Skip to main content
breathandtaxesllc
breathandtaxesllc
Participant
March 12, 2024
Answered

Change default date setting in e-signature form

  • March 12, 2024
  • 4 replies
  • 14205 views

I'm sending a lot of forms for my clients to e-sign and Acrobat keeps defaulting to DD/MM/YYYY instead of MM/DD/YYYY. I thought that changing one input field would change the inputs for all the date forms but it didn't! I have to manually change the date settings for every date field.

 

Is there a way to set the default? I can't find it in app or online. 

    Correct answer ls_rbls

    My question was not about time zones. I am not sure why you suggested this action.  

     

    I just want to be able to change default format for dates and save that setting as my default.  ie. HH-MM-DD-MM-YY or MM/DD/YY or DD/MMM/YYYY.  

     It is annoying if you are preparing a lot of documents to have to change for every document. It is a lot of extra clicks and manual input increases the risk of error. 

    To repeat again. 

    Is there a way for me to save my date settings? 

     

    If there is no way for me to save my date format settings, can I ask why the decision was made to deny this option to users? 


    @Una379090443wtu ,

     

    If you are using Adobe Sign at work, see the guidance posted earlier by @Meenakshi Negi 

     

    There are various ways to create reusable PDF agreement templates to  keep a desired format with the PDF objects that your users will interact with.

     

    If you are using Adobe Acrobat Pro DC with an individual subscription plan, the version of Adobe Sign that is shipped by default with that plan is limited in some features.

     

    If that would be your case, you may need to upgrade to a Teams or Business version, I'm afraid.

     

    Otherwise, the Admin of the Adobe Sign team in your organization must assign an Admin role for you, that allows to modify or customize your re-usable Adobe Sign  templates.

     

     

    4 replies

    R
    raymondf53740700
    Participant
    September 1, 2025

    I didn't notice this thread previously and posted the following a few moments ago a new discussion:

    I use Adobe Acrobat Sign to get electronic signatures on documents.  People are always confused by the date section, which lists the date as DAY/MO/YEAR, so that August 10, 2025 (for example) is listed as 10/8/25 rather than the US standard 8/10/25.  As a result, I consistently get calls from signers saying that the date is showing up 'wrong'.  I finally decided to contact Adobe customer support and was told that I need an 'enterprise level subscription' in order to show the signing date in the proper US format.  I know the United States is one of a minority of countries (along with Canada, Greenland, the Philippines, Kenya and a few others) that use the MO/DAY/YEAR format, but shouldn't there be a simple setting or adjustment for this in Adobe Acrobat?  Instead, Adobe is forcing everyone who uses the US format to pay through the nose  in order to enable 'Global sign setting 3' that will show the date as MO/DAY/YEAR.  The cost to do this is excessive: enterprise pricing is $4.99 for EACH signature on EACH document; a single document with four signatures is equal to the cost of what I pay for an entire Adobe Acrobat Pro subscription for a month!).  So, this is what is required to get a date in a format used by approximately 400 million people in the world?  It is not my intent to come accross as a solely 'US-centric' person as that is not how I view the world.  Nor do I post rants or send 'flaming' emails, but I have to say, this is just plain ridiculous.  I'm going to look for an alternative to Adobe Acrobat.   

      breathandtaxesllc
      breathandtaxesllcAuthor
      Participant
      March 20, 2024

      The issue seems to have resolved itself! After enough times of setting the date to MM/DD/YYYY, Acrobat has saved the settings for both Date and Date of Signing fields. It seems like you have to do it with a dozen or so clients before it catches on.

       

      Feedback to the team would be to allow users to set the date default from the get go!

        ls_rbls
        Community Expert
        ls_rblsCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        March 22, 2024

        Thank you for the update!

        breathandtaxesllc
        breathandtaxesllcAuthor
        Participant
        March 13, 2024

        To add onto this user flaw, when I set the date settings and then change it to "Date of Signing" it resets the date formatting! So as a user I need to first remember to set the type of field and then set the customized date. Really annoying user workflow here. 

        ls_rbls
        Community Expert
        ls_rblsCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        March 14, 2024

        Seems like you're sharing the PDF via Adobe Sign. If Adobe Sign is involved in this workflow I am  not sure why is that happening.

         

        I normally prefer to customize my PDFs the way I want field objects to behave. And then I  share my PDFs at work as an email attachment instead of Adobe Sign.

         

        Would mind elaborating in a little more detail what type of workflow are you employing? Or. maybe sharing a dummy copy of that PDF with no sensitive data on it?

         

        I also forgot to ask if this is happening with just one particular PDF and only with that user, or is it happening with every PDF that you share with any users?

          breathandtaxesllc
          breathandtaxesllcAuthor
          Participant
          March 14, 2024

          I'm sending the forms via Acrobat. All of my agreements show up in my Acrobat desktop app. 

           

          There are specific pages my clients must sign for me to do work. I populate the e-signature field and Date of Signing field. Acrobat automatically creates clickable fields that it thinks are part of the form (helpful), but the default selection for those fields are what's annoying. For example, it can recognize a place to sign but it defaults to a text field instead of an e-signature field. For the date fields, it defaults to Date with DD/MM/YYYY. I recognize that this is the standard in most countries, but it is not in the US. For every date field on my forms, I have to 1) select Date of Signing then 2) customize the date field. That's an additional 6-10 clicks per client. It adds up when you're processing 100+ forms. 

           

           

            ls_rbls
            Community Expert
            ls_rblsCommunity Expert
            Community Expert
            March 12, 2024

            Hi @breathandtaxesllc ,

             

            Can you confirm or verify if the users that are receiving your PDFs are also using Adobe Acrobat or are they opening and viewing your PDFs on web browsers?

            breathandtaxesllc
            breathandtaxesllcAuthor
            Participant
            March 12, 2024
            They're likely signing from a web browser.


            --
            Warm regards,

            *Nicole Long, CPA*
            *she/her*
            ‪*P*: (503) 662-2894‬
            *F*: (503) 563-3284
            *E*: nicole@breathandtaxesllc.com
            www.breathandtaxesllc.com


            *WARNING:* Sending items containing sensitive information via email is
            highly discouraged. Your personal information cannot be safeguarded when
            sent through email. If you send sensitive information via email to Breath
            and Taxes LLC, we take no responsibility as to its security.
            Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
            Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices