· Written and maintained by Nonimo
A New Hampshire driver’s license gets copied far more often than it gets shown: a landlord, a new employer, an insurance agent, a car rental desk or a medical office may all want one. Each copy then sits in an inbox or a chat for years. A watermark across the card names the person or company you sent it to and the month you sent it, so a copy that shows up anywhere else gives itself away.
The tool above adds that watermark in your browser: add the front of your license, and the back if they asked for it, write who the copy is for and download it. The photo of your license never leaves your device.
How to watermark a New Hampshire driver’s license
1. Add the front, and the back only if it was requested
The tool has two zones, Front and Back. In each one, choose Photos to pick a picture you already took or Camera to take one now; on a computer you can also drop the file in. JPG, PNG, WEBP, HEIC (the iPhone’s photo format) and PDF all work. Lay the card flat on a dark surface for the picture. Leave the Back zone empty unless the request mentions both sides.
2. Write who the copy is for
The Watermark text field comes prefilled with a complete line, “For this application only”, followed by the current month and year. Keep it as is, or edit it to say who gets the copy and why. The Suggested text buttons offer COPY, Not valid as ID, For verification only or Do not copy or distribute, though a specific line protects more.
The panel called Customize your watermark holds the rest: Layout (Tiled, Diagonal or Horizontal), Font, Color, Opacity, Size and Angle. Reset settings puts everything back. To move the watermark, drag it on the card.
3. Download the watermarked copy
Each side has its own Download button, as PDF, PNG or JPG. With both sides in, Download both sides as PDF gives you a single page with the front above and the back below, each with its watermark. The text is burned into the image, and the new file carries no EXIF or GPS metadata, the hidden detail explained in removing metadata from PDFs and photos.
What to write on a New Hampshire license copy
Three things: who it’s for, what for, and the month. A line that names one apartment or one job exposes any other use of the copy; a generic COPY can’t.
For Maple Avenue apartment lease use only · October 2026
For new patient registration use only · October 2026
For auto policy quote use only · October 2026
For airport car rental pickup use only · October 2026
A new job is the one place a watermarked copy doesn’t stand in. Form I-9 is completed with your original, unexpired documents: the employer examines them in your presence, or, if it uses E-Verify and follows the DHS alternative procedure, on a live video call after you send it clear, unaltered copies of the front and back. Any copy that goes with your I-9 has to match the original exactly, so don’t watermark it. A watermark is for the copies that simply get emailed and stored: a landlord, an insurer, a car rental desk, a doctor’s office, or an employer’s own onboarding file when it asks for one. On the USCIS list of acceptable Form I-9 documents, a driver’s license issued by a state is a List B document: it proves identity, and it goes with a List C document such as a Social Security card. A Green Card is List A and covers both at once; for the copies a landlord or an insurer asks for, here’s how to watermark a Green Card.
Put the month, not just the year. If a copy you sent for an October lease shows up on a car loan in March, the date alone tells you it was reused.
What a New Hampshire license shows on the copy
New Hampshire licenses are issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles of the New Hampshire Department of Safety. Its REAL ID page says a REAL ID driver license or non-driver ID is marked with a star in the top right corner, and that a card without it will read “NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION.” REAL ID is voluntary in New Hampshire, the DMV says, but since federal enforcement began on May 7, 2025 you need the star, a passport or another accepted document to board a domestic flight or enter a secure federal facility.
The current design arrived in January 2025. The DMV’s announcement describes updated images of the state flower, the purple lilac, and of the Old Man of the Mountain, along with counterfeit-resistant materials and overt and covert security features. The previous redesign was in 2017. Existing licenses stay valid until they expire, and cardholders get the new design when they renew, so either version may be in your wallet. The DMV also says every license is printed by its own staff at its headquarters in Concord.
None of that changes with a watermark: your name, photo, license number and the star or the “not for federal identification” line all stay readable under it.
On the back, federal REAL ID rules require a compliant card to carry a PDF417 barcode that holds, among other data, your full legal name, date of birth, address and license number. Send the back only when asked.
What New Hampshire law says about license data
Under RSA 263:12, it is a misdemeanor to knowingly scan, record, retain or store, in any electronic form, personal information obtained from any license, unless the Department of Safety authorizes it. The definition of personal information in RSA 260:14 includes your photograph, driver identification number, name and address, though not the five-digit ZIP code.
The same paragraph lists who may scan with your consent. A pawnbroker, scrap metal dealer or other secondhand dealer can scan your license when you sell them merchandise, to submit it to law enforcement databases that track stolen goods, and may not pass it to anyone but a law enforcement officer. Since January 1, 2025, a licensed real estate broker can also scan it to identify ownership in a sale of real property, but may not keep the scan past the closing date or after you ask. The statute also lets someone pass along details from the face of your license in non-electronic form, with your consent unless it goes to law enforcement.
