---
title: "How to collect signatures in a set order · Attest"
description: "Send one document to several people who sign one at a time, in the order you set: each is emailed when it's their turn. Step by step, with tracking."
url: https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/collect-signatures-in-order
updated: 2026-10-12
---

[Attest](https://attest.datahubz.com/)/[How-to](https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to)

# How to collect signatures in a set order

Add your signers in the order they should sign and choose In order under Signing order: Attest emails only the first signer (no one, if you sign first, until you have signed in the dashboard), emails each next signer as soon as the previous one signs, and shows "Not your turn yet" to anyone who opens their link early. You can sign first or last yourself, in the dashboard with no email, follow each turn on the document's row, and when the last person signs every party gets the same sealed copy, which anyone can verify.

By DataHubz · Updated October 12, 2026 · 7 min read

Video: Send a document for signature (1:48), recorded on the real app.

## When a set order helps

Some agreements are signed in sequence, each person after the one before:

- A client signs a statement of work, then you countersign.
- An employee signs a policy acknowledgment, then a manager signs to confirm it.
- A tenant signs a lease renewal, then the property manager, then the owner.
- A supplier signs a purchase agreement, then your finance lead signs to approve it.

With a set order, nobody is asked to sign until everyone before them has. Each person signs with a **passkey**, a cryptographic key only they control, unlocked with Face ID, Touch ID, Windows Hello or the device PIN, and your signers need no account.

## Set the order, step by step

Sending needs a free Attest account and a signing key, set up once with a passkey and a recovery phrase; [How to send a document for signature](https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/send-document-for-signature) covers that setup and every option. The video above shows these steps, including the order.

1. Open **Documents** in the menu (it reads **Agreements** on accounts that use every Attest tool) and click **New agreement**.
2. Give it a **Title** your signers will recognize. It appears in their email.
3. Click **Attach the document to be signed** and choose a PDF of up to 8 MB. Your browser encrypts it before upload.
4. Under **Signers**, type the email address of the person who signs first. Click **\+ Add signer** for each next person, in the order they sign. The list is the order.
5. If you sign too, check **Add me as a signer (sign in-app, no email)**. You sign in the dashboard, and Attest never emails you a signing invite.
6. Under **Signing order**, choose **In order** ("One signer at a time, in the order listed. Each is emailed when it's their turn."). If you added yourself, next to **I sign** choose **First** (then the others, in the order listed) or **Last** (after everyone listed above).
7. Choose **Public certificate** or **Private**, an **Expires (optional)** date if you want one, how often to send **Reminders**, and a **Message (optional)** for your signers.
8. Click **Next: place the fields**. Under **Fields for**, your signers appear in signing order: choose each one and place their fields. Once you place fields, every signer needs a signature field.
9. Click **Create and send**, or **Save as draft** to send it later.

A document can have up to 20 signers, counting you if you sign. To change the order before you click **Create and send** or **Save as draft**, edit the addresses in the list so they read in the new order.

## What happens at each turn

- **Only the current signer is emailed.** The email's subject reads "Signature requested by" followed by you and the title, and it carries your note.
- **The next signer is emailed as soon as the previous one signs.** You don't have to send anything between turns, apart from releasing the document to first-time signers (below).
- **An early link waits.** Anyone who opens their link before their turn sees "Not your turn yet": "This agreement is signed in order. You'll be emailed when it's your turn to review and sign."
- **If you sign first**, the document is under **Action needed** and its row says "It's your turn. Sign now to invite the next signer." Click **Sign**, and the next signer is emailed once you have signed.
- **If you sign last**, the row names the signer you're waiting on. Attest never emails you a signing invite: when it's your turn, your **Sign** button appears on the row and the document moves to **Action needed**.

## First-time signers: one release at each turn

Every document is end-to-end encrypted in your browser, so Attest can't open it for anyone. A signer who already has an Attest key can open the document as soon as it's their turn. A first-time signer sets up their passkey when their turn comes, and Attest emails you then: click **Unlock it for …** in that email (or open the agreement in Attest), confirm, and approve with your passkey, and your browser encrypts the document key to theirs.

In a set order, that happens once for each new signer, at their turn. To keep the chain moving:

- Release from your phone: the email's button works there too, and signs you in first if needed.
- If you haven't released it, Attest reminds you 1 hour and 6 hours after a signer is ready.

## Track every turn

Each document's row shows where it stands:

- Under the title, how many have signed and that it's in order, such as "1/3 signed · in order".
- In the steps panel, the badge **Signed in order**, then each signer and their state: "signed" with the time, "their turn to sign" or "waiting for their turn" ("your turn to sign" when it's yours).
- Below it, the **Activity**: every step with its time, in your time zone, such as "Opened by", "set up their key", "Document unlocked for", "Signed by ... with their passkey" and the rest. (The audit trail inside the signed copy is a separate record, in UTC, up to completion.)

