Request an attachment with a Dropbox Sign signature

To ask a signer for a supporting file in the Dropbox Sign signing flow, add an attachment request to that signer while preparing a one-off signature request or a standard template. Name the file you want and mark it Required if the signer must include it. Dropbox says the signer is prompted to add the file at the end of signing. These steps follow Dropbox’s instructions for requesting attachments; they are based on vendor documentation, not hands-on verification.

Add the attachment request

Start a one-off signature request or create a standard template. Upload the document or documents to be signed, then select Next. Add the signer for a one-off request, or the signer role for a template. Use the attachment control next to that signer or role. Check that you are working beside the right person or role before entering the file details, especially if the request involves more than one signer.

Enter the name of the file you want the signer to provide. Make it specific enough to distinguish it from other documents they might have. For example, “Current proof of employment” gives the signer a clearer target than “Supporting document.” The name tells the signer what to supply; it does not check the file they eventually choose.

Use the optional description when the file name needs more context. You could clarify which document you mean or what the signer should include in it. Keep the instruction tied to that file so it is useful when the attachment prompt appears. If you need several separate files, use Add to create another attachment request and give each one its own name. Select Done when you have finished adding requests and return to the document.

Decide whether the file is required

Ask yourself one concrete question: Is the request acceptable if this signer does not include the supporting file? If the answer is no, select the checkbox next to Required for that attachment. If the file is only helpful, you can leave it optional. Make this choice for each requested file. A description telling the signer to attach something does not replace the Required setting.

For a template, make the decision for the signer role you added. For a one-off request, make it for the signer you added. If one signer needs to provide a file and another does not, check whose attachment control you used before you finish. The prompt should be associated with the intended signer or role.

Limit the information you request

Dropbox’s attachment instructions use examples such as photo ID and employment records, but that page does not establish who can later view each attachment, where it is retained, or which account controls apply to it. A Required checkbox only changes whether the signer must submit a file; it does not make a sensitive document appropriate to collect or verify its contents.

Before asking for personal or confidential material, confirm your organization’s intake and retention rules and the actual recipient access in the product account you will use. Request only the specific supporting file needed for this transaction. If you cannot establish who will receive and store that file, do not put sensitive details into this signing request yet. Use a separately approved collection channel and tell the signer clearly what belongs there.

Check the request and its limits

Before sending the request or finishing the template, check the signer or role, the requested file name, any description, and the Required choice. Read the name and description as if you were the signer: would you know which file to attach? If the answer is unclear, revise them while you are still preparing the request. If the file is essential but Required is not selected, the setup does not express that requirement.

Dropbox documents this feature for Dropbox Sign Standard and Premium. If the attachment control is missing, check that you are preparing a one-off request or standard template, have added a signer or role, and are using an eligible plan. The documented prompt appears at the end of signing, so someone who has not reached that point may not have seen it yet.

Requesting an attachment does not verify the file’s contents or the signer’s identity. If those details matter, review the submitted file separately.