Form Fields - Autype

Form fields are document elements that stay visible in every export and become interactive AcroForm widgets in PDF exports. They can use fixed values or read their initial value from a document variable.

Supported field types

Type	Purpose	Variable type
`text`	Single-line text	text
`number`	Numeric value	number
`multiline`	Multi-line text	text
`date`	Date input	text
`checkbox`	One or several choices	text (single) or list (multiple)
`select`	Dropdown choice	text
`signature`	Empty signature widget	none
`initials`	Empty initials widget	none

Basic syntax

::field{name="customerName" type=text label="Customer name" required=true}
::field{name="invoiceTotal" type=number label="Invoice total" value=149.9}
::field{name="dueDate" type=date label="Due date" placeholder="YYYY-MM-DD"}
::field{name="department" type=select label="Department" options="Sales|Finance|Legal"}
::field{name="signature" type=signature label="Signature" required=true signerRole="customer-signer" width=60 height=72}

The name is a stable field identifier. Labels are optional; an empty label renders only the input control without reserving label spacing.

Checkboxes and choices

A checkbox field contains one or more visible options. Use selectionMode to choose whether users may select one or several options.

::field{name="approval" type=checkbox options="I approve"}
::field{name="interests" type=checkbox options="Product updates|Events|Research" selectionMode=multiple selected="Events|Research"}
::field{name="contactMethod" type=checkbox options="Email|Phone|Post" selectionMode=single selected="Email"}

placeholder is not used for checkbox labels. Each value in options is both the visible label and the submitted option value.

Variable binding

Use variable to prefill a field from the document’s variables:

::field{name="customerName" type=text label="Customer" variable="customerName"}
::field{name="interests" type=checkbox options="Events|Research" selectionMode=multiple variable="interests"}

The field does not create the variable. Define it in the document’s variables first, using a compatible type. A local value or selected value remains a fixed initial value when no variable is bound.

Multiline values

Use \n inside a quoted fixed value. Autype converts it to actual line breaks and escapes it exactly once when converting back to Markdown.

::field{name="notes" type=multiline label="Notes" value="First line\nSecond line\nThird line" height=80}

Form fields in tables

A form field can be the sole content of a table cell:

:::table{columnWidths="1fr,2fr"}
| Label | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Customer | ::field{name="customer" type=text} |
| Department | ::field{name="department" type=select options="Sales,Legal"} |
| Approval | ::field{name="approval" type=checkbox options="Approved"} |
:::

Inside table cells, separate choice options with commas because | is already the Markdown table delimiter.

Attributes

Attribute	Description
`name`	Stable identifier; required
`type`	One of the supported field types; required
`label`	Optional visible label
`placeholder`	Hint for an empty non-checkbox field
`variable`	Compatible document variable used as the initial value
`value`	Fixed string, number, or boolean value
`options`	Choice values separated by `	` (or commas in table cells)
`selectionMode`	`single` or `multiple` for checkboxes
`selected`	Initially selected checkbox options
`required`	Mark the PDF widget as required
`readOnly`	Prevent editing of the PDF widget
`signerRole`	Process role allowed to fill a `signature` or `initials` field; rejected on other field types
`width`	Percentage of available content width (`10`-`100`)
`height`	Minimum height in points (`16`-`300`)
`spacingBefore`, `spacingAfter`	Local vertical spacing in points

Styling

The following attributes override the global defaults.styles.formField settings for one field:

Attribute	Values
`borderMode`	`outline`, `underline`, `none`
`borderLineStyle`	`solid`, `dashed`, `dotted`
`borderWidth`	`0`-`10` pt
`borderColor`, `backgroundColor`, `textColor`	Hex color
`fontSize`	`6`-`72` pt
`inset`	Inner padding (`0`-`50`)
`borderRadius`	Corner radius (`0`-`30`)
`showHints`	Show or hide visual editor hints
`showContainerBorder`	Show or hide the editor container
`checkboxBorderMode`	Border mode for checkbox controls
`checkboxShape`	`square` or `circle`

Global vertical spacing is configured through defaults.spacing.before.formField and defaults.spacing.after.formField.

Output behavior

Output	Behavior
PDF	Interactive AcroForm widgets with required/read-only flags
DOCX / ODT	Printable visual representation
Web preview	Visual preview of fields and current values
Rich text editor	Editable document blocks with properties in the context toolbar

signature and initials create PDF form widgets. They do not apply a cryptographic signature, qualified electronic signature, or PAdES seal. A Workspace signature process can fill these widgets with its audited typed-name simple electronic signature when required=true and signerRole matches the signer role.

​Supported field types

​Basic syntax

​Checkboxes and choices

​Variable binding

​Multiline values

​Form fields in tables

​Attributes

​Styling

​Output behavior

Supported field types

Basic syntax

Checkboxes and choices

Variable binding

Multiline values

Form fields in tables

Attributes

Styling

Output behavior