How to send an employment offer letter for e-signature
You have made the decision, the candidate is keen, and now the only thing standing between you and a signed offer is paperwork. This is exactly the moment where deals slip. A slow or clunky signing step gives a candidate time to second-guess, or to let a competing offer catch up.
The fix is simple: make the offer letter effortless to read and sign, and keep a clean record once it is done. Here is how to do it well.
Send a link, not a login
The single biggest thing you can do to speed up acceptance is to remove friction. Do not ask your candidate to create an account, download an app, or remember a password just to sign their own offer.
With Signet, the candidate opens a secure link, reads the letter, and signs. No login, no app, no password. They can do it on their phone between meetings, and it feels like the modern company they just agreed to join.
An offer letter that takes thirty seconds to sign says more about your operation than three paragraphs of culture copy ever will.
What to include in the offer letter
Keep it clear and complete. A good offer letter usually covers:
- Job title, start date and reporting line
- Salary, and any bonus or commission structure
- Working hours, location or hybrid arrangement
- Probation period and notice
- Key benefits, and reference to fuller terms in the contract
- A clear acceptance deadline
If your offer is conditional on references or right-to-work checks, say so plainly. Clarity now prevents awkward conversations later.
Sequence the signatures
Offer letters are usually a two-signature document: the candidate signs, and someone on your side countersigns. Decide the order before you send.
Most teams send to the candidate first, then countersign once they have accepted, so the fully executed copy reflects a real agreement. Signet lets you set signing order so each person is prompted at the right time, and nobody has to chase the other by email.
This matters more as you hire at volume. If you are running multiple roles, a repeatable signing flow keeps every offer consistent. See how teams handle this across hiring in our recruitment solution.
Keep a signed record you can trust
An offer letter is an employment document. If a question ever comes up about what was agreed and when, you want proof, not a vague memory of an email thread.
Every document completed with Signet gets a tamper-evident audit trail and a certificate of completion, so you can see exactly who signed, when, and in what order. Anyone can confirm a document is genuine through independent public verification, without needing a Signet account. That record is available on every plan, including Free.
It is also worth knowing the legal footing. E-signatures on offer letters are aligned with the EU eIDAS regulation and the US ESIGN Act and UETA, so a properly signed electronic offer stands up just as a wet-ink one would. Documents are encrypted at rest with UK and EU data residency, and are never used to train AI. You can read more on our security page.
A simple flow that works
Put it together and the process is short: upload the offer letter, add the candidate and your countersignatory, set the signing order, and send the link. The candidate signs in a tap, you countersign, and both sides get a completed copy with a verifiable trail.
That is the whole point of purpose-built signing for hiring. It is faster for the candidate, tidier for you, and it protects the agreement without slowing anyone down. See it set up end to end in our offer letters solution.
Signet is in private beta, request early access and send your first sealed agreement free.