Place signature fields on a PDF agreement and send it

In the signing PDF editor, link the customer, add who signs, click signature, initials and date fields onto your PDF, then check it and send it for signing.

The signing PDF editor opens right after you create an agreement with Upload PDF for signature or from a saved PDF (see Create an agreement). To come back to it, open the agreement from Agreements, then All Agreements, and press Open signing PDF editor. The page address is /agreements/ followed by the agreement and /signing-pdf; the later steps end in /placement-editor and /final-review.

Step cards across the top show where you are: 1. Prepare agreement, 2. Placement editor and 3. Final review, each with what is left. Back to agreement returns to the agreement's page.

Before you start

• Your role needs permission to edit agreement drafts and to see the uploaded PDF and its fields.
• A draft started from a reusable PDF template already has its fields placed and they cannot be moved here. Change them on the template: see Create a reusable PDF template.

Steps

1. In Prepare agreement, under Related records, press Link record and choose the customer's account. Nova can add the account's primary contact as a signer at the same time.
2. Under Signers and recipients, press Add primary contact, or press Add signer, fill in the person and press Add person. Add everyone who signs.
3. To change how it is sent, press Show on Delivery options. Pick a Send workflow (Fast send, Internal approval or Counter-sign), how outside signers prove who they are (Magic link, Text code, Email code or Portal login), and the channels and sender. Press Save delivery settings.
4. Check the file under Current PDF, then press Continue to placement editor.
5. Under Choose a signer, select the person the next fields belong to. Add signer adds someone you missed. With two or more signers, Signing order sets At the same time or In the order above.
6. Under 2. Choose a field, press Signature, Initials, Signing date or another field, then click the spot on the page. You can also drag a field onto the page. Press Esc to stop placing.
7. To change a placed field, select it, adjust it in the panel, and press Save field. Delete field removes it. Placed fields save on their own; the top reads Changes saved.
8. Repeat for each signer, then press Review checks to see anything still missing.
9. Press Continue to final review. Check Related records, Signer routing and Outstanding issues.
10. Under Delivery timing, choose Send immediately or Schedule delivery.
11. Press Send for signing. When approval is required the button reads Send for approval. Nova says Agreement sent for signing. Opening agreement. and returns to the agreement's page.

What you see

• The second tab in the left panel, next to Add fields, lists every field you placed, in the order signers are guided through them.
• A signing date field fills in when the person signs, on their own clock and with no time zone, for example "Oct 12, 2026 at 3:04 PM". The audit trail that comes with the signed PDF is the evidence record, so it names the time zone in full, for example "3:04 PM Eastern Time (UTC-04:00)".
• The final button sends straight away. There is no second confirmation.
• After sending, the PDF and its fields are frozen. Follow signing on Track agreement signing.

If something looks different

• Continue to placement editor is greyed out: the PDF is still being prepared. Wait for the page previews, or press Retry preview.
• The pages do not appear in the placement editor: press Retry previews.
• Replace PDF swaps the file but clears every field you placed. Use it only for the wrong file.
• The editor says the signing PDF is frozen: the agreement has already been sent. To change it, see Resend, revise or cancel a sent agreement.
• The top says some fields are unsaved: press Retry saving before you leave the page.

Open All Agreements