Creating Documents

This guide covers the draft stage of the document lifecycle: upload one or more PDF or DOCX files, add recipients, place fields, and prepare the document to be sent.

Start a new draft

1. Open Documents
2. Click Create Document
3. Enter a document name
4. Upload one or more PDF or DOCX files in the order they should appear

Papyrus opens the editor immediately after upload.

File requirements

• PDF and DOCX files
• Up to 20 files per packet
• Up to 25 MB per file and 100 MB combined
• Up to 2,000 pages after conversion and merging

Choose a document name that will still make sense later in search results, audit trails, and email subject lines.

Pick a filing rule (optional)

The upload form includes a Filing rule field. Leave it on Manual to file the document yourself, or choose a rule to file it automatically into folders as it is sent, completed, voided, or declined. If your team has a default rule, it is selected for you. See Filing Rules.

Add recipients

Every draft needs the right people attached before it can be sent.

Signers

Signers need:

• A name
• An email address

Each signer gets a unique color in the editor so their fields are easy to spot.

To sign the document yourself, click Add myself — it adds you as a normal signer using your account name and email.

CC recipients

CC recipients do not sign. They receive the completed PDF after the document is finished.

Signing order

Choose the signing model that fits your workflow:

• Parallel when everyone can sign at the same time
• Sequential when signer B should not be invited until signer A finishes

Use sequential signing for approval chains, countersignatures, and similar handoff-based flows.

Place fields

Fields tell Papyrus what each signer must complete.

Common field types

Field workflow

1. Drag or place a field on the PDF
2. Assign it to the correct signer — or to Prefill fields if you will fill it in yourself before sending (text, date, checkbox, and dropdown only)
3. Resize or reposition it
4. Mark it required or optional when appropriate
5. Save the field layout

Papyrus will not let you send a document with unassigned fields. Prefill fields are the exception: they belong to no recipient, appear in the Fill in before sending panel, and required ones must be completed before the document can be sent. Signers see prefill values as fixed, read-only content.

Every placement has a visible field label. Compatible placements with the same label (ignoring outer whitespace and letter case) are linked: editing one updates every placement. The setup panel shows one row per label with its placement count, while chain badges on the page make linked and singleton labels easy to distinguish.

Renaming a linked label renames the whole group. Use Unlink this placement to give one placement a new label while retaining its value. Giving compatible placements the same label links them and uses that group's value. If the fields are incompatible, the editor explains which setting prevents the link.

Fields assigned to a signer are recipient fields — the signer completes them at signing. A recipient field can start from a default value, which the signer is free to change. Defaults come from the template, and while the document is a draft you can set or adjust each field's default value from the field's settings popover in the editor; integrations can do the same through the API values payload or PATCH /documents/{document}/fields.

Review document settings

Before sending, make sure the draft has:

• The correct recipients
• The correct signing order
• Every required field assigned
• Every required prefill field filled in
• A document name that recipients will understand

You can also prepare:

• A custom email subject
• A custom message body
• Reminder settings for this specific document

Those delivery settings are explained in more detail in Sending for Signature.

Edit while the document is still a draft

Draft documents are fully editable. You can:

• Rename the document
• Add or remove recipients
• Change signing order
• Move, resize, or delete fields
• Fill prefill fields and adjust recipient-field default values
• Save the layout as a template

Once a document is sent, the draft is locked. If you need to change the signed version later, void it and start a new document.

Understand document status

Find documents later

The documents list supports:

• Search by document name, recipient name, or recipient email
• Status filtering
• Sorting by created date, name, or status

This matters when your team is managing many active documents at once.

Automate the same flow

If you want to create drafts from your own app instead of the dashboard, the usual pattern is:

1. Build a reusable Template
2. Create documents from that template through the API
3. Decide whether Papyrus sends the email or your app embeds signing

See API Authentication for the workflow overview and the API Reference for the exact create and read operations.

Where to go next

• Sending for Signature - sending, reminders, and completion
• Templates - turn repeated layouts into reusable building blocks
• Filing Rules - auto-file documents into folders by status
• API Authentication - automate document creation
• API Reference - inspect exact request and response schemas