step at a time until the size fits. Make sure the app accepts WebP before you choose it. The result keeps no camera details or GPS location from the original photo.

For more on size limits, see how to reduce a PDF’s size for online forms.

A note for operators

If you collect driver documents, you can make this easier and safer for everyone. Publish one list of what you need and the size limit. Ask for a masked Aadhaar unless you have a reason to need the full number. Keep the files somewhere only the people who check them can open, and delete copies you no longer need. Sending drivers to tools that work on their own phone also keeps their documents off yet another company’s server.

Before you send

• Open the final PDF and zoom in. Can you read the licence number, the validity dates and the vehicle number?
• Check that every document is in date: insurance, PUC, permit and police verification all expire.
• Make one file per operator, with that operator’s name in the watermark. Don’t reuse a copy made for someone else.
• Keep your unwatermarked originals on your phone for the next time you need them.