Contracts in Dubsado let you send legally binding agreements to your clients for e-signature. This guide covers how to add a contract to a project, edit it before sending, and send it to your client.
Add a contract to a project
You can add a contract to a project in two ways: from the Contract row in the project info card, or from the Forms tab of a project. Both methods let you pick any contract template from your workspace. You'll need at least one contract template built before you can add one to a project — see Build a contract or sub-agreement template if you haven't done that yet.
From the project info card
The Contract row in the project info card is the fastest way to assign a primary contract to a project.
Open the project.
In the project info card, find the Contract row and click the Add a contract dropdown.
Select a contract template from the list. The contract is immediately assigned to the project.
The dropdown shows only contract and sub-agreement templates. A project can have one primary contract assigned through this row. If you need to add more contracts or sub-agreements, use the Forms tab instead.
The Add a contract dropdown also includes an Upload PDF as signed contract option. Use this if you have a contract that was already signed outside Dubsado and want to keep a record of it in the project.
You can also add a contract automatically using a flow, so it's assigned when a project reaches a certain stage.
From the Forms tab
The Forms tab gives you a broader view of all forms on a project and is where you manage additional contracts or sub-agreements beyond the primary one.
Open the project and go to the Forms tab.
Click Add a Form.
Select a contract template from the list.
Click Apply Template. The contract is added to the project.
After the client signs, you can countersign the contract if you included a signature field for yourself. See Countersign a contract or sub-agreement for details.
Edit a contract before sending
After adding a contract to a project, you can edit it in the form builder before sending. Editing opens the same form builder you used when creating the template, but changes here only affect this specific copy on the project — the original template is not changed.
Edits to a contract on a project only affect that copy. They do not change the original contract template.
From the Forms tab
Open the project and go to the Forms tab.
Select the contract from the list to open its detail panel.
Click the Edit button (pencil icon) to open the form builder.
Make your changes, then save and close to return to the project.
From the project info card
Open the project.
In the project info card, click the contract title in the Contract row to open the dropdown menu.
Select View in forms. The contract detail panel opens in the Forms tab.
Click the Edit button to open the form builder.
Once a contract has been signed, the Edit button is no longer available. The contract locks to preserve the agreement.
Send the contract
Once the contract is on the project and edited to your liking, you can send it to your client by email. Both the project info card and the Forms tab have a send action that opens the same email composer overlay.
From the project info card
Open the project.
In the project info card, find the Contract row and click the Share button next to the contract title.
An email composer opens pre-filled with your client's email address, the Send Contract default email template, and a link to the contract.
Review or edit the subject and body as needed.
Click Send.
From the Forms tab
Open the project and go to the Forms tab.
Select the contract from the list to open its detail panel.
Click the Share dropdown and select Send.
The email composer opens. Review or edit the subject and body as needed.
Click Send.
In either composer, you can change the recipient in the To field, or load a different email template by clicking the Templates button in the toolbar. The contract link appears as a clickable button in the email body. This link is a project link — if you're building a custom email template for contracts, use the Project Links button in the composer toolbar to insert one. For more details on how project links work in email templates, see Using smart field links in email templates
The Share dropdown also includes two other options:
Copy link — Copies the contract URL to your clipboard so you can share it manually.
Apply to portal — Makes the contract visible in the client portal without sending an email. This option only appears before the contract has been sent.
You can customize the default email used when sending contracts at Messages ➔ Default templates ➔ Send Contract. If you use a different email template, make sure it includes a project link to the contract so your client can access it.
Password-protected contracts
If password protection was enabled when the contract template was built, the contract requires your client to log into their client portal to view and sign it. You can enable password protection in the form builder when editing a template directly — see Password-protect a form for instructions.
Sending a password-protected contract works the same as sending a regular contract. The difference is what happens when your client clicks the link: instead of opening the contract directly, they are directed to the client portal and prompted to log in.
Make sure you have activated the client portal before sending a password-protected contract. If the portal is not activated, your client will see an error when they try to access the contract.
Once a contract is signed, the password protection setting cannot be changed. Signed contracts lock and cannot be edited.
Contract completed email
After your client signs a contract, Dubsado automatically sends them an email with a copy of the signed contract attached. This email is sent automatically and cannot be disabled.
You can customize the wording of this email at Messages ➔ Default templates ➔ Contract Completed.
FAQ
Can I edit a contract after it has been signed?
No. Once a contract is signed, it locks and cannot be edited. This ensures the terms your client agreed to are preserved as-is.
If you need to make changes after signing, remove the signed contract from the project, add a new copy from the template, make your edits, and send it to your client for re-signing.
Can I send a contract to someone other than the client?
Yes. In the email composer, change the email address in the To field to any recipient you choose.
Keep in mind a few things when doing this:
If the client portal is active, the contract is still visible to the primary client in the portal, even if you sent the email to a different address.
The contract completed email is sent to the primary client, not the alternate recipient.
Flows can only send contracts to the primary client's email address. Sending to a different recipient can only be done manually.
Can I send a contract to two people to sign?
Contracts support a single client signature. If you need multiple people to sign, use sub-agreements instead — each sub-agreement can be sent to a different signer. See Contracts vs sub-agreements for more details.