Adding Fields to a Template

Fields are the parts of the PDF a signer fills in: their signature, text boxes, dropdowns, checkboxes and so on. You place them in the field designer, and each field belongs to one signer.

To open the designer, click Edit Fields on any signer card while creating or editing a template. The PDF must have finished converting first.

The designer layout

Left - choose which signer you're adding fields for, then pick a field type.
Middle - the document. Scroll through the pages and drag fields into place.
Right - with nothing selected, a list of every field grouped by page. With a field selected, that field's settings.
Top - hotkeys, undo and redo, zoom, delete, copy and paste, plus Cancel and Save.

Step 1 - Choose a signer

Under 1. Choose a Group, select the signer you want to add fields for. Fields take on that signer's colour, so you can see at a glance who fills in what.

Step 2 - Add a field

Under 2. Add a Field, either:

Drag a field type onto the page where you want it, or
Click a field type to drop it in the middle of the page you're looking at, then drag it into place.

Drag a field to move it, and drag its handles to resize it. You can also select several fields and move them together with the arrow keys.

Standard fields

Signature - where the signer's signature appears. A signer only signs once. If you add several signature boxes for the same signer, their one signature fills all of them.
Dropdown - the signer picks one option from a list you set.
Checkbox - a tick box. Checkboxes can be grouped with rules like "select exactly 1". See checkbox groups.
Date signed - filled in automatically with the date the signer signs. The signer can't change it.
Text - a free text box. You can add a default value, a character limit and a validation rule.

Prefilled fields

Prefilled fields are text boxes that start with a value from the signer's own Canyou profile. The signer can still change the value before signing.

Email - the signer's email address. Checked as a valid email.
Name - the signer's given and family name.
Date of birth - the signer's date of birth. Checked as a date in DD/MM/YYYY format.
Address - the signer's address.

The value always comes from the person signing, not the user the workflow is for. So a Name field placed for the "Employer" signer fills in the name of the admin who countersigns. If a profile detail is missing, the field starts empty.

Step 3 - Set up each field

Click a field to see its settings on the right. Every field has:

Field name - shown to the signer when they hover over the field, and used in the field list and error messages. Give it a clear name like "Employment type" rather than "Dropdown 1".
Signer - the dropdown under the name. Change it to move the field to a different signer.
Placement - exact position (X, Y) and size (height, width) in millimetres, for lining fields up precisely.

Depending on the field type you'll also see:

Text settings

Required - untick to let the signer leave it blank.
Text - a default value the signer starts with.
Characters - the maximum number of characters allowed.
Validation - a format the answer must match, such as email, phone or ABN. See text validation.
Font - font size, character spacing, line height and alignment.

Required - untick to make choosing an option optional.
Options - edit, remove, or click Add Option to add choices. A dropdown needs at least one option.
Default option - optionally preselect an option.

Checkbox settings

Validation - the rule for the checkbox group, for example Select exactly 1. New groups start as Select at least 1.

To add another checkbox to the same group, select a checkbox and click the small + below it. The new checkbox appears to the right and shares the group's rule. Dragging a new checkbox from the left panel starts a separate group.

Read checkbox groups before you set this up. It's the most common cause of signers getting stuck.

Date signed settings

Date format - how the date is written, for example "01 Jan 2023", "01/01/2022" or "Monday, January 1st 2022". Some formats include the time and time zone.

Delete or Backspace - delete the selected fields
Ctrl + A or Cmd + A - select all fields
Arrow keys - move the selected fields
Ctrl + = and Ctrl + - - zoom in and out
Ctrl + Z - undo, Ctrl + Shift + Z - redo
Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V - copy and paste the selected fields

Clicking the zoom percentage fits the current page to the screen.