How to watermark an ID copy: recipient, purpose, date
When you watermark an ID copy, you write on it who it is for, why and when. If that copy is ever forwarded, leaked or reused, it shows where it came from and what it was meant for. It takes a minute, it is free in Dress Docs, and it works best together with covering what the receiver doesn’t need. Here is what to write, and what a watermark can and can’t do.
Why watermark an ID copy
A plain copy of your ID can be used for anything. A copy that reads “Copy for Acme Rentals, rental application, October 18, 2026” is much harder to pass off for something else. Anyone who sees it later knows it was made for one recipient and one purpose.
It also helps you. If the copy turns up somewhere it shouldn’t, the watermark tells you who you sent it to.
What to write: recipient, purpose, date
Keep it to three parts:
- Recipient: the company or person, as specifically as you can.
- Purpose: the reason they asked, such as “rental application” or “domain registration”.
- Date: the day you send it.
For example: Copy for Acme Rentals, rental application, October 18, 2026. Write “Copy” in it, too.
In Dress Docs, the watermark is translucent and tiled across the page, with a template for who the copy is for and why. In the browser, the ID-copy preset also marks the export as a copy. When you export, the watermark becomes part of the flat page image, like your covers.
Keep the data readable
A watermark is not a cover. It sits over the data the receiver needs, so they must still be able to read it. If they can’t read your name, they will ask for a new copy.
Covering what they don’t need is a separate step: use a solid shape. Translucent text over your ID number leaves the number readable. Which fields to cover is in what to redact on an ID card copy and, for passports, how to redact a passport copy.
”Copy” in German law (§ 20(2) PAuswG)
For the German ID card, the law sets a rule for copies. § 20(2) of the Identity Card Act (PAuswG) says, in our translation: the card may be copied only by its holder, or by others with the holder’s consent, in such a way that the copy is clearly and permanently recognizable as a copy. A watermark that says “Copy” across the page is one way to make it recognizable.
The rule is German. Other countries have their own, or none, but marking the copy works the same everywhere.
A watermark marks the copy; it doesn’t make it valid
A watermark records your purpose. It doesn’t make the copy valid for anything, and it can’t make anyone accept it.
Some checks need the full, unmarked copy. Banks and other businesses with anti-money-laundering duties must keep a copy of the documents they check, and a covered or marked copy can fail that check. Ask them first: see when a full ID copy is required.
For the whole routine, start with how to send an ID copy safely. The watermark and the other tools are on the features page. Or open Dress Docs and mark your next copy.