Question

BUG: InDesign 2025–2026 forces pasted Illustrator vectors to embedded EPS

Forum|Forum|4 months ago
January 17, 2026
3 replies
175 views

I am reporting a regression in InDesign 2025–2026.

When pasting even very simple vector artwork from Adobe Illustrator, InDesign displays the warning:
“This command would create a large number of page items and would severely degrade performance. Data will be placed as embedded EPS.”

After confirming the warning, the pasted object becomes non-editable:
- Ungroup is unavailable
- Fill and stroke cannot be edited
- The object cannot be used as an image frame

This workflow worked correctly in earlier InDesign versions and appears to be a regression.

I have filed a detailed bug report with reproduction steps and screenshots on InDesign UserVoice:
👉 [PASTE YOUR USERVOICE LINK HERE]

If this behavior is intentional, please advise on a supported workflow to convert Illustrator vectors into native editable InDesign paths.

Bug

Willi Adelberger

Community Expert

Do not copy & paste, use place.

If you insist in this way, work on your preferences for clipboards & file handling in both applications.

JIJ Creative

Thanks for the references and suggestions.

To clarify:
- The issue occurs consistently when pasting from Illustrator into InDesign 2025–2026.
- It reproduces with very simple artwork (2–3 paths, no effects, no transparency).
- Clipboard preferences have been tested in multiple configurations in both applications.

Regarding Illustrator versions:
I can reproduce the behavior when using Illustrator 2026 as the source. I will additionally test with Illustrator 2025 as suggested and report back with results.

Regarding “use Place instead of copy & paste”:
While placing Illustrator files is a valid workflow in many cases, copy & paste of editable vector artwork has been a long-established and widely used workflow in InDesign, especially for layout construction, quick iterations, and creating native image frames.

In earlier InDesign versions, identical artwork pasted correctly as native, editable paths. The current behavior represents a regression, as it removes functionality that previously worked and is still required in real-world production workflows.

If this behavior is intentional, it would be helpful to clarify:
- whether copy & paste of native editable vectors is officially deprecated, or
- whether there is a supported method to convert embedded EPS content back into native InDesign paths.

I’ll follow up with additional testing results regarding Illustrator 2025 vs 2026.

leo.r

Community Expert

A few other users reported similar (albeit might not be exactly the same) issues with pasting from Illustrator recently. I'll post links to the threads if I find them.

Also, what version of Illustrator are you using? If it's 2026, then try 2025. I think at least in one of the reported cases the source of the issue was actually Illustrator 2026.