Skip to main content
swipesign

Cancel a signature workflow

Stopping a document that is already out, what happens to signatures already collected, and what it cannot undo.

Support

Once a workflow is sent it cannot be edited: only cancelled. Open the document from Documents and click Cancel signature process at the top.

An active document detail page with Download document and Cancel signature process buttons above the settings and recipients.

You get a confirmation first, naming the document.

The confirmation dialog reading "Cancel signature process?" and warning that cancelling will withdraw all signature requests.

Confirm and every outstanding signature request is withdrawn. The links stop working and the workflow moves to Cancelled.

When to cancel

  • You sent the wrong version of the document.
  • You sent it to the wrong person.
  • The terms changed and the document needs rewriting.
  • The deal is off.

Since a sent workflow is fixed, cancelling and rebuilding is the only route for any change to the document, the signers, or the signature standard.

What it does not do

Signatures already collected are not erased
Cancelling stops what hasn't happened yet. If two of three people had already signed, those signatures stand, and the audit trail still records them. Cancelling withdraws the outstanding requests rather than rewinding the document.

It also cannot un-send the invitation emails. Anyone who already opened and read the document has read it. If the content was the problem, assume they saw it.

Starting again

A cancelled workflow is closed for good: you cannot reopen it. Build a fresh one, and tell your signers, because the link in their inbox will simply stop working without explanation.

Consider a reminder first
If the only problem is that nobody has signed yet, Resend on the recipient's row is the lighter option. See Remind or resend to a signer.
Related