> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docsautomator.co/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# E-Sign Date Format Options

> Customize date formatting in e-signature fields using flexible tokens and separators.

DocsAutomator's e-signature date fields support flexible formatting using tokens. You can combine any of the tokens below with any separator to create the exact date format your documents require.

## Available Tokens

| Token  | Description      | Example Output |
| ------ | ---------------- | -------------- |
| `YYYY` | 4-digit year     | 2025           |
| `YY`   | 2-digit year     | 25             |
| `MMMM` | Full month name  | January        |
| `MMM`  | Short month name | Jan            |
| `MM`   | 2-digit month    | 01             |
| `M`    | 1-digit month    | 1              |
| `DD`   | 2-digit day      | 07             |
| `D`    | 1-digit day      | 7              |

You can use any separator between tokens — slashes, dashes, dots, spaces, commas, or any other character.

## Format Examples

All examples below use the date **January 7, 2025** as reference.

### Numeric Formats

| Format       | Output     | Common Usage   |
| ------------ | ---------- | -------------- |
| `MM/DD/YYYY` | 01/07/2025 | US standard    |
| `DD/MM/YYYY` | 07/01/2025 | EU/UK standard |
| `YYYY-MM-DD` | 2025-01-07 | ISO 8601       |
| `DD.MM.YYYY` | 07.01.2025 | German/Swiss   |
| `M/D/YYYY`   | 1/7/2025   | US short       |
| `MM-DD-YYYY` | 01-07-2025 | US with dashes |
| `YYYY/MM/DD` | 2025/01/07 | East Asian     |
| `DD-MM-YY`   | 07-01-25   | Short EU       |

### Named Month Formats

| Format          | Output           | Common Usage                |
| --------------- | ---------------- | --------------------------- |
| `MMMM DD, YYYY` | January 07, 2025 | US formal                   |
| `MMMM D, YYYY`  | January 7, 2025  | US formal (no leading zero) |
| `DD MMMM YYYY`  | 07 January 2025  | UK/International formal     |
| `D MMMM YYYY`   | 7 January 2025   | UK formal (no leading zero) |
| `DD-MMM-YYYY`   | 07-Jan-2025      | Compliance / legal          |
| `D-MMM-YYYY`    | 7-Jan-2025       | Compliance short            |
| `MMM DD, YYYY`  | Jan 07, 2025     | US abbreviated              |
| `MMM D, YYYY`   | Jan 7, 2025      | US abbreviated short        |
| `DD MMM YYYY`   | 07 Jan 2025      | Military / international    |
| `D MMM YYYY`    | 7 Jan 2025       | International short         |
| `MMMM YYYY`     | January 2025     | Month and year only         |

### Other Combinations

| Format         | Output          | Notes                   |
| -------------- | --------------- | ----------------------- |
| `DD/MMM/YYYY`  | 07/Jan/2025     | Slashes with short name |
| `YYYY.MM.DD`   | 2025.01.07      | Dots with ISO order     |
| `MMMM DD YYYY` | January 07 2025 | No comma                |
| `DD-MMMM-YYYY` | 07-January-2025 | Dashes with full name   |

## Localization

Month names (`MMMM` and `MMM`) are automatically localized based on the **Signer Language** setting on your automation. For example, if the signer language is set to German:

| Token  | English | German |
| ------ | ------- | ------ |
| `MMMM` | January | Januar |
| `MMM`  | Jan     | Jan.   |

## How to Set the Date Format

1. Open your automation
2. Go to **Output Settings**
3. Under **E-Signature**, find the **Date Format** field
4. Enter your desired format using the tokens above
5. The format saves automatically

<Info>
  The default format is `MM/DD/YYYY`. You can change it to any combination of the tokens listed above.
</Info>

## Tips

* **For legal/compliance documents**: Use named month formats like `DD-MMM-YYYY` (07-Jan-2025) or `MMMM DD, YYYY` (January 07, 2025) to avoid ambiguity between US and European date conventions.
* **For international documents**: `YYYY-MM-DD` (ISO 8601) is universally unambiguous.
* **Leading zeros**: Use `DD` and `MM` for consistent widths with leading zeros, or `D` and `M` for compact dates without them.