E-Signatures: Send Documents for Signature

Peony includes a built-in e-signature workflow. Upload a document, drop signature, initials, and text fields onto it, add recipients, and send it out for signing. Every completed signature is captured with a timestamp, IP address, and a verification hash, and the signed PDF plus its audit log land in the Signatures view in the left navigation (the signed-agreements list, sometimes called the Agreements tab).

E-signatures power the Advanced NDA gate, but they also stand alone. Use them for standalone NDAs, SAFEs, engagement letters, order forms, consulting agreements — any document that needs a real signature before a deal moves forward. Signatures are legally binding under the US ESIGN Act and EU eIDAS for standard e-signatures.

Sending a Document for Signature

The whole flow starts from the Home screen and works best on desktop.

On the Home screen, click Create new (top left) and choose e-Signatures from the menu.
Upload the document you want signed — a PDF or DOCX.
Add your recipients. Each recipient needs a Name and an Email. For a single-signer document (like an NDA), add one recipient.
Drag the fields you need onto the document and drop them where each recipient should fill them in:
- Signature — a drawn or typed signature.
- Initial — initials (requires a Business plan or above).
- Text — any free-text value: address, company name, title, or a date typed in.
Assign every field to the recipient who should fill it. A field left unassigned can't be sent.
Click Send (top right). Peony emails each recipient a secure link to sign.

The primary button reads Send while you're building. Clicking it opens the recipients panel so you can confirm who's signing before the invite goes out.

Once a recipient signs, both you (the sender) and the signer receive the completed, signed PDF by email, and a copy is stored in the Signatures view.

Templates

If you send the same document repeatedly — a standard NDA, a mutual NDA, a SAFE — save it as a template so you don't rebuild it each time.

To create a template:

Start a document exactly as above (Create new → e-Signatures, upload, add recipients, drop and assign fields).
Instead of sending, click Create template (top right).
The template is saved under the Templates view in the left navigation.

For a DOCX, add a placeholder email to the recipient roles while building — those placeholder emails are removed automatically once the template is created.

To remove a template: open the Templates view, right-click the template, and choose remove.

Templates for the One-Click NDA

If you plan to use a template as an NDA gate via the One-click NDA → Advanced dropdown, it must be built as a single-signer template:

Exactly one recipient (the only signer).
At least one signature field.
Every field assigned to that one recipient.

The Advanced NDA dropdown only lists templates that meet all three rules. This is why some templates seem to be "missing" from that dropdown — there is no cap on how many templates you can have. A multi-signer template, or a template with a field assigned to a second recipient, is hidden from the NDA picker but still works fine as a regular e-signature send. For a DOCX, confirm every field is the same color and assigned to the same recipient. Peony can't view your account for privacy reasons, so if a template still won't appear, send support screenshots of the field assignments.

Where Signed Documents Go

Every completed signature is stored in the Signatures view in the left navigation, and both parties are emailed the signed PDF along with the audit log the moment signing completes. (For an NDA gate, that email + audit log behavior is the Advanced setting; if you only received a plain link with no attachment, the gate was set to Standard.)

In the Signatures view you can:

See the signer's email, timestamp (with timezone), IP address, and status — Draft, In progress (sent but not yet signed), or Signed.
Download each signed PDF individually.

Search, date filtering, CSV export, and bulk "download all" for the Signatures view are on the roadmap — see On the Roadmap below. For now, to find out which data room a signed NDA belongs to, open that room's Analytics tab and cross-reference the signer.

Plans and Limits

Free — up to 3 sent agreements per month. Signature and Text fields are available; collecting initials is not.
Business ($30/admin/month) and above — unlimited e-signatures, plus initials collection.
Data Room ($52/admin/month), Deal Team ($64/admin/month), and Enterprise (custom) — everything in Business.

On the Free plan, you can add up to 50 recipients per agreement. Viewers and signers never count toward admin seats.

If you hit the Free-plan message "Free plan allows up to 3 sent agreements per month. Upgrade to Business for unlimited e-signatures," you've sent your three for the calendar month — the counter resets at the start of the next month, or upgrade to Business for unlimited sends.

Legality

Signatures collected through Peony are standard electronic signatures, compliant with the US ESIGN Act and EU eIDAS. Peony captures the signature image, timestamp, IP address, and a verification hash, which meet the evidentiary bar under both frameworks. For high-stakes documents (a company sale, a major licensing agreement), have counsel review the signing flow before you rely on it.

Common Questions

Where do I go to send an e-signature? From the Home screen, click Create new (top left) and choose e-Signatures. Upload your PDF or DOCX, add recipients, drop and assign the fields, then click Send. The Free plan allows up to 3 sent agreements per month; Business and above are unlimited.

Can I reuse a document instead of rebuilding it every time? Yes. Build it once, then click Create template (top right) instead of Send. It's saved under the Templates view and ready to reuse. Right-click a template there to remove it.

Why do I only see 3 templates (or none) in the Advanced NDA dropdown? There's no cap. The Advanced NDA picker only lists single-signer templates: one recipient, at least one signature field, and every field assigned to that one recipient. Multi-signer templates — or a template with a field assigned to a second recipient — are hidden there but still work for a normal e-signature send. For a DOCX, make sure every field is the same color and the same recipient.

Can I include fields other than a signature — like an address or a date? Yes. Drag the Text field for free-text values — address, company, title, or a date the signer types in — then assign each to a recipient.

Can I collect initials as well as a full signature? Yes, on a Business plan or above. Add Initial fields in the editor and assign them to the signer. On the Free plan, initials aren't available.

Where are my signed documents, and how do I download them? They're in the Signatures view in the left navigation, downloadable one at a time. Both you and the signer also get the signed PDF plus the audit log by email when signing completes. To see which data room a signed NDA relates to, open that room's Analytics tab.

Can I search signed agreements by email, filter by date, or export to CSV? Not yet. The Signatures view shows the list with per-row downloads today; search, filtering, CSV export, and bulk download are on the roadmap. To trace which room a signed NDA belongs to, use that room's Analytics tab.

Does the signature editor work on mobile? Building a document or template is best done on desktop — the drag-and-drop field placement is desktop-optimized. Signing (the recipient's side) works on mobile.

"Failed to sign NDA. Unexpected error" when I test — what's wrong? This is a known glitch tied to the document viewer, and it can appear the first time you disable an NDA on a Free-tier room. It is not a paid gate. See NDA Gates and Upload Issues for viewer-provider errors, or contact support via the Crisp widget.

On the Roadmap

These are asked about often but aren't in the product yet:

Search, date filtering, and CSV export for the Signatures view.
Bulk "download all" (zip) of signed agreements.
A reusable, perpetually-signable document that stays open and saves a separate copy for each signer (a DocSend-style signable link). The new e-signature experience being built moves toward this. Today, the closest options are a One-click NDA before room entry (swap in any document) or a reusable multi-signer template for known signers.
Dedicated date and auto-filled field types in the field palette (today, dates are entered as Text fields).

NDA Gates: Signed Before Access — gate a data room behind a signed NDA using an e-signature template
Dynamic Watermarks — identity attribution on every page
Screenshot Protection — block capture on desktop browsers
Access Control Layers — how Peony's security stack fits together