Creating PDF Forms

This page covers how to create and configure interactive PDF forms — from initial setup to saving.

Prerequisites

Before creating a PDF form, ensure you have:

• Administrator or form creator permissions
• A PDF document ready to upload (under 5 MB, under 20 pages, not password-protected)
• A clear understanding of what information you need to collect

Step 1: Basic Form Setup

1. Navigate to Forms in the sidebar menu
2. Click Create Form
3. Fill in the form details:

Field	Required	Description
Name	Yes	Descriptive name (e.g., "Annual Leave Application")
Prefix	No	Prefix for submission IDs (e.g., LEAVE- → LEAVE-0001, LEAVE-0002)
Type	Yes	Select PDF Form from the dropdown
Description	No	Brief description of the form's purpose
Tags	No	Keywords for easier searching

Step 2: Upload Your PDF

After selecting the PDF Form type:

1. Click Select PDF File or drag and drop your PDF into the upload area
2. Wait for the PDF to render on the canvas
3. Navigation controls appear automatically if your PDF has multiple pages

Upload requirements:

• ✅ Valid PDF file
• ✅ Maximum size: 5 MB
• ✅ Maximum pages: 20
• ❌ Password-protected PDFs are not supported
• ❌ Word documents, images, and other formats are not accepted

tip

Compress your PDF before uploading if it's over 5 MB. Test that it opens correctly in a PDF viewer beforehand.

Field Types

OSPROV provides four types of form fields for PDF forms:

Text Input

Best for: Names, IDs, email addresses, phone numbers — any single-line data.

Property	Description
Label	Field name for display and validation
Key	Unique identifier (e.g., firstName, emailAddress)
Required	Mark field as mandatory
Placeholder	Hint text shown when the field is empty
Default Value	Pre-filled value
Font Size	Text size (10–24 px)
Min/Max Length	Character count validation

Textarea

Best for: Comments, descriptions, addresses, multi-line data.

Same properties as Text Input, plus:

Property	Description
Rows	Number of visible text rows

Checkbox

Best for: Agreements, yes/no questions, multiple-choice selections.

Property	Description
Label	Display label
Required	Must be checked before submitting
Default Value	Pre-checked state
Font Size	Checkbox size

Signature

Best for: Authorizations, approvals, legal signatures, consent.

Property	Description
Footer Text	Text below the signature pad (e.g., "Sign above")
Background Color	Pad background color (e.g., rgb(245,245,235))
Pen Color	Drawing color (default: black)

Adding Fields to Your PDF

Drag and Drop

1. Locate the Component Toolbox in the left sidebar
2. Click and drag the desired field type onto the PDF canvas
3. Drop it over the location where you want the field

Click and Place

1. Click a component in the toolbox
2. Click on the PDF where you want to place it

Positioning and Resizing Fields

Moving: Click to select a field (blue outline appears), then drag to the new position.

Resizing: Click to select, then drag the resize handles:

• Corner handles — resize width and height together
• Edge handles — resize width or height independently

Sizing guidance:

Field Type	Recommended Size
Text Input	Wide enough for expected content
Textarea	Tall enough to show 3–5 lines
Checkbox	Small and square (20–30 px)
Signature	Large enough for comfortable signing (200–400 px wide)

Duplicating and Deleting Fields

Duplicate: Select the field → click Duplicate in the Properties Panel. Move the copy to the desired location.

Delete: Select the field → click Delete Component in the Properties Panel.

Working with Multi-Page PDFs

If your PDF has multiple pages, navigation controls appear at the top and bottom of the canvas showing Page X / Y.

• Use Next (›) and Previous (‹) buttons to switch pages
• Each page is independent — navigate to a page before placing fields on it
• All pages and their fields save together as one form

Recommended workflow for multi-page PDFs:

1. Navigate to Page 1 → add its fields
2. Navigate to Page 2 → add its fields
3. Continue for all pages
4. Save the form when complete

Saving Your Form

Click Save as Draft at the bottom of the page. The form saves with all components and their positions.

Replacing the PDF

If you need to swap the underlying PDF:

1. Click Replace PDF
2. ⚠️ Confirm the warning — all placed fields will be removed
3. Upload the new PDF
4. Re-add all fields

Avoid replacing the PDF when possible; it requires redoing all field placement.

Best Practices

Field Placement

✅ Do:

• Place fields over blank spaces or printed form lines in the PDF
• Align fields with printed labels for a professional look
• Leave padding around fields for visual clarity
• Test the form by filling it yourself before publishing

❌ Don't:

• Overlap fields (users won't be able to fill both)
• Make text fields too small to read the content
• Cover important PDF text with a field
• Make checkboxes so small they're hard to click

Field Configuration

✅ Do:

• Use meaningful keys (firstName, leaveReason, not field1)
• Add placeholder text to guide users
• Mark only truly essential fields as required
• Set min/max lengths for data validation

❌ Don't:

• Use spaces or special characters in field keys
• Make every field required
• Leave labels blank or use technical jargon

Choosing the Right Field Type

Information to Collect	Field Type
Name, ID, email, phone	Text Input
Address, comments, reason	Textarea
Agreement, yes/no	Checkbox
Authorization, approval	Signature

Recommended Field Order for Multi-Page Forms

1. Group related fields together on the same page
2. Design pages in the order users will complete them
3. Put required fields early
4. Place signature fields at the end

Pre-Publish Checklist

• PDF uploaded successfully (under 5 MB, under 20 pages)
• All fields added to all pages
• Fields properly positioned and sized
• All fields have clear labels
• Required fields marked (not everything)
• Placeholder text added where helpful
• Min/max length validation set
• Form filled and tested end-to-end
• Validation errors tested (submit with empty required fields)
• Tested in multiple browsers
• Tested on mobile/tablet if applicable