The same section makes it a misdemeanor to reproduce a license in a way that could be mistaken for a valid one. On the practical side, a line written across your photo tells anyone who opens the file, at a glance, that it’s a picture you sent to one recipient.
Those rules govern what a business does with your card. A watermark works on the copy you choose to send: it ties that copy to the one place you sent it.
Where the watermark goes: Tiled, Diagonal or Horizontal
Across the data, never in a corner. A line along the edge can be cropped off in a second, and the copy is clean again.
Tiled repeats your line diagonally over the whole card, across the photo, the name and the license number. It leaves no clean strip to cut away, so use it for a landlord you haven’t met or anyone you won’t deal with again.
Diagonal and Horizontal place a single line, quieter and easier to read around. They suit an office you already know, such as your employer’s HR team. Drag the line until it crosses your name and license number, not the margin.
Sending a New Hampshire license copy safely
Check who is asking first. The FTC’s warning about rental listing scams describes fake landlords who collect a picture of your driver’s license along with paystubs and other details, and then use them to steal identities. When a request arrives through a listing site or a text from a number you don’t know, look up the landlord or the company on your own and reach them that way before you send anything.
Prefer the company’s own upload portal over email or a chat app, where the photo stays in both phones for good.
If the card itself is lost or stolen, the DMV’s duplicate license page says you must apply for a duplicate. With your image on file you can do it online and have the card mailed to your New Hampshire address, or make an appointment. If a copy went to the wrong person, the Attorney General’s identity theft guide for New Hampshire residents suggests asking the three credit bureaus for a fraud alert, closing accounts you believe were compromised and filing a report with your local police department or sheriff’s office. IdentityTheft.gov builds a report and a recovery plan if your details are already being misused.
A license from another state works the same way, with its own details: see the pages to watermark a driver’s license from California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia, Washington, Arizona, Tennessee, Indiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Maryland, Wisconsin, Colorado, Minnesota, South Carolina, Alabama, Kentucky, Oregon, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Utah, Iowa, Nevada, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Idaho, West Virginia, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Rhode Island, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Vermont, Wyoming or DC. If you’d rather send a document without your home address, a watermarked passport card copy is the other option.
For the rest of what Nonimo does, including a desktop app that redacts client names and ID numbers before text reaches an AI tool, start at the Nonimo homepage.
Common questions
What should I write on a copy of my New Hampshire driver's license?
Who the copy is for, what it's for, and the month and year, for example: For Maple Avenue apartment lease use only, October 2026. If the copy turns up on a different application, that line shows it doesn't belong there. A plain COPY fits any use, so it proves nothing.
Will a watermark hide the star on my New Hampshire license?
No. A watermark hides nothing; it is text laid across the card, and everything under it stays readable. The New Hampshire DMV marks a REAL ID license with a star in the top right corner, and a card that isn't REAL ID reads NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION. Someone checking your copy will still see either one, along with your name, photo and license number. Lower the Opacity if you want the line lighter.
Can a New Hampshire business scan my license?
Generally not without authorization. RSA 263:12 makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly scan, record, retain or store personal information from a license in electronic form unless the Department of Safety authorizes it. The statute allows scanning with your consent by a pawnbroker, scrap metal dealer or other secondhand dealer when you sell them merchandise, and by a licensed real estate broker identifying ownership in a sale of real property. A copy you choose to send still relies on the watermark and on who you send it to.
Do I need to send the back of my New Hampshire license?
Only if they asked for both sides. Federal REAL ID rules require a compliant card to carry a PDF417 barcode with your full legal name, date of birth, address and license number. If the back is requested, add it in the Back zone and use Download both sides as PDF: one page, front above back, each side watermarked.
Can I watermark my New Hampshire license on my phone?
Yes. The tool runs in your phone's browser. In the Front zone, tap Camera to take the picture or Photos to choose one, and HEIC pictures from an iPhone work as they are. Write the line, choose a layout, drag the watermark into place with your finger and download a PDF, PNG or JPG without installing anything.
Is my New Hampshire license uploaded anywhere when I use the tool?
No. Your license never leaves your device: the photo is read and watermarked in your browser, and nothing is sent to our servers or anyone else's. The file you download is a new image, re-encoded without EXIF or GPS metadata, so it doesn't carry your phone model or the place where you took the picture.
Will a landlord or employer in New Hampshire accept a watermarked license copy?
They should, because every detail on the card stays readable under the line. A property manager can check your name against the rental application. The watermark only makes the copy hard to pass off for some other purpose. Form I-9 for a new job is different: your employer examines the original license, not a copy.
What do I do if my New Hampshire license copy went to a scammer?
If the card itself was lost or stolen, the New Hampshire DMV says you must apply for a duplicate, online if your image is on file or by appointment. The Attorney General's identity theft guide for New Hampshire residents suggests asking the three credit bureaus for a fraud alert, closing accounts you believe were compromised and filing a report with your local police department or sheriff's office. If your details are already being misused, report it at IdentityTheft.gov.