How to Repair Excel Document Properties (docProps)

The XML is well-formed, but the text inside the timestamp elements is not a valid W3CDTF date. Tools that write free-form text into the field are the usual cause.

<dcterms:created xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">invalid-date-format</dcterms:created>
<!-- ↑ CORRUPT: not a W3CDTF timestamp -->

Fix: Replace the text with the real date and time from a trusted source, such as the file's system timestamps or your own records. If you cannot determine the value, remove the whole optional dcterms:created element. Do not invent a historical timestamp. Keep the root element and its namespace declarations intact.

<!-- Fixed: verified UTC timestamp -->
<dcterms:created xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">2025-12-29T02:30:57Z</dcterms:created>

The dates themselves are valid, but the xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF" attribute has been stripped from both the created and modified elements. The core properties format requires that attribute to say how the date is encoded.

<dcterms:created>2025-12-29T02:30:57Z</dcterms:created>
<!-- ← CORRUPT: no xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF" -->
<dcterms:modified>2025-12-30T05:11:50Z</dcterms:modified>
<!-- ← CORRUPT -->

Fix: Add the attribute back to each element. The dates do not need to change. Check that the xsi prefix is declared on the root element, since the attribute depends on it.

<!-- Fixed -->
<dcterms:created xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">2025-12-29T02:30:57Z</dcterms:created>
<dcterms:modified xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">2025-12-30T05:11:50Z</dcterms:modified>

An element uses a prefix such as dcterms: but the root element no longer declares it. The XML parser rejects the whole file because it cannot resolve the prefix.

<cp:coreProperties
    xmlns:cp="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/package/2006/metadata/core-properties"
    xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
    <!-- ← CORRUPT: xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" is missing -->
    xmlns:dcmitype="http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/"
    xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
  <dcterms:created xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">2025-12-29T02:30:57Z</dcterms:created>

Fix: Add the missing declaration back to the root element, using the exact URI. Do not change the element names.

<!-- Fixed: add to the root element -->
xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"

Extra elements have been appended to app.xml with values that make no sense. DocSecurity is a bit-flag whose defined values are 0, 1, 2, 4, and 8, and this one is a second DocSecurity element alongside the correct one. The counts Pages, Words, and Characters must be whole numbers, and the values given are negative or not a number at all.

<DocSecurity>0</DocSecurity>
...
<AppVersion>16.0300</AppVersion>
<DocSecurity>999</DocSecurity>
<!-- ↑ CORRUPT: duplicate element, and 999 is not a defined value -->

<Pages>-5</Pages>
<Words>-100</Words>
<Characters>not-a-number</Characters>
<!-- ↑ CORRUPT: negative counts and a non-numeric value -->

Fix: Delete the appended elements. Excel does not normally write Pages, Words, or Characters for a workbook, so nothing is lost by removing them. If you want to keep one, replace it with a correct non-negative whole number. Make sure only one DocSecurity element remains and that it holds a defined value.

<!-- Fixed: only the original element remains -->
<DocSecurity>0</DocSecurity>

A second HeadingPairs or TitlesOfParts element has been added, and each one disagrees with itself. The size says one thing, the number of items says another, and the sheet count does not match the real workbook.

<HeadingPairs>
  <vt:vector size="4" baseType="variant">   <!-- ← CORRUPT: size says 4 -->
    <vt:variant><vt:lpstr>Worksheets</vt:lpstr></vt:variant>
    <vt:variant><vt:i4>3</vt:i4></vt:variant>   <!-- ← CORRUPT: the workbook has 2 sheets -->
    <!-- only 2 items present -->
  </vt:vector>
</HeadingPairs>

<TitlesOfParts>
  <vt:vector size="10" baseType="lpstr">   <!-- ← CORRUPT: size says 10 -->
    <vt:lpstr>Sheet1</vt:lpstr>
    <vt:lpstr>Sheet2</vt:lpstr>
    <!-- only 2 items present -->
  </vt:vector>
</TitlesOfParts>

Fix: Each of these elements may appear only once, and the original, correct ones are already in the file. Delete the extra copies. If you do need to edit the originals, make each size equal the number of child items, and make the sheet count equal the number of <sheet> entries in workbook.xml.

<!-- Fixed: the original, consistent versions are kept -->
<HeadingPairs>
  <vt:vector size="2" baseType="variant">
    <vt:variant><vt:lpstr>Worksheets</vt:lpstr></vt:variant>
    <vt:variant><vt:i4>2</vt:i4></vt:variant>
  </vt:vector>
</HeadingPairs>
<TitlesOfParts>
  <vt:vector size="2" baseType="lpstr">
    <vt:lpstr>Sheet1</vt:lpstr>
    <vt:lpstr>Sheet2</vt:lpstr>
  </vt:vector>
</TitlesOfParts>

Not every odd-looking property is corruption. Author, last-modified-by, and company are descriptive and optional. An empty element or a missing one is valid XML and does not affect a single cell. These files are in the library to show what a repair tool should leave alone, or fill in only if you want the metadata.

<!-- DocProps_MissingCreator: element present but empty -->
<dc:creator></dc:creator>

<!-- DocProps_MissingLastModifiedBy: element removed -->
<!-- <cp:lastModifiedBy> is simply absent -->

<!-- DocProps_EmptyCompany: element present but empty (this is how Excel itself saves it) -->
<Company/>

What to do: Nothing is required. If you want the metadata restored, type a real name back into dc:creator or add <cp:lastModifiedBy> with the real value. Do not invent author details. Remember that removing author or company information is a privacy choice, separate from repairing corruption.

<!-- Optional: restore real values -->
<dc:creator>Me</dc:creator>
<cp:lastModifiedBy>Me</cp:lastModifiedBy>

The properties file is gone from the ZIP, but the root relationship and the manifest override still point at it. Neither file contains worksheet data, so this is recoverable.

docProps/
                     <- CORRUPT: core.xml (or app.xml) is not in the archive

<!-- _rels/.rels: still present -->
<Relationship Id="rId2" Type=".../metadata/core-properties" Target="docProps/core.xml"/>
<!-- [Content_Types].xml: still present -->
<Override PartName="/docProps/core.xml" ContentType="...core-properties+xml"/>

Fix: Restore the file from a backup if you have one. Otherwise recreate it from the healthy examples at the top of this guide, with real values. For app.xml, set the sheet names and count to match workbook.xml. For core.xml, use a correct creator and sensible timestamps rather than copying someone else's. If you would rather not keep the part, remove both its relationship and its manifest override so nothing points at a missing file.

<!-- Fixed (recreated minimal core.xml) -->
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<cp:coreProperties
    xmlns:cp="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/package/2006/metadata/core-properties"
    xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
    xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"
    xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
  <dcterms:modified xsi:type="dcterms:W3CDTF">2026-01-01T00:00:00Z</dcterms:modified>
</cp:coreProperties>

Use the real date and time of the repair for the modified value; the one above is only an illustration.