Signing

Signing sends PDFs for electronic signature in an envelope: you add documents, name who should sign, place the fields each person fills in, and send. Colleagues sign inside the app; customers and anybody else sign through a link sent by email, confirmed with a code. When everybody has signed, the result is sealed and can be downloaded with its evidence. Signing is part of Contracts: in the commerce journey it is the step after a contract is issued, and a completed envelope for a contract is filed as that contract's countersignature. The signatures produced are simple electronic signatures with evidence; they satisfy text form, not written form.

Where to find itCopy Anchor Link

• In the Contracts sidebar, Signatures ↗ opens /sign. The entry is shown only when your organisation sends documents for signature. With a Contracts role you can also press ⌘K and type signatures.
• /sign is drawn inside the Contracts frame. A colleague asked to sign reaches it from the notification or the email, even without a Contracts role.
• Envelopes can also be started from:
  • an issued contract's page — Send for signature;
  • a customer's Contracts tab — Send for signature;
  • a contact with an email address on a customer's Contacts tab — Send for signature.
• External signers use the public page /signing from the link in their email, and /signing/copy to download their copy. Neither page needs an account.

If Contracts is not installed, /sign shows "Contracts is not installed here".

Main workflowsCopy Anchor Link

Start an envelopeCopy Anchor Link

1. On /sign press New envelope (shown when you may send), enter a title and press Create.
2. Started from a contract, customer or contact, the envelope is linked to it and the contact is already a recipient.
3. The envelope opens in Prepare the envelope.

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1. 1New envelopeStarts an envelope; shown when you may send.
2. 2TitleWhat the recipients see the envelope as.
3. 3CreateCreates the envelope and opens Prepare the envelope.
4. 4To sign, Sent by me, AllNarrows the list; each row shows how many have signed.
5. 5Find an envelope by titleType part of a title to narrow the list.

Prepare and sendCopy Anchor Link

1. Under Details set Title, Expires on, Message, Signing order ("One after another" or "All at once"), Language of the mails and Form the law requires. Press Save details.
2. Under Documents press Add PDFs. Encrypted, already signed or scripted PDFs are refused.
3. Under Recipients use Add a colleague or Add somebody by email (Name, Email address, Add). Set each signing position; equal positions are asked at the same time.
4. Under Fields pick a recipient in Fields for, then drag a field type onto a page: Signature, Initials, Text, Date, Number, Checkbox or Choice. Every recipient needs at least one signature field.
5. Press Save recipients and fields, then Send for signature and confirm. After sending, documents, recipients and fields can no longer be changed.

An envelope set to "Written form (§ 126 BGB)" cannot be sent; "Written form, electronic form excluded" has to be signed on paper.

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1. 1Signing orderOne after another, or All at once.
2. 2Form the law requiresWritten form cannot be sent; most agreements need no form.
3. 3Save detailsSaves title, expiry, message, order, language and form.
4. 4Add PDFsAdds the documents; encrypted, already signed or scripted PDFs are refused.
5. 5Send for signatureSends the envelope once recipients and fields are saved; it cannot be changed after.

Sign as a colleagueCopy Anchor Link

1. Open the envelope from the notification, the email, or To sign on /sign.
2. Under Your signature is requested, fill every required field. Use this applies a value and fills the other empty fields of the same kind.
3. Tick the consent statement and press Sign. If you signed in at your organisation's identity provider or confirmed your second factor within the last five minutes, the signature is placed straight away. Otherwise Confirm it is you asks for your current password.
4. Or press Decline and give a reason. Declining ends the envelope for everybody.

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1. 1Required fieldsNames the fields still to fill in the document above; Use this fills the other empty fields of the same kind.
2. 2ConsentTick the consent statement before signing.
3. 3SignPlaces your signature; you may be asked to confirm it is you with your password.
4. 4DeclineEnds the envelope for everybody; you give a reason.

Sign as a customer or external recipientCopy Anchor Link

1. Open the link from the email. The page greets you by name.
2. Press Send code, enter the six-digit code sent to your address and press Confirm.
3. Fill the fields, tick the consent statement and press Sign — or Decline.
4. When everybody has signed you receive an email with a link to the sealed document; on /signing/copy press Download PDF. The copy can be downloaded for thirty days after the last signature.

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1. 1Open, Verify, Sign, DoneWhere the recipient is in the signing.
2. 2GreetingThe page greets the recipient by name.
3. 3Send codeMails a six-digit code to confirm it is them; enter it and press Confirm.

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1. 1Your signed documentReached from the email sent once everybody has signed.
2. 2Download PDFThe sealed PDF; it can be downloaded for thirty days after the last signature.

Track, download or voidCopy Anchor Link

1. On /sign filter by To sign, Sent by me or All. The list opens on To sign, or on Sent by me when nothing waits for your signature. Each row shows how many have signed. Type part of a title into Find an envelope by title to narrow the list; when nothing matches, Clear filters empties the search.
2. Open an envelope to see Recipients, the Signatures progress and the Evidence trail.
3. When it is Completed, press Download the sealed PDF.
4. To stop an envelope, press Void envelope and give a reason. Every open link stops working and the recipients are told why.

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1. 1RecipientsWho was asked, in which order, and when each signed.
2. 2SignaturesHow many of the recipients have signed.
3. 3EvidenceThe trail of every step, newest first.
4. 4Download the sealed PDFThe completed document with its audit certificate.

Have a contract countersignedCopy Anchor Link

1. On an issued contract press Send for signature (needs contract.issue and contract.create).
2. The envelope holds a fresh rendering of the issued contract; the contract's contact is the first recipient. Place the fields and send.
3. When the customer's contact signs, the sealed result is filed as the contract's Countersigned document automatically.
4. Only one envelope per contract can be out at a time: while one is, Send for signature is not offered. Void it to start again.

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1. 1Sent for signatureThe envelope out for this contract and its state; while it is out, Send for signature is not offered.
2. 2Upload the countersigned documentNot needed here: when the contact signs, the sealed result is filed as the countersignature.

Roles and permissionsCopy Anchor Link

Signing uses the Contracts permissions.

External recipients need no account; they see only their own envelope, through their link.

Administration and settingsCopy Anchor Link

• Contracts' module setting "Documents may be sent for signature" is on by default. Switched off, the Signatures entry and every Send for signature button disappear and open signing links stop working; envelopes are kept until it is switched on again.
• The module setting "Timestamps come from" names an RFC 3161 timestamp service; without one, seals carry no timestamp.
• Envelopes are sealed with the organisation's certificate, stored under Contracts Setup › Administration › Signing certificate.

TipsCopy Anchor Link

• Set Expires on; unsigned envelopes end at the close of that day.
• Use "One after another" when the order of signatures matters; lower positions sign first.
• Statuses: Draft, Out for signature, Completed, Declined, Voided, Expired.
• Ask the sender for a new link if a recipient sees "This link no longer works".

RelatedCopy Anchor Link

• Customers
• Contracts
• Customer Center
• Mail
• Finance