Automatic Signer

An automatic signer is a person whose signature is applied automatically by the system. The signer does not receive an email, does not access a ceremony, and does not interact with the document. You provide the signature and initials images when you create the envelope, along with a mandate recording why you are authorized to sign on their behalf.

Use an automatic signer when you have prior authorization to sign on the person’s behalf and you want their signature to appear on the document without any live interaction. Common examples include:

• A clinician’s signature applied to prescriptions or reports under a standing authorization
• A company officer’s signature applied to routine documents under a power of attorney or corporate resolution
• A notary or agent’s signature applied under a recorded mandate

Automatic signer vs. signer

	Automatic signer	Signer
Receives an invitation email	No	Yes (when delivery_type is email)
Accesses a ceremony	No	Yes
Consents to electronic signatures	No (authority is pre-declared)	Yes
Adds signature during the envelope	No (provided at creation)	Yes
Recorded in audit log	Yes	Yes
Recipient type	automatic_signer	signer

An automatic signer counts as a signing recipient. An envelope that contains only automatic signers is valid and completes without any recipient interaction.

How the signature is applied

When you create an envelope that contains an automatic signer, SignatureAPI:

1. Validates the signature and initials you provide. Invalid uploads or missing images return a validation error.
2. Skips ceremony creation for the recipient. No email is sent.
3. Applies the provided images to every signature and initials place assigned to the recipient.
4. Transitions the recipient to completed and writes a single line to the audit log.

The audit log line names the signer, cites the mandate verbatim, and attributes the authority to the initiator of the transaction:

Automatically signed by Dr. John Doe (#a3f9b2):
  With permission given and recorded on Jan 1 2026.
As provided by the initiator of the electronic signature transaction.

Creating an envelope with an automatic signer

Specify "type": "automatic_signer", a mandate, and at least one of signature or initials. Supply signature if the recipient has any signature places, and initials if the recipient has any initials places.

// POST https://api.signatureapi.com/v1/envelopes
// X-API-Key: key_test_...
// Content-Type: application/json

{
    "title": "Prescription",
    "recipients": [
        {
            "key": "dr_doe",
            "type": "automatic_signer",
            "name": "Dr. John Doe",
            "signature": {
                "type": "drawn",
                "url": "https://api.signatureapi.com/v1/uploads/upl_1sAAaVfabdt0esVjmSTmLA"
            },
            "initials": {
                "type": "drawn",
                "url": "https://api.signatureapi.com/v1/uploads/upl_2tBBbWgbcdeu1fsWknUnNB"
            },
            "mandate": "With permission given and recorded on Jan 1 2026"
        }
    ],
    //...
}

Required properties

Conditional properties

The recipient must be assigned at least one signing place (signature or initials), and the matching image must be supplied.

Assigning places to an automatic signer

Automatic signers must be assigned at least one signature or initials place. Assign places using the recipient_key property, the same as for signers.

{
    "documents": [
        {
            "places": [
                {
                    "type": "signature",
                    "recipient_key": "dr_doe",
                    "key": "doctor_sig"
                },
                {
                    "type": "initials",
                    "recipient_key": "dr_doe",
                    "key": "doctor_init"
                }
            ],
            //...
        }
    ],
    //...
}

If you assign a signature place, the signature image is required. If you assign an initials place, the initials image is required. Supplying a place without the matching image returns a missing preset symbol error.

Routing with an automatic signer

Automatic signers follow the envelope’s routing order. In a sequential envelope, an automatic signer earlier in the list completes first, and the next recipient activates. In a parallel envelope, the automatic signer completes as soon as the envelope is released, alongside any other parallel recipients.

{
    "routing": "sequential",
    "recipients": [
        {
            "key": "doctor",
            "type": "automatic_signer",
            "name": "Dr. John Doe",
            "signature": { "type": "drawn", "url": "https://api.signatureapi.com/v1/uploads/upl_..." },
            "mandate": "Standing authorization on file for prescription signatures"
        },
        {
            "key": "patient",
            "type": "signer",
            "name": "Jordan Lee",
            "email": "jordan@example.com"
        }
    ]
}

In this example, the doctor’s signature is applied automatically, then the patient is invited to sign.

Delivery

Automatic signers have no email address and no delivery_type. They do not receive invitations and do not receive the completed deliverable. If you need a copy of the signed document delivered to the person whose signature was applied, handle that distribution in your application.

Audit log

The audit log records a single line for each automatic signer:

Automatically signed by {name} (#{recipient_hash}):
  {mandate}.
As provided by the initiator of the electronic signature transaction.

The recipient_hash is the short identifier SignatureAPI assigns to the signer . The mandate value appears verbatim, so phrase it as a complete statement that stands on its own in the permanent record.

Next steps

• Recipient lifecycle - Understand recipient status transitions
• Signer - Add a recipient who signs interactively
• Uploads - Create the PNG uploads referenced by signature and initials
• Create an envelope - Include automatic signers in a new envelope