Drag-and-drop fields
Place signature, date, name, and checkbox fields anywhere on a PDF.
DocSign: send a PDF for signature and keep the proof
Send PDF documents for legally binding e-signature. Upload a contract, drag signature fields onto the page, add one or more signers, and email it off. Nautis tracks every signature in real time, stores the signed copy, and generates an audit log.
- Max file size25 MB
- Audit logPer document
- SignersNo account required
app.nautis.io/doc-sign
What is DocSign?
DocSign is e-signature for startups, built into Nautis. Upload a PDF under 25MB, add signers from Contacts or by email, place signature, date, name and checkbox fields, and send. Signers open an emailed link and sign in the order you set, with no account needed. You follow each status, download the signed PDF and a tamper-evident audit log, and can file either one in a data room.
A young company signs a steady trickle of paper: NDAs before a partner call, offer letters, contractor agreements, vendor terms. The volume is small, but each one matters later, usually during diligence, when someone asks for the signed copy and when it was signed. DocSign's job is to get the signatures and keep that evidence in one place.
You'll find it under Legal in the sidebar. Upload Document takes a title, an optional description and the PDF. Send for Signing opens a side panel where Add Myself, Add from Contacts and Add Signer build the list; the number beside each row is the signing order. Add a message of up to 2,000 characters, set Expiry (days) from 1 to 365 (30 by default), and Nautis opens the field editor, where you drag fields onto the page and assign each one to a signer. If you leave halfway, the draft saves and Resume Sending picks it up.
Every document carries a status: Draft, Sent, Completed, Declined, Expired or Revoked. Open a sent document to see each signer's state side by side, or click Sync Status to force a refresh. Only drafts can be deleted. Sent and completed records stay locked for audit purposes, which is the behaviour you want from a signing tool.
DocSign handles the act of signing, not the words being signed. It doesn't draft or review contracts, and it isn't legal advice. Get a lawyer to write the documents that carry real risk, then send them here; our guides to offer letters and founders' agreements explain what each should cover.
Built for
- Founders sending NDAs and offer letters
- Operators handling vendor contracts
- Legal teams maintaining audit-ready records
Capabilities
What you can do with DocSign
Everything ships out of the box. No setup, no plugins, no extra tools.
Sequential signers
Order signers and Nautis emails each in turn.
Real-time tracking
See each signer's status side by side, updated as they act.
Audit log
A tamper-evident audit log PDF for every document.
Per-link expiry
Set a signing-link lifetime from 1 to 365 days.
Use cases
How startups use DocSign
Offer letter, candidate first, then your countersignature
Add the candidate as signer one and use Add Myself for signer two. Signer two only gets a link once signer one has signed, so you countersign an offer that's already accepted instead of chasing a document you signed first.
An NDA before opening the data room
Send the NDA with a short expiry, say seven days, so a stalled conversation doesn't leave a live link behind. When it shows Completed, click Save to Data Room and choose the signed document or the audit log, so the paper is filed inside the data room the NDA covers.
A vendor contract that needs three people
Order the signers by who has to agree first: the vendor's signatory, then your co-founder, then you. If the document sits on Sent for a week, open it to see exactly whose turn it is and nudge that one person.
Reusing your standard contractor agreement
There are no shared templates yet, so keep a master PDF on your own drive and upload a fresh copy for each contractor. Every upload, drafts included, counts toward your monthly DocSign limit, so delete drafts you abandon.
Quick start
From zero to using DocSign
- 1
Upload a PDF
Up to 25 MB — title and optional description.
- 2
Add signers
Add yourself, pull from contacts, or add by email — set the order.
- 3
Place signature fields
Drag fields onto the doc and assign each to a signer.
- 4
Send & track
Click Send. Nautis emails each signer and tracks the round trip.
E-signature for startups: print and scan vs DocSign vs a dedicated e-signature service
If you sign hundreds of contracts a month, use templates heavily or need signing built into your own product, a dedicated service is the better fit. For a handful of agreements a month inside a workspace you already use, DocSign covers the basics.
| Need | Print, sign, scan | Nautis DocSign | Dedicated e-signature service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signer needs an account | No, but needs a printer | No, signs from an emailed link in any browser | Varies by product |
| Signing order | Pass the paper along | Sequential, in the order you set | Depends on the product |
| Reusable templates | Not applicable | Not yet; upload a master PDF each time | Check the product's plans |
| Proof of signing | The paper itself | Tamper-evident audit log PDF with who, when and IP | An audit trail, format varies |
| Where the signed copy goes | A folder | Stored in DocSign, one click to a data room | Its own storage or integrations |
| Volume | Fine for one a year | Monthly creation limit set by your plan | Set by the product's pricing |
Plans and limits
- Each document you upload counts toward a monthly DocSign creation limit that depends on your plan. Check usage in Account Settings on the App Usage tab, and compare plans on pricing.
- Members need DocSign permissions to upload, send or revoke. Read-only members can browse existing documents. The 14-day trial, with no card required, is long enough to send your first few agreements.
What DocSign doesn't do
- It isn't a legal service. Nautis doesn't draft, review or advise on contracts, and some documents in some places still need wet ink, so check with a lawyer.
- Only PDFs under 25MB are accepted. Re-export from your editor, and compress large scans.
- There are no shared templates yet; every send starts from an uploaded PDF.
- Signers act strictly in order. Once a document is sent, changing signers means revoking it and sending a new request.
DocSign questions
Is e-signature for startups good enough for NDAs and offer letters?+
The DocSign guide says it uses e-signature standards accepted in most jurisdictions and logs every signing event in the audit log. Rules still differ by country and document type, and some documents need wet ink. Ask your lawyer which of yours do before you rely on a signature.
What does the DocSign audit log show?+
It's a tamper-evident PDF listing every action on the document: who opened it, who signed, when, and from what IP address. Download it with Audit Log and keep it with the signed copy as your record of signing.
What happens if a signer declines?+
The document moves to Declined. Talk to the signer about what they want changed, edit the source document, and upload the new version for a fresh round of signing.
Can I withdraw a contract I've already sent?+
Yes. Open it and choose Revoke from the action menu. Signers can no longer act on the link and the status changes to Revoked, while the record stays for your audit trail.
Do unsent drafts count toward my monthly limit?+
Yes. Every uploaded document counts, whether or not you send it. Delete drafts you no longer need to free up the quota for the rest of the month.
Do my signers need a Nautis account?+
No. They receive an email with a secure link, open it in any browser, and sign there. They never have to create an account.
Can I send the same document to several people in parallel?+
You can add as many signers as you need. They sign in the order you set in the side panel — first signer first, then the next.
The file won't upload — what's wrong?+
Two common causes: the file isn't a PDF, or it's larger than 25 MB. Re-export from your source app as PDF, and use a compressor if it's a scanned document with large images.
Can I change signers after I've sent it out?+
If the document is still in Draft with a saved layout, click Edit Signers to update the list. Once it's been sent, you'll need to Revoke and re-send a new request.
Are signatures legally binding?+
Yes — DocSign uses e-signature standards accepted in most jurisdictions, and every signing event is logged in the Audit Log PDF. Check your local legal requirements for documents that need wet ink.
Why is my document stuck on 'Sent'?+
It's waiting for one or more signers to sign. Open the document to see exactly whose turn it is, and use Sync Status to force a fresh check. If the link has expired, you'll see the Expired badge instead.
Can I undo a completed signature?+
No. Once a document is Completed, it locks. You can re-upload a new version and send it for a fresh round if you need to amend the agreement.
How long do signing links stay valid?+
You set the expiry per send — anywhere from 1 to 365 days, default 30.
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