How to Print a Secured PDF on Windows, Mac & Mobile (With and Without the Print Lock)

One thing worth knowing before you start: a PDF can carry two different locks, and they behave differently. An open password is the one you type to view the file at all. A permission password (also called an owner or permissions password) lets you read the file freely but blocks actions like printing, editing, or copying. Printing that "won't work" is almost always the second kind — the document opens fine, but the print button is dead. This article covers four routes for it: printing directly in UPDF with the password, removing the lock first, printing from your phone, and batch-unlocking many files at once.

⚠️ Before you print: only print or unlock PDFs you own or are authorized to handle. Removing a permission password on a file you don't have rights to may violate the document owner's terms or copyright.

Part 1. Which Method Should You Use?

Not every "secured PDF" needs the same fix. Match your situation to the right method below.

The lead-in for all of them is the same: you must be authorized, and you generally need the permission password. No legitimate tool prints a print-restricted PDF that you can't otherwise unlock.

Want to follow along on your own file? Download UPDF for free — installation takes under a minute, and Pro features are available when you need watermark-free output or batch printing.

Part 2. How to Print a Secured PDF Directly in UPDF (Windows & Mac)

This is the fastest route. UPDF opens the protected file, prompts you for the permission password at the moment you print, and hands the pages straight to your printer — the lock stays on the saved file.

Step 1. Open UPDF on your desktop, click Open File, and choose the secured PDF you want to print. (If the file also has an open password, enter it here first to view the document.)

Step 2. Click the dropdown arrow next to the Save icon and choose Print.

Step 3. UPDF prompts you for the permission password. Enter it and click Unlock to open the print interface.

Step 4. Select your printer, set the paper size and orientation, choose the page range, and click Print.

Part 3. How to Remove the Permission Lock First, Then Print

Instead of unlocking at print time, you strip the permission password once and save an unrestricted copy. Every future print (and edit) then runs without a prompt.

Step 1. Open the protected PDF in UPDF, click the dropdown arrow next to Save, and choose Remove Password.

Step 2. UPDF asks for the permission password. Enter it, click Unlock, and choose where to save the unlocked PDF.

Step 3. UPDF opens the unlocked copy automatically. Open the print interface as in Part 2 and print — no password prompt this time.

If you regularly handle contracts or statements that arrive print-locked, download UPDF for free and try removing the lock on a copy first — installation is free, and Pro removes the trial watermark when you need clean output.

Part 4. How to Print a Secured PDF From iPhone, iPad, or Android

Step 1. Open UPDF on your iOS or Android device, tap the + icon, tap Files, and select the locked PDF.

Step 2. Enter the open password to open the PDF.

Step 3. Tap the three-dots icon in the top-right corner and tap Print.

Step 4. Choose your printer, set the page range, page size, and layout, then tap Print. You can also tap the Share icon to send the file elsewhere.

Part 5. How to Clear Restrictions With a Dedicated Password Remover (aJoysoft + UPDF)

aJoysoft PDF Password Remover is a standalone utility focused solely on removing PDF passwords and permission restrictions. You point it at the locked files, it saves cleared copies, and then UPDF prints them — including in one batch run.

Step 1. Go to the aJoysoft official site, click Try It Free to download it, and install it on your PC.

Step 2. Open aJoysoft and click Add Files to import your restricted PDFs. You can load several at once.

Step 3. Click Remove Password, then choose where to save the unrestricted copies. aJoysoft saves cleared versions you can print with UPDF.

Step 4. On UPDF's home page, click Tools, then choose Print under the Batch Process section.

Step 5. Click Add Files to import the unlocked PDFs, then click Print to open the printing interface and print the files in one run.

How to get aJoysoft: you don't buy it separately. UPDF Pro users can unlock lifetime access by emailing [email protected] from their registered UPDF account address to request a redemption code. Eligible plans are UPDF Pro Annual, UPDF Pro Lifetime, or either paired with the AI bundle — current prices are on the UPDF pricing page.

Video tutorial for Printing a Secured PDF

Part 6. Open Password vs. Permission Password vs. Print Restriction — What's the Difference?

These three get confused constantly, and the confusion is exactly why printing "fails."

Open password → you can't even open the file without it. Permission password → the file opens, but actions like printing, copying, and editing are blocked. Print restriction → the specific action a permission password can switch off, which is why a file you can read still won't print.

Think of it as a building: the open password is the front-door key, the permission password is the set of internal-door keys, and the print restriction is one locked internal door. You're inside and can look around, but that one door stays shut until you have its key.

Part 7. Edge Cases — When the Standard Steps Don't Work

Even with the right method, a few situations trip people up:

• "I entered the password but printing is still greyed out." You likely typed the open password when the file wants the permission password. They can be different strings — the print prompt specifically wants the permission (owner) password.
• "I don't know the permission password at all." No tool legitimately bypasses a lock on a file you can't unlock or aren't authorized to reset. Ask the document's sender for the permission password or an unrestricted copy.
• "Print works on desktop but not from my phone." UPDF Mobile handles open-password files and standard printing; permission-password removal is desktop-only. Unlock on Windows or Mac (Method 2), then reopen on mobile.
• "Batch print skips some files." On the free tier, Batch Process handles only two files at a time. Clearing a large stack in one run needs UPDF Pro.

Part 8. FAQs About Printing Secured PDFs

Conclusion

Printing a secured PDF comes down to knowing which lock you're facing: a permission password blocks the print action, so you either enter it at print time (Method 1), remove it once for repeat use (Method 2), print from mobile (Method 3), or clear restrictions with the dedicated aJoysoft remover and print through UPDF's Batch Process (Method 4). Each route assumes you're authorized to handle the file.

For a fuller picture of every lock a PDF can carry — open passwords, permission passwords, redaction, and more — see UPDF's guide on how to protect a PDF.

Download UPDF for free to try printing or unlocking a secured PDF on your own file — installation is free, and Pro features are available when you need watermark-free output or batch printing.