Paperless-ngx MCP Server

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for interacting with a Paperless-ngx API server. This server provides tools for managing documents, tags, correspondents, and document types in your Paperless-ngx instance.

Quick Start

Installation

1. Get your API token:

   1. Log into your Paperless-ngx instance
   2. Click your username in the top right
   3. Select "My Profile"
   4. Click the circular arrow button to generate a new token

2. Add it to your MCP client configuration (using env vars):

   {
   	"mcpServers": {
   		"paperless": {
   			"command": "bunx", // or npx
   			"args": ["@kjanat/paperless-mcp"],
   			"env": {
   				"PAPERLESS_URL": "http://your-paperless-instance:8000",
   				"PAPERLESS_API_KEY": "your-api-token",
   			},
   		},
   	},
   }
   

   Or pass them as positional arguments:

   {
   	"mcpServers": {
   		"paperless": {
   			"command": "bunx", // or npx
   			"args": [
   				"@kjanat/paperless-mcp",
   				"http://your-paperless-instance:8000",
   				"your-api-token",
   			],
   		},
   	},
   }
   

   CLI args take precedence over env vars when both are provided.

That's it!

Agent Skill

This package ships an Agent Skill in skills/paperless-ngx/ with decision trees, tool reference docs, query syntax guide, and workflow templates for AI agents.

View the skill on the registry: https://skills.sh/kjanat/paperless-mcp/paperless-ngx

Add using:

bunx skills add https://github.com/kjanat/paperless-mcp --skill paperless-ngx

# or npx -y skills...

Example Usage

Here are some things you can ask Claude to do:

• "Show me all documents tagged as 'Invoice'"
• "Search for documents containing 'tax return'"
• "Create a new tag called 'Receipts' with color #FF0000"
• "Download document #123"
• "List all correspondents"
• "Create a new document type called 'Bank Statement'"

Available Tools

Document Operations

get_document

Get a specific document by ID.

Parameters:

• id: Document ID

get_document({
	id: 123,
});

search_documents

Full-text search across documents.

Parameters:

• query: Search query string

search_documents({
	query: 'invoice 2024',
});

download_document

Download a document file by ID.

Parameters:

• id: Document ID
• original (optional): If true, downloads original file instead of archived version

download_document({
	id: 123,
	original: false,
});

bulk_edit_documents

Perform bulk operations on multiple documents.

Parameters:

• documents: Array of document IDs
• method: One of:
  • set_correspondent: Set correspondent for documents
  • set_document_type: Set document type for documents
  • set_storage_path: Set storage path for documents
  • add_tag: Add a tag to documents
  • remove_tag: Remove a tag from documents
  • modify_tags: Add and/or remove multiple tags
  • delete: Delete documents
  • reprocess: Reprocess documents
  • set_permissions: Set document permissions
  • merge: Merge multiple documents
  • split: Split a document into multiple documents
  • rotate: Rotate document pages
  • delete_pages: Delete specific pages from a document
• Additional parameters based on method:
  • correspondent: ID for set_correspondent
  • document_type: ID for set_document_type
  • storage_path: ID for set_storage_path
  • tag: ID for add_tag/remove_tag
  • add_tags: Array of tag IDs for modify_tags
  • remove_tags: Array of tag IDs for modify_tags
  • permissions: Object for set_permissions with owner, permissions, merge flag
  • metadata_document_id: ID for merge to specify metadata source
  • delete_originals: Boolean for merge/split
  • pages: String for split "[1,2-3,4,5-7]" or delete_pages "[2,3,4]"
  • degrees: Number for rotate (90, 180, or 270)

Examples:

// Add a tag to multiple documents
bulk_edit_documents({
	documents: [1, 2, 3],
	method: 'add_tag',
	tag: 5,
});

// Set correspondent and document type
bulk_edit_documents({
	documents: [4, 5],
	method: 'set_correspondent',
	correspondent: 2,
});

// Merge documents
bulk_edit_documents({
	documents: [6, 7, 8],
	method: 'merge',
	metadata_document_id: 6,
	delete_originals: true,
});

// Split document into parts
bulk_edit_documents({
	documents: [9],
	method: 'split',
	pages: '[1-2,3-4,5]',
});

// Modify multiple tags at once
bulk_edit_documents({
	documents: [10, 11],
	method: 'modify_tags',
	add_tags: [1, 2],
	remove_tags: [3, 4],
});

post_document

Upload a new document to Paperless-ngx.

Parameters:

• file: Base64 encoded file content
• filename: Name of the file
• title (optional): Title for the document
• created (optional): DateTime when the document was created (e.g. "2024-01-19" or "2024-01-19 06:15:00+02:00")
• correspondent (optional): ID of a correspondent
• document_type (optional): ID of a document type
• storage_path (optional): ID of a storage path
• tags (optional): Array of tag IDs
• archive_serial_number (optional): Archive serial number
• custom_fields (optional): Array of custom field IDs

post_document({
	file: 'base64_encoded_content',
	filename: 'invoice.pdf',
	title: 'January Invoice',
	created: '2024-01-19',
	correspondent: 1,
	document_type: 2,
	tags: [1, 3],
	archive_serial_number: '2024-001',
});

Tag Operations

list_tags

Get all tags.

list_tags();

create_tag

Create a new tag.

