Interim Document Generation for Wet Signature Processes

Use Case Overview

Many organizations, particularly universities, public sector institutions, and organizations handling visa or compliance documentation, require physical (“wet ink”) signatures or official stamps on generated documents before the process can proceed to completion.

Currently, Freshservice allows document generation (e.g., via workflow automations or integrations), but this action typically represents a finalized step — triggering completion or closure of the associated request or workflow. However, in scenarios involving wet signatures, this breaks the real-world process, as the document must first be:

1. Generated,

2. Printed and physically signed or stamped,

3. Re-uploaded into the same request,

4. Then verified or marked as complete.

Example Scenarios

• University Letters & Certificates:

  Administrative teams generate official confirmation letters (e.g., enrolment, visa, or award letters) which must be printed and stamped with a university seal before being returned to the requester or external authority.

  The generated letter should not be visible to the requester until the final stamped version is uploaded and verified.

• Travel Visa Requests:

  HR or mobility teams generate supporting visa documents (e.g., letters of sponsorship, invitation letters). These require wet signatures by authorized signatories before submission to embassies.

  The document generation should pause the workflow at an “Awaiting Signature” stage, allowing manual intervention before continuation.

Proposed Enhancement

Introduce a “Generate Document (Interim)” action type within workflows or approvals, enabling:

1. Document generation using existing template logic (variables, placeholders, etc.).

2. Workflow continuation hold until a file is re-uploaded.

3. Optional visibility control, hiding the draft/generated document from the requester until the final version is uploaded.

4. Configurable status or stage name (e.g., Awaiting Signature / Awaiting Stamp).

5. Resume automation once the signed/stamped version is attached and verified.

Key Benefits

• Aligns Freshservice workflows with real-world administrative and legal processes that require physical document handling.

• Prevents premature request closure or visibility of incomplete documents.

• Supports compliance, especially in education, HR, and visa-related processes.

• Reduces the need for workaround solutions (e.g., manual ticket transitions or parallel request types).

Example Workflow Flow

1. Request submitted →

2. Workflow generates draft document →

3. System transitions ticket to Awaiting Signature →

4. Agent downloads, signs/stamps, and uploads final document →

5. Workflow resumes, transitions to Approved or Completed, and sends the signed document to the requester.