Export a WhatsApp Chat for Submission: What to Do and Check

People often ask how to export a WhatsApp chat "for submission". The export itself is the same as any other; what matters is what you keep, what you check and who tells you the format. This page covers the practical side and leaves the legal side to your lawyer or the court.

Not legal advice. This page is general information. Whether a court admits or relies on a chat is for the court; convokeep does not promise admission or any outcome. Ask a qualified lawyer about your case.

How do I export the chat?

On your phone, open the chat and use WhatsApp's own export: on iPhone tap the contact or group name, then Export Chat; on Android use the ⋮ menu, More, Export chat. Choose without media for the longest history. The step-by-step version is in How to export a WhatsApp chat. Menu names change between app versions.

Should I include media?

Media makes the export much larger, and WhatsApp exports far fewer messages with media than without. If a photo matters, keep it separately as well. Whether the court wants media attached is a question for your lawyer or the court's directions.

What should I keep after exporting?

Keep the untouched export file, the device the chat lives on, and a copy of any PDF you make. Do not open and re-save the original. Do the work on a copy.

Does the export show deleted messages?

No. An export contains what is on your phone at the moment you export. A message deleted earlier will not be there, and a later hash cannot show that it was.

Who decides the format I must use?

The court, the other side's rules or your lawyer. Some courts give specific directions on how messages should be presented. See UK PD27A for one example in family proceedings. convokeep offers formatting prepared for submission, with an integrity hash, but cannot promise acceptance.

How do I turn the export into a dated PDF?

Use the convokeep app, choose Record, and you get page numbers, sender and time on every message, and SHA-256 hashes of the source and transcript. Read what a hash does and does not show in Chat PDF integrity hash.

Privacy

Reading the file, building the PDF and calculating hashes all happen in your browser. No chat or attachment is uploaded and there is no account. See the privacy policy and the disclaimer.

Related guides

Ready to try it?

Drop your exported chat file on the convokeep app for a free preview. The first 3 pages are free (watermarked, no integrity page); saving the full PDF is a one-time paid feature. No chat or attachment is uploaded: the file is read in your browser. To check later that a file is unchanged, use the hash checker.

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This document was generated locally in the user's browser; no content was uploaded.