Parameters:

• name: Tag name
• color (optional): Hex color code (e.g. "#ff0000")
• match (optional): Text pattern to match
• matching_algorithm (optional): Integer 0-6 (0=none, 1=any, 2=all, 3=exact, 4=regex, 5=fuzzy, 6=auto)

create_tag({
	name: 'Invoice',
	color: '#ff0000',
	match: 'invoice',
	matching_algorithm: 5,
});

update_tag

Update an existing tag's name, color, or matching rules.

Parameters:

• id: Tag ID
• name: New tag name
• color (optional): Hex color code (e.g. "#ff0000")
• match (optional): Text pattern to match
• matching_algorithm (optional): Integer 0-6 (0=none, 1=any, 2=all, 3=exact, 4=regex, 5=fuzzy, 6=auto)

update_tag({
	id: 5,
	name: 'Invoices',
	color: '#00ff00',
});

delete_tag

Permanently delete a tag. Removes it from all documents.

Parameters:

• id: Tag ID

delete_tag({
	id: 5,
});

bulk_edit_tags

Bulk set permissions or delete multiple tags.

Parameters:

• tag_ids: Array of tag IDs
• operation: "set_permissions" or "delete"
• owner (optional): User ID (for set_permissions)
• permissions (optional): Object with view/change user and group IDs
• merge (optional): Merge with existing permissions (default false)

bulk_edit_tags({
	tag_ids: [1, 2, 3],
	operation: 'delete',
});

Correspondent Operations

list_correspondents

Get all correspondents.

list_correspondents();

create_correspondent

Create a new correspondent.

Parameters:

• name: Correspondent name
• match (optional): Text pattern to match
• matching_algorithm (optional): Integer 0-6 (0=none, 1=any, 2=all, 3=exact, 4=regex, 5=fuzzy, 6=auto)

create_correspondent({
	name: 'ACME Corp',
	match: 'ACME',
	matching_algorithm: 5,
});

bulk_edit_correspondents

Bulk set permissions or delete multiple correspondents.

Parameters:

• correspondent_ids: Array of correspondent IDs
• operation: "set_permissions" or "delete"
• owner (optional): User ID (for set_permissions)
• permissions (optional): Object with view/change user and group IDs
• merge (optional): Merge with existing permissions (default false)

bulk_edit_correspondents({
	correspondent_ids: [1, 2],
	operation: 'delete',
});

Document Type Operations

list_document_types

Get all document types.

list_document_types();

create_document_type

Create a new document type.

Parameters:

• name: Document type name
• match (optional): Text pattern to match
• matching_algorithm (optional): Integer 0-6 (0=none, 1=any, 2=all, 3=exact, 4=regex, 5=fuzzy, 6=auto)

create_document_type({
	name: 'Invoice',
	match: 'invoice total amount due',
	matching_algorithm: 1,
});

bulk_edit_document_types

Bulk set permissions or delete multiple document types.

Parameters:

• document_type_ids: Array of document type IDs
• operation: "set_permissions" or "delete"
• owner (optional): User ID (for set_permissions)
• permissions (optional): Object with view/change user and group IDs
• merge (optional): Merge with existing permissions (default false)

bulk_edit_document_types({
	document_type_ids: [1, 2],
	operation: 'delete',
});

Error Handling

The server will show clear error messages if:

• The Paperless-ngx URL or API token is incorrect
• The Paperless-ngx server is unreachable
• The requested operation fails
• The provided parameters are invalid

Development

Want to contribute or modify the server? Here's what you need to know:

1. Clone the repository

2. Install dependencies:

   bun install
   

3. Make your changes in src/ (see src/tools/ for MCP tools, src/api/ for API client)

4. Test locally:

   bun src/index.ts http://localhost:8000 your-test-token
   

The server is built with:

• @modelcontextprotocol/sdk: Official TypeScript SDK for building MCP servers
• zod: TypeScript-first schema validation

API Documentation

This MCP server implements endpoints from the Paperless-ngx REST API. For more details about the underlying API, see the official documentation.

Running the MCP Server

The MCP server can be run in two modes:

1. stdio (default)

This is the default mode. The server communicates over stdio, suitable for CLI and direct integrations.

# via .env file (Bun loads .env automatically)
bun start

# via inline env vars
PAPERLESS_URL=http://localhost:8000 PAPERLESS_API_KEY=your-token bun start

# via positional args
bun start http://localhost:8000 your-token

[!TIP] When using Bun, env vars in a .env file are loaded automatically — no extra setup needed. Just create a .env with PAPERLESS_URL and PAPERLESS_API_KEY and run bun start.

2. HTTP (Streamable HTTP Transport)

To run the server as an HTTP service, use the --http flag. You can also specify the port with --port (default: 3000).

PAPERLESS_URL=http://localhost:8000 PAPERLESS_API_KEY=your-token bun start --http --port 3000

With a .env file, this simplifies to bun start --http.

• The MCP API will be available at POST /mcp on the specified port.
• Each request is handled statelessly, following the StreamableHTTPServerTransport pattern.
• GET and DELETE requests to /mcp will return 405 Method Not Allowed.