The **Action needed** tab collects the documents waiting on you, a release or your own signature; the others wait under **Waiting on others**.

## Reminders, expiry and declines in a set order

- **Automatic reminders** go only to the signer whose turn it is, counted from the start of their turn (when the signer before them signed): every 3 days by default, at most 5 per signer, and they state the expiry date when there is one.
- **Remind** on the row emails the link again to the current signer only. It restarts that signer's reminder clock and doesn't count toward their 5 automatic reminders.
- **Expiry:** if the date you set passes before everyone signs, the document closes, no one can sign it, and every party is emailed. A signing link opened after that says "This document expired".
- **Declines:** if a signer declines, the document closes for every party and you're emailed. The signers after them are never asked.

## Change the order after you send

The order is set when you create the document. To change it, click **Void**, confirm with **Void agreement**, and send the document again with your signers in the new order. If no one has signed yet, the voided document goes back to your allowance. The signers who hadn't signed are emailed that it was withdrawn, and a signing link opened after that says "This document was withdrawn".

## A set order or any order

|                               | Set order                                         | Any order                                      |
| ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| Who is emailed when you send   | The first signer only (no one, if you sign first) | Every signer but you, at once                  |
| When the others are emailed    | Each as soon as the previous one signs            | Already emailed                                |
| A link opened early            | Shows "Not your turn yet"                         | Can be signed at any time                      |
| Automatic reminders and Remind | The signer whose turn it is                       | Every signer who hasn't signed, other than you |
| You, as a signer               | First or last, as you choose                      | Whenever you're ready                          |

## When the last person signs

The signed state, with each signer's signing time, is fingerprinted, signed and anchored on Horizen, a public blockchain, and Attest's anchor of the agreement also binds the signers' order. Every party, including you if you didn't sign, is emailed a link to the certificate.

Every party downloads the same sealed copy: the signed pages, with a "Signed with Attest" stamp on each signature and a seal line at the foot of every page, a certificate of completion, the audit trail up to completion and a "Verify it yourself, without us" page, with the full evidence, the original document and a standalone verifier attached inside. The audit trail lists every step in order, with times in UTC, so the sequence is part of the record. Anyone can check the copy for free at attest.datahubz.com/verify, with no account.

## What it costs

A document counts once, however many people sign it: 2 documents free in total, then the Signing plan at $5 a month for 20. The people who sign never pay, on any plan.

## Questions people ask

Who gets the first email?

Only the first person on your list. If you added yourself to sign first, no one is emailed until you sign in the app; then the next signer is.

Can I sign after everyone else?

Yes. Check Add me as a signer and choose In order under Signing order, then next to I sign choose Last. Attest doesn't email you: your Sign button appears on the document's row, under Action needed, once everyone before you has signed.

What if someone in the middle doesn't sign?

Attest reminds them on your schedule, counted from the start of their turn (every 3 days by default, at most 5 times), and Remind emails their link again at any time. The signers after them wait their turn. If the expiry date you set passes, the document closes and every party is emailed, and you can also void it.

Can I change the order after sending?

Void it and send it again with your signers in the new order: the order is set when you create a document. If no one had signed yet, the voided document goes back to your allowance.

Do my signers need an Attest account?

No. Each one opens their private link when it's their turn and sets up a passkey, with no account to create, no password and nothing to pay.

Does the record show the order people signed in?

Yes. The audit trail in the signed copy lists every step up to completion in order, with times in UTC. The signed state, with each signer's signing time, is anchored on Horizen, and Attest's anchor of the agreement also binds the signers' order.

## Read next

- [How to send a document for signature](https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/send-document-for-signature)
Send a PDF for signature step by step: add signers, set the order, place fields, send, track and remind, then get a sealed copy anyone can verify.
- [How to send signing reminders and set an expiry date](https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/signing-reminders-and-expiry)
Set automatic signing reminders and an expiry date when you send a document, remind signers by hand, and see what happens when the date passes. Step by step.
- [How to add signature, initials and date fields to a PDF](https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/add-signature-fields-to-pdf)
Place signature, initials, date, full name and text fields on a PDF for each signer, so everyone is guided to each spot and signs with a passkey. Step by step.
- [Document signing](https://attest.datahubz.com/sign)
Electronic signatures with a passkey: no account or password for signers, documents encrypted in the browser, and a signed copy anyone can verify.

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Source: https://attest.datahubz.com/how-to/collect-signatures-in-order