Create a Form

Note: This endpoint is intended for creating forms using existing, validated form data, which requires a strong understanding of the validation rules for a given form. If you do not want to design and develop your own front-end to collect form data, try creating a session instead. Sessions allow you to send your users to a pre-made, user-friendly page hosted by Nextform, which displays your branding and company name.

You may create a form directly if you have collected and validated all of the necessary data. Send a post request to the forms endpoint, and if it successfully posts, Nextform will respond with a complete form object, including the form ID, which can be used to obtain a PDF or to access the form data at any point in the future.


Create a form

The body should be posted as raw JSON. The type must be specified, and the data property should include all of the required fields. Data will be tested for validity, and the post request will fail if it is not valid. The signatures array also must include a valid signature with the appropriate signing party for the form type. The example below is a complete request containing the minimum required properties for a W-9.

POST https://api.nextform.app/forms
{
  "type": "w9",
  "data": {
    "name": "Robert Smith",
    "taxClassification": "individual",
    "country": "us",
    "address": "123 Main Street",
    "city": "New York",
    "state": "ny",
    "zip": "10001",
    "ssn": "123456789",
    "hasWithholding": false
  },
  "signatures": [
    {
      "consent": true,
      "name": "Robert Smith",
      "email": "user@example.com",
      "party": "usPerson"
    }
  ]
}


Example response

The endpoint responds with a fully hydrated form object, including the form ID.

{
  "id": "7TXQXohQX6Eu3LvLEG1xvY",
  "reference": null,
  "signerEmail": "user@example.com",
  "signerName": "Robert Smith",
  "type": "w9",
  "createdAt": "2021-12-15T19:31:12.170Z",
  "data": {
    "name": "Robert Smith",
    "etc": "..."
  },
  "signatures": [
    {
      "id": "Q6HUpCzvzXGyuyUkGbJg9Q",
      "reference": null,
      "consent": true,
      "name": "Robert Smith",
      "email": "user@example.com",
      "party": "usPerson",
      "createdAt": "2021-12-15T19:31:12.229Z"
    }
  ]
}

Settable form properties

type string required

A string representing the type and version of the form. Official bodies revise forms from time to time. Our forms are designed to target a specific form type to avoid unexpected new or deprecated fields in the data object.

reference string optional

If you would like to attach a user ID or other unique identifier to the form, you may set a string up to 255 characters in length. The reference string may be queried via our list forms endpoint.

data object required

The data object must include all required properties from the specified form type. Refer to the form type guides for properties. Note that some of the properties are dependent upon each other.

signatures array of objects required

This array should include at least one of the required signatures for the form type you are posting. See below for additional details about signatures.



Settable signature properties

consent boolean required

A boolean indicating whether or not the individual consented to electronically sign the document. Signatures will not be posted unless the value is true.

name string required

The typed name of the signer.

email string required

The email address of the signer. This is required to enhance the attribution requirement of the eSign act.

party string required

A string indicating the party of the signer. Refer to the specific form type documentation to learn about the parties associated with each form.