PandaDoc document not found via API but the document is visible in the UI

Not specified by the original author.

Fix PandaDoc "document not found" via API when it's visible in the UI

TL;DR

Your API credential can't see the document because it's scoped to a different workspace, or you're mixing sandbox and production credentials, or the ID you're passing isn't the document UUID. List documents through the same credential and compare: if the document isn't in the list, it's a scope/environment mismatch; if it is, your ID is wrong.

document not found

Steps

1. Call the document list endpoint with the exact credential your failing call uses. Expected: either the document appears (your ID was wrong) or it doesn't (scope or environment mismatch).

2. Check environments: confirm whether the credential is sandbox or production, and that it matches the UI where you see the document. Expected: credential environment and UI environment agree.

3. Verify the ID is the document UUID, not a template ID, session ID, or the ID from a different document. Expected: the ID matches an entry from the list call in step 1.

4. If the document belongs to another workspace member, have an admin share it or switch to a credential with the right workspace scope, then retry the GET. Expected: 200 with the document payload.

Use this when

• API calls 404 on a PandaDoc document you can open in the web app
• An integration works for some documents but not others
• You recently switched between sandbox and production keys

Not for this skill when

• The API credential itself is rejected (that's an auth problem)
• Document creation fails (that's a payload problem, not a lookup problem)
• The document opens in the API but renders wrong (that's a content problem)

Variant phrasings

pandadoc api 404 document exists in ui

Classic workspace or environment scoping mismatch.

pandadoc document id not found api

Double-check you're passing the document UUID and not a template ID.

pandadoc sandbox vs production document not found

Sandbox and production are fully separate; documents don't cross over.

Why it happens

PandaDoc separates workspaces and environments at the credential level. The web UI shows you everything your user can access across workspaces, but an API credential is scoped narrower. Sandbox and production are entirely separate datastores, so a production document ID is meaningless to a sandbox credential.

Edge cases

• Deleted or archived documents return the same 404; check the UI's trash and archive views.
• Very recently created documents can lag in list results; retry after a short wait before assuming a scope problem.
• Service-user credentials may need explicit sharing on documents created by humans.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstaeOQ8cumLlIhzc7168vsQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pstaeOQ8cumLlIhzc7168vsQ

Thread query: PandaDoc "document not found" via API but the document is visible in the UI

TL;DR: Your API credential can't see the document because it's scoped to a different workspace, or you're mixing sandbox and production credentials, or the ID you're passing isn't the document UUID. List documents through the same credential and compare: if the document isn't in the list, it's a scope/environment mismatch; if it is, your ID is wrong.

Not specified by the original author.

pandadoc shared link shows expired error after signing: how to fix it

A PandaDoc shared link showing expired after signing usually means the signer opened an old link instead of the current document, or the document moved to completed and the signing link retired. Open the document from your PandaDoc dashboard instead of the email link. The signed copy is safe in the completed folder.

pandadoc shared link shows expired error after signing

When to use this skill

• The signing link says expired right after someone signed
• You need the signed document but the link is dead

When not to use this skill

• Nobody has signed yet and the link is dead (a link expiry issue)
• The document shows as voided (a different problem)

Tool compatibility

PandaDoc signing links and completed documents. Related area: business SaaS platforms and vendor portals. Cloud UIs change labels over time; if a button moved, search settings for the closest match.

Before you start

• Sign in to the tool and keep one tab open so sessions stay clean
• Copy the exact error text and note the time it happened
• Set aside 15 to 20 minutes; most of these resolve in a single pass

Quick diagnosis

Make sure this is the right skill before you invest the 15 minutes.

• If you are dealing with the signing link says expired right after someone signed, start at step 1 below.
• If instead nobody has signed yet and the link is dead (a link expiry issue), stop here; you need a different skill.
• If neither quite matches, compare your screen against the verbatim error block at the top; that block is exactly what this skill covers.

Fix it in steps

1. Check the document status in the dashboard

Log in to PandaDoc and find the document in completed or sent.

Expected: the document shows completed with all signatures.

2. Download the signed copy

Open the completed document and download the final PDF.

Expected: a signed PDF with the audit trail.

3. Send the recipient the completed copy

Share the final PDF directly instead of the signing link.

Expected: the recipient gets what they need without the dead link.

4. For future signings use fresh links

Generate signing links per recipient and note their expiry.

Expected: no more post-signing expired link confusion.

Confirm each step worked

Run through this checklist before moving on. If a check fails, redo that step instead of pushing ahead.

• Step 1 (check the document status in the dashboard): Expected: the document shows completed with all signatures.
• Step 2 (download the signed copy): Expected: a signed PDF with the audit trail.
• Step 3 (send the recipient the completed copy): Expected: the recipient gets what they need without the dead link.
• Step 4 (for future signings use fresh links): Expected: no more post-signing expired link confusion.

Quick recap

1. Check the document status in the dashboard
2. Download the signed copy
3. Send the recipient the completed copy
4. For future signings use fresh links

Still stuck?

