SignAndGoAdding a witness or second person to an envelope.
Some documents ask for more than the main signature. There may be a line for a witness, a second director or an attesting officer. This guide covers how to give that person their own place in an envelope. Whether a particular document needs a witness, and how witnessing must happen for it, is a question for your adviser, not something SignAndGo decides.
Check the requirement first
Before you set anything up, find out from your adviser or the organisation that will rely on the document whether it needs a witness, who may act as one, and whether the witness must be physically present. Some documents simply have a witness line in the template you were given; others come with specific instructions. Settle that before sending, because it shapes everything else.
Give the second person their own signer slot
In SignAndGo the witness is added like any other person: a name, an email address and their own fields. Use an ordered envelope so the main signer goes first and the witness receives the document only after that signature is on the page.
If the document has a witness block, place the witness's signature and date fields there, plus text fields for the details such blocks usually ask for, such as full name, occupation and town.
- Signature and date fields on the witness block.
- Text fields for name, occupation and address if the block asks for them.
- Mark each field required so the block cannot be left half done.
Two directors or two trustees
When the second person is another signatory rather than a witness, such as a second director or trustee, you can choose all at once instead, since neither needs to wait for the other. Each person gets their own link and fields, and the envelope finishes when both have signed.
What the record shows
The audit trail records each person's views and signature with their name, email address, time and IP address, so the sequence is clear: who signed first, and when the second person signed afterwards. The completion certificate summarises it, and the verification ID lets anyone check the signed document online.
When to use paper instead
If your adviser says a document must be witnessed in person with wet ink, follow that advice for that document. You can still use SignAndGo for the covering letters and forms that travel with it.
Telling the witness what to expect
A witness who is not expecting an email may ignore it. Let them know in advance that a document is coming, who it is from and that they will be asked to sign as a witness after the main signer. Your envelope message can repeat that, so the request makes sense when it arrives.
Common questions
- Does SignAndGo tell me which documents need a witness?
- No. Ask your adviser or the organisation receiving the document.
- Can the witness sign only after the main signer?
- Yes. Use an ordered envelope and place the witness after the main signer.
- Does the witness need an account?
- No. Like every signer, they open a secure link from their email.