How to Compress a PDF for Insurance Claims
Insurance claim portals commonly limit document uploads to 2MB–5MB per file. Medical bills, pharmacy receipts, hospital discharge summaries, and police reports scanned at full resolution can easily exceed these limits. This guide covers which documents to compress, what level to use, and how to keep evidence clear enough for claims processing.
Upload Limits by Insurance Type
| Claim Type | Typical Upload Limit | Recommended PDF Size |
|---|---|---|
| Medical / hospitalisation claim | 2MB–5MB per file | Under 1MB per document |
| Motor insurance claim | 2MB–5MB per file | Under 1MB per document |
| Travel insurance claim | 2MB–5MB per file | Under 1MB per document |
| Life insurance claim | 2MB–5MB per file | Under 1MB per document |
| MySalam / Perlindungan Tenang (Malaysia) | 2MB per file | Under 500KB |
| Email to agent or adjuster | 10MB–25MB total | Under 3MB per email |
Which Compression Level to Use
Unlike resumes or government forms, insurance claim documents contain critical details that adjusters must be able to read clearly — diagnosis codes, item amounts, dates, and signatures. Use Balanced compression, which keeps images at 96 DPI — enough for clear on-screen review. Only use Maximum if the portal rejects the file even after Balanced compression.
- Medical bills and receipts: Balanced. Item amounts, dates, and provider names must be clearly legible.
- Hospital discharge summaries: Balanced. Diagnosis codes and treatment details are critical.
- Police reports (accident claims): Balanced. Report numbers, descriptions, and signatures matter.
- Photos of vehicle damage (as PDF): Balanced. Image clarity is important for damage assessment.
- IC / identity documents: Maximum is fine — just the IC number and name need to be readable.
Step-by-Step: Compress and Submit
Scan Your Documents
If you have physical receipts or bills, scan them using your phone's camera scanning app (iOS Notes, Android Google Drive, or a dedicated scanner app). Save as PDF. Aim for 200 DPI when scanning — this gives good quality while keeping file size manageable.
Open ShrinkPDF
Go to shrinkpdf.fyi on your phone or computer. Your documents never leave your device.
Upload and Compress
Tap Choose PDF File, select the document, and choose Balanced compression. Download the compressed file.
Verify Before Submitting
Open the compressed PDF and check that all amounts, dates, and reference numbers are clearly readable at 100% zoom. If anything is hard to read, go back and use Balanced instead of Maximum, or re-scan at higher resolution.
Upload to the Claim Portal
Submit the compressed document via your insurer's portal or email it to your agent. Keep the original uncompressed scan in a safe folder — do not delete originals after compressing.
Always keep a copy of the original uncompressed scan. The compressed version is for submission convenience. If your insurer requests a higher-resolution copy later, you'll need the original. Store originals in a cloud folder (Google Drive or iCloud) labelled by claim date.
Handling Multiple Documents
Most claims require several documents — IC copy, medical bills, referral letter, discharge summary. Insurers often prefer these as separate files, but some portals only allow one upload per claim.
- If separate files are accepted: Compress each document individually with Balanced and upload one by one.
- If only one file is allowed: Use ShrinkPDF's Merge tool to combine all documents into a single PDF in the correct order, then compress the merged file with Balanced.
- Recommended order when merging: IC copy → referral letter → medical bill(s) → pharmacy receipt(s) → discharge summary → any other supporting docs.
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