If you've received an e-invoice from a company in China, there's a good chance it arrived as an .ofd file. Double-click it on most computers and nothing useful happens, because Windows and macOS don't come with anything that opens it.

Look Scanned can now open OFD files. You can see every page, including the red electronic seal, and save it as a PDF that looks like a scanned paper copy.

What is an OFD file?

OFD stands for Open Fixed-layout Document. It's China's national standard (GB/T 33190-2016) for documents that should look the same on every screen and printer, which is the job PDF does elsewhere. In China it's used for e-invoices, contracts and government paperwork.

The trouble starts when the file leaves China. Few apps elsewhere can open it, so sending it to a finance team, attaching it to an expense claim or simply printing it gets awkward. A PDF opens on any phone or computer.

What stays on the page

We focused on the things you'd notice first on an invoice:

  • Red seals. Electronic seals are drawn onto the page, so they show up in the preview and in the PDF you download.
  • Text where it belongs. OFD places every character at an exact position. We follow those positions, including the vertical labels found on some invoices, so small print doesn't drift or get cut off.
  • The file's own fonts and images. Fonts embedded in the OFD are used, and images such as QR codes are shown.

How to turn an OFD file into a scanned PDF

  1. Open the OFD to scanned PDF page and select your .ofd file.
  2. Look through the preview. Make sure the seal and the small print are easy to read.
  3. Adjust the scan effect, such as paper tone, tilt and noise. If the amounts need to stay sharp, keep blur and noise low.
  4. Select "Generate Scanned PDF", then "Download Scanned PDF".

Got a whole folder of invoices? Bulk Scan, a Pro feature, takes several OFD files at once, and you can mix them with PDFs.

If you'd rather have one image per page, choose PNG or JPEG as the output format. Our guide to PDF, JPG and PNG explains the difference.

The OFD file is opened and converted in your browser. It isn't uploaded to a server.

Before you send it

  • A seal on the page is not a verified signature. Look Scanned shows the seal as it looks. It doesn't check the digital signature behind it, and a scanned copy can't prove the original is genuine. If someone needs to verify the invoice, send them the original .ofd file as well.
  • You can't copy the text afterwards. Each page is saved as an image, just like a real scan. Keep the original if you'll need to copy the invoice number or search the text.
  • Unusual files may look a little different. If a font isn't embedded in the file, a font from your device is used instead, and a few rarely used drawing effects aren't supported yet. Compare the preview with the original before you send it.

If there's an OFD file you haven't been able to open, try it here.