Signing example
Sign an NDA online
To sign an NDA online you upload the finished PDF, place fields for each party and send one link to each signer. This page shows exactly that, on the six page mutual NDA dated 2 October 2026 between Sable Robotics and Northwind Components from the documents examples: initials on page 2, where the definition of confidential information sits, a signature block for each company on page 6, and a six digit emailed code before either side can open it.
The document itself is written out in full on its own page: read the wording there. This page is only about signing it.
Who signs what
- Freya Lindqvist, for Sable Robotics Pty Ltd, signs first
- Initials on page 2 · Signature block on page 6 over the printed Name, Position and Date lines · Verified by emailed one-time code
- Owen Barraclough, for Northwind Components Ltd, signs second
- Initials on page 2 · Signature block on page 6 over the printed Name, Position and Date lines · Verified by emailed one-time code
The signing journey
Step 1
The sender prepares one envelope
The six page NDA is uploaded, both signers are added with Sign in order on, and four fields are placed: an initials spot on page 2 and a signature block on page 6 for each company. Sable is first in the order, so only Freya Lindqvist is invited when Send is pressed.
Step 2
Sable signs with a one-time code
The emailed link opens a verification card, not the document. Freya requests the six digit code, enters it within its ten minute life, accepts the consent statement, and one drawn signature fills both her spots. The header reads Signature 1 of 2 and walks her from the initials to the block.
Step 3
She types her title, not the date
The document already prints For Sable Robotics Pty Ltd above her lines, so the block carries Name, Title and Date. Name arrives from the recipient record, she types her position on the Title line, and the Date line is stamped Oct 2, 2026 from the moment she submits. Nobody types a date on this envelope.
Step 4
Northwind is invited only now
Because Sign in order is on, Owen Barraclough's invitation goes out only after Sable's signature lands. He repeats the same journey with his own code and signs a page that already carries the other side's stamped block.
Step 5
Both get the same certified file
The completion email goes to both signers and the sender with the certified PDF attached. The certificate is a separate download: two signer entries reading Email link + emailed one-time code, over an event log from Envelope created to the second Signed.
What the signed PDF and certificate show
The signed NDA carries initials on page 2 and two completed blocks on page 6, under the schedule of what each party expects to disclose, each with the drawn signature, the prefilled name, the typed title and a stamped date reading Oct 2, 2026, the date the agreement says it is made. The certificate lists the envelope id, both document hashes, and fifteen logged events for this envelope: created, attached, sent, then an invitation, opened link, code sent, identity verified, viewed and signed for each company in turn. The algorithm line reads PAdES-SHA256-DocMDP, which also tells you no RFC 3161 timestamp was attached.
How to adapt this envelope
For a one way NDA keep the same field layout and simply reorder so the receiving party signs first, or turn Sign in order off if nobody needs to see the counterpart before signing. A third party joins as a third recipient with its own initials spot and block, up to the envelope limit of 25 recipients and 500 fields. What you cannot do is add someone after sending: withdraw the envelope and send a fresh one instead.
Who this flow suits
Any agreement where both companies want a mark on the substance page as well as the execution page. The whole exchange took under four minutes of signer time, and neither signer needed an account, only the emailed link and the code that followed it.
What makes this signing flow work
Initials and a block from one drawing
Each signer draws once. The portal fills the page 2 initials spot and the page 6 signature block from that single drawing, so a two spot envelope does not mean two drawings, and the marks on both pages hash back to the same signature image.
Order means nobody signs an unsigned counterpart
With the Sign in order switch on, Northwind cannot even open the document until Sable has signed. The second signer always executes a copy that already carries the first block, which is how NDA counterparts should meet.
The code ties each signature to a mailbox
Both signers verified with a six digit emailed code that expires in ten minutes. The certificate prints Email link + emailed one-time code beside each name, with the IP address and consent timestamp, so the evidence is more than a clicked link.
Questions people ask
Do both parties have to sign at the same time?
No. This envelope enforces a sequence: the second company is not even invited until the first has signed. If the order does not matter to you, turn the Sign in order switch off and both invitations go out at once, which is how the residential lease example runs.
Can the second signer see the first signature?
Yes. The document the second signer opens is the stamped copy, so Northwind saw Sable's completed block and initials before drawing anything. That is the point of sequential order on an NDA: nobody executes a counterpart that the other side has not signed.
Is an NDA signed online enforceable?
The envelope keeps the evidence such arguments turn on: who was invited, the code they redeemed, the consent they accepted with its timestamp and version, the IP address, and a hash chain over every event. Whether a particular NDA binds is a legal question for your jurisdiction, and this page is not legal advice.
What happens if one party declines?
The envelope moves to declined, nothing further is stamped, and the sender receives a Declined email carrying the reason the signer typed. The contractor agreement example shows a real declined run, including the reason text and what the sender sees afterwards.
Does it change anything that Northwind is a UK company?
Not for the signing flow. Owen receives the same emailed link and code as Freya, and his IP address and consent time are recorded the same way. What the parties agreed about law sits in the document: clause 9.1 applies the laws of Queensland and both submit to its courts, wherever the information is held, so the certified PDF carries that choice for both sides.
Can I add a third company after sending?
No. Recipients and fields are locked once the envelope is sent, and the editor redirects to the status page from then on. Withdraw the envelope, which voids the old links and emails everyone still holding one, then send a new envelope with three signers.
Build your own in about a minute
The button below opens the generator with this use case already described. Change the wording to match your own, generate, then edit anything you like.
Make one like thisOther signing examples
Contractor agreement e-signature
A contractor agreement e-signature puts both businesses on one certified file: the contractor accepts first behind a one-time code, and the builder countersigns once the terms are accepted. This page shows the seven page Bellbird Build Co carpentry package from the documents examples signed that way, and then a second run of the same envelope in which the contractor declines, so the decline path here is recorded, not imagined.
Sign a master services agreement online
A master services agreement commits nobody to any work, so the pages people actually negotiate are the charges clause and the liability cap. This envelope carries the Ridgeway Data framework from the documents examples with the client's initials on exactly those two pages, an access code shared out of band before the client can open it, and a company block for each side on the execution page.
Employment contract e-signature
An employment contract e-signature should leave the new hire's mark on every page that sets a term, not just the last one. This nine page Operations Coordinator contract from Waverley Foods, from the documents examples, shows the employee initialling pages 2 to 8 and signing page 9 from a single drawing, verified by an emailed code, with the employer countersigning only after acceptance and before the Monday 5 October 2026 start.
Want the steps in the builder? Read Send a PDF for e-signature, then Send a document for signature. For everything this generator can do, see the signing flow maker.
Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked .