Applications, contracts, petitions... Most PDF forms are actually "flat" — they have no ready fields you can click and type into. Instead of printing and filling by hand, you can add text directly on top of the form.
There are two kinds of PDF forms
- Fillable (interactive) form: It has ready fields; you can click and type into them in any PDF reader.
- Flat form: Most official/scanned documents are like this; there are no ready fields. Here you add text "on top" at the right spot.
Filling a flat PDF form — step by step
- Upload the form: Upload your PDF form to the annotate/text tool.
- Add text: With the text/note tool, click the relevant blank and type your answer; add a separate box for each field.
- Sign and download: If needed, add your signature and download the filled PDF with "Apply & download".
If a signature is required
If the form asks for a signature, after adding your text you can draw/type your signature and place it. Signing happens entirely on your device; your document is not sent to a server.
For checkboxes, add a small "X" or "✓" text. If the form has multiple pages, add text/marks to each page separately.
Which kind of form do you have? Find out in thirty seconds
Which method you need depends on the form, and finding out is easy: open the PDF and click a blank. If a cursor blinks and you can type, the form is fillable; if nothing happens, it is flat. On fillable forms, filling the fields directly is the cleanest route because the text sits inside the field and aligns itself. On flat forms you place text on top of the page instead.
Accented characters in fillable forms
Some PDF forms are built with a limited character set, so letters outside it can disappear or turn into question marks when typed. That is the form author's font choice rather than a mistake by whoever fills it in. Reading the fields back once after filling is the practical way to catch this.
What locking the form does
When you send a fillable form, its fields are still editable; the recipient can change one without noticing, or the form may appear empty in a different program. Locking the fields makes what you typed a permanent part of the page, so the document looks the same everywhere. On an official application this step ensures the form arrives complete and unaltered.
Alignment on flat forms
- Set the text size close to the line height; oversized text spills onto the neighbouring line.
- Use a separate text box for each field; one long line breaks the alignment.
- A small mark is enough for a checkbox — do not overflow the box.
- Where day/month/year have separate boxes, type into each one separately.
- Check at 100% zoom before downloading; text that looks right at screen scale can shift in print.
Signing and sending
Most forms ask for a signature. Adding yours after filling and sending the document as one file is tidier and easier for the recipient than sending separate pages. If the other side must sign too, sending the document out for signature by email and keeping a record of the process is the safer route.
A final check before sending
Are all required fields filled, is the date in the requested format, and are the requested attachments included? Those three questions prevent most applications from coming back. Keeping a copy of the completed form is also worth it, and removes the later question of what you wrote.