# Redact Dates from PDFs

> Detect dates in all major formats — DD.MM.YYYY (Swiss/EU), MM/DD/YYYY (US), YYYY-MM-DD (ISO), written-out ("12 March 2026") — and mask them automatically.

**Try it:** https://www.redact-pdf.ai/sign-up
**See pricing:** https://www.redact-pdf.ai/pricing

## Why dates are sensitive

Under HIPAA, dates more granular than year (treatment dates, admission dates, dates of birth) are part of the "Safe Harbor" list of 18 identifiers that must be removed for de-identification. Under GDPR, dates combined with other context can re-identify individuals.

## When to redact dates

Date redaction is essential for healthcare de-identification, witness protection in legal filings, and anonymized research data.

- HIPAA Safe Harbor de-identification (16 of 18 identifiers include dates)
- Clinical research datasets shared externally
- Court filings protecting victim/witness timelines
- Anonymized case studies and publications

## Multi-format date detection

Our detector handles numeric formats (DD.MM.YYYY, MM/DD/YYYY, YYYY-MM-DD), abbreviated formats (12-Mar-26), written-out formats ("12 March 2026", "March 12th, 2026"), and locale variants. Mixed-language documents are handled via automatic language detection.

## How it works

1. **Upload the document(s)** — Medical records, court filings, contracts — batch supported.
2. **Enable "Date" detection** — Combine with Person, Address, Organization for a full PII sweep.
3. **Studio review** — Decide which dates to keep visible (e.g., contract year) vs. redact (e.g., DOB).
4. **Export** — Dates are permanently masked in the rasterized output.

## For healthcare de-identification

HIPAA Safe Harbor requires removal of all elements of dates (except year) for individuals 89 or younger. Our date detector covers Safe Harbor identifiers #3, #4, #5, #6 (admission, discharge, treatment, birth dates).

## Frequently asked questions

### Can I keep some dates (like the report date) visible?

Yes — use Studio review to remove masks from dates you want to keep, or add specific date strings to "Excluded Terms".

### Does it handle relative dates like "last Monday"?

Relative references are not auto-detected. If you need them masked, add them to "Always Redact" terms.

### What about partial dates like "March 2026"?

Month + year combinations are detected. Year-only references are typically left in (not granular enough to identify).

## Related guides

- https://www.redact-pdf.ai/redact/medical-records.md
- https://www.redact-pdf.ai/redact/clinical-notes.md
- https://www.redact-pdf.ai/redact/names-from-pdf.md

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Primary keyword: redact dates from PDF
Audience: medical, legal, real-estate

Built on Microsoft Azure infrastructure (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, ISO 27017, ISO 27018, HIPAA-eligible) with Swiss / EU data residency. Documents are never used to train AI models.