# Regions and data residency Choose a regional base URL so your PDFs are processed where your compliance and data-residency rules require. Every PDF Blocks action runs in the region you address. Pick a base URL and your document is processed there and nowhere else. Choosing a region is as simple as swapping the host in the URL — every region runs the full catalog of 17 actions, with the same uptime. ## Regional endpoints Send your request to the base URL for the region you want to process in. | Region | Base URL | | -------------- | --------------------------------- | | Global | `https://api.pdfblocks.com` | | United States | `https://us.api.pdfblocks.com` | | US HIPAA | `https://hipaa.api.pdfblocks.com` | | European Union | `https://eu.api.pdfblocks.com` | | United Kingdom | `https://uk.api.pdfblocks.com` | | Canada | `https://ca.api.pdfblocks.com` | | Australia | `https://au.api.pdfblocks.com` | | Japan | `https://jp.api.pdfblocks.com` | | India | `https://in.api.pdfblocks.com` | | Brazil | `https://br.api.pdfblocks.com` | Every region above is live, serves the complete action catalog, and is backed by the same uptime commitment. The **Global** endpoint routes each request to nearby infrastructure for the lowest latency; the named regional endpoints pin processing to a specific jurisdiction. ## Region availability by plan Which regions you can address depends on your plan: - **Free** — Global. - **Starter** — Global, US, and Europe. - **Business** — every region above. See [pricing](/pricing) for the full breakdown. ## What "processing stays in region" means A request sent to a regional base URL is processed entirely within that region. Your upload is received, transformed, and returned by infrastructure in that jurisdiction — it does not travel elsewhere to be processed. Because the API is **stateless**, there is nothing to store: your document exists only in memory for the lifetime of the request. Once the response is streamed back, the input and output are gone — there is no bucket, database, or queue that retains your files after the call completes. Data residency therefore comes down to a single decision: which host you send the request to. ## The US HIPAA endpoint `https://hipaa.api.pdfblocks.com` is a United States endpoint operated for workflows that handle protected health information (PHI) under HIPAA. Route requests here when your compliance program requires PDF processing to run in a HIPAA-aligned environment. Like every region, it is stateless and runs the full action catalog. ## Choosing a region Pick the region that matches where your data is allowed to be processed: - **Global** — the default. Best latency, no residency constraint. - **European Union** (`eu.`) — keep processing within the EU for GDPR and other EU data-residency requirements. - **United Kingdom** (`uk.`) — keep processing within the UK. - **United States** (`us.`) and **US HIPAA** (`hipaa.`) — process in the US, with the HIPAA endpoint for PHI workflows. - **Canada** (`ca.`), **Australia** (`au.`), **Japan** (`jp.`), **India** (`in.`), and **Brazil** (`br.`) — process within that country to satisfy local data-residency rules. If your requirement is simply "keep this in region X," send every request to that region's host and you are done. ## Switching regions Switching regions is a one-line change: keep the path, the parameters, and your API key exactly the same, and change only the host. The example below runs [Add a text watermark](/docs/api/add-text-watermark-to-pdf) in the EU instead of Global. ```bash title="cURL" # Global curl https://api.pdfblocks.com/v1/add_text_watermark \ -H 'X-API-Key: your_api_key' \ -F file=@input.pdf \ -F line_1='CONFIDENTIAL' \ -o watermarked.pdf # European Union — same request, EU host curl https://eu.api.pdfblocks.com/v1/add_text_watermark \ -H 'X-API-Key: your_api_key' \ -F file=@input.pdf \ -F line_1='CONFIDENTIAL' \ -o watermarked.pdf ``` Your [API key](/docs/api/authentication) works on every region — there are no per-region keys to manage. See [Requests and responses](/docs/api/requests-and-responses) for the shape every call shares. ## More regions Need a region that isn't listed? Additional regions can be provisioned on request, each with its own regional endpoint and the same full catalog. Reach out through [Support and status](/docs/api/support-and-status) with your requirement.