Gather three things: the exact error text, the time it happened, and what changed just before it broke. Check the vendor status page for an active incident. Then open a support ticket with those three things; it cuts the back-and-forth in half. For agent runs, attach the last 50 lines of the agent log too, since the loop or timeout signature in the log usually names the cause.

Variant phrasings

pandadoc link expired after signing

The signature is safe, the link just retired. If this matches what you saw, the steps above apply as written.

shared link expired pandadoc signed

Pull the completed PDF from the dashboard. If this matches what you saw, the steps above apply as written.

Why it happens

Signing links are single-purpose. Once the document completes, PandaDoc retires the signing link, so anyone revisiting the old email link sees an expired message even though the signing worked perfectly.

Edge cases

• The audit trail lives with the completed document, not the link
• Resending the same retired link never works
• Recipients often panic at the expired message, reassure them the signature counted

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_3I-lUsYgXDRIr1-R2ExnkA

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_3I-lUsYgXDRIr1-R2ExnkA

Thread query: pandadoc shared link shows expired error after signing

TL;DR:

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

A PandaDoc document stuck in 'draft' after your send call returned 200 means the 200 acknowledged receipt of the request, not completion of the send. Document creation and document sending are separate API calls, and the send is refused silently when recipients are incomplete, required fields are empty, or the document was already sent. Call the send endpoint explicitly, verify every recipient has a valid email and role, fill required fields, then poll the document status until it leaves draft. A 200 on create is never proof of sending.

The query

PandaDoc document stuck in 'draft'  -  the API send call returned 200 but nothing sent

Use this when

• The document create call returned 200 but the document sits in draft and nobody received it
• Your code used to send documents and stopped, with no error from the API
• The PandaDoc UI shows the document as a draft with a Send button still available

Not for

• Documents that show as sent but recipients never got the email - that is a delivery problem
• API errors (4xx/5xx) on the send call itself - those are explicit failures, not silent ones
• Documents stuck in other statuses (e.g. viewed, completed) - different state machine, different fix

Steps

1. Confirm create and send are separate calls in your code

Read your integration code path: creating a document (POST to the documents endpoint) only builds the draft. Sending requires the dedicated send call for that document id. If your code stops after create, the 200 you saw was the draft being built. Expected output: you can point at the line that calls send - or confirm it is missing.

2. Call the send endpoint explicitly

Send the document with the document id from the create response. Capture the full response, not just the status code: a 200 with an unchanged draft status is the signature of this bug.

curl -X POST 'https://api.pandadoc.com/public/v1/documents/[DOCUMENT_ID]/send' \
  -H 'your auth header -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"message": "Please sign the updated agreement."}'

Expected output: a 200 response and, on the next status read, a status other than draft.

3. Verify every recipient is complete

A send is refused when a recipient lacks an email address or a role. List the document's recipients and check each one: valid email format, a role assigned, and no duplicates. Fix the recipient list on the draft and send again. Expected output: every recipient has an email and a role; the send then succeeds.

4. Fill required fields before sending

Required merge fields left empty block the send. Open the draft, find the unfilled required fields (the editor marks them), and populate them via the API or the UI before retrying the send call. Expected output: no required fields remain empty and the send transitions the document out of draft.

5. Poll status until it leaves draft, then alert on stuck drafts

After the send call, poll the document status until it changes. Add a monitor: any document still in draft N minutes after your code called send is a bug, and it should page, not sit silently. Expected output: status moves to sent, and the monitor never fires again because the code path is fixed.

Tool compatibility

PandaDoc API v1 (documents create and send endpoints). The create/send split is the same for all account tiers.

Variant phrasings

• PandaDoc document stuck in draft API send returned 200
• PandaDoc send document 200 but nothing sent
• PandaDoc document not sending stays in draft via API
• PandaDoc create document vs send document draft status

Why it happens

PandaDoc separates drafting from sending deliberately: the draft stage lets integrations assemble documents, fill fields, and review before anything goes to a counterparty. The API mirrors that with two calls, and each returns 200 for its own step. Code that treats 'create returned 200' as 'sent' skips the second half of the state machine, and the document waits in draft - correctly, from the API's perspective.

Edge cases / pitfalls

• Calling send twice is safe - the second call is a no-op on an already-sent document, so retries are idempotent.
• A document edited in the UI after API creation can gain new required fields that block the API send.
• Test-mode (sandbox) documents behave the same way; draft-stuck is not a sandbox artifact.
• If the send call itself returns an error body with a 200 status, read the body - PandaDoc puts the real reason there.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst-qrCR_hiVZAcGVWMSrjyw

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst-qrCR_hiVZAcGVWMSrjyw

Thread query: PandaDoc document stuck in 'draft' - the API send call returned 200 but nothing sent

TL;DR: A PandaDoc document stuck in 'draft' after your send call returned 200 means the 200 acknowledged receipt of the request, not completion of the send. Document creation and document sending are separate API calls, and the send is refused silently when recipients are incomplete, required fields are empty, or the document was already sent. Call the send endpoint explicitly, verify every recipient has a valid email and role, fill required fields, then poll the document status until it leaves draft. A 200 on create is never proof of sending.