Who this guide is for: Administrators (see access roles note)
Platform: Sense HR
Available on: All plans
🖊️ Access roles note:
Depending on your organisation’s role setup using Access role management (Professional, Elite and Enterprise plans only), some document actions may also be available to certain non-administrator roles.
Overview
Sense HR supports a range of file types for document uploads.
These formats can be used when uploading:
Company documents
Personal standard documents
However, some document upload features for Personal documents require a PDF file.
In particular:
Merged documents must be uploaded as PDFs
E-signatures require PDF
Supported file types for document uploads
The following file types are supported for document uploads in Sense HR:
.docx
.doc
.xlsx
.xls
.pptx
.ppt
.pdf
.png
.jpg
Maximum file size
The maximum file size for a document upload is:
10 MB
When PDF is required
Documents must be uploaded as PDF files if you want to use:
Merge tag
E-signatures
🖊️ Note:
If you upload a non-PDF file, it can still be stored as a standard document, but it will not support these features.
Document templates (Professional, Elite, and Enterprise only) also support merge tags and e-signatures.
“To be read” acknowledgements
To be read can be used with supported document uploads and creates a To Do task for the recipient.
The recipient can open the To Do and confirm:
☑ I confirm reading this document
Standard documents vs merged documents
Standard documents
A standard document is static and stored exactly as uploaded.
Standard documents can use any of the supported file types listed above, but they do not support:
Merge tags
E-signatures
Merged documents
A merged document is a PDF that contains merge tags and generates a personalised document for an employee.
Merged documents:
Must be uploaded as PDF
Support basic merge tags
Can include e-signature fields
Company documents vs personal documents
Company documents
Company documents support standard upload formats, including office files, PDFs, and image files.
They are used for static, shared content and do not support:
Merge tag
E-signatures
Personal documents
Personal documents can be added in different ways:
Upload document
• Upload standard document
• Upload merged document
Use template
Add link
For uploaded personal documents:
Standard documents can use any supported file type
Merged documents must use PDF
Quick guide: which format should I use?
Use:
PDF if you need merge tags or e-signatures
Word / Excel / PowerPoint / image files if you only need to upload and store a standard document
Templates if you want to create and edit a reusable personal document in Sense HR (Professional, Elite and Enterprise plans only), use advanced merge tags, or use the Doc Sender AMI agent to send personal documents at scale (Elite and Enterprise plans only)
Best practice
Save merged or signature-ready documents as PDF before uploading
Check file size before upload to avoid failures
Use standard uploads for static files only
FAQ
Click here to see answers to frequently asked questions
Click here to see answers to frequently asked questions
Q: What file types can I upload as documents in Sense HR?
Sense HR supports document uploads in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, and common image formats: .docx, .doc, .xlsx, .xls, .pptx, .ppt, .pdf, .png, and .jpg.
Q: What is the maximum file size for a document upload?
The maximum file size for a document upload in Sense HR is 10 MB.
Q: When does a document have to be a PDF?
A document needs to be a PDF when you want to use merge tags or e-signatures.
Q: Can I use merge tags in an uploaded Word document?
No, you can't directly upload a Word document that contains merge tags. Merge tags only work when the uploaded document is a PDF and is uploaded as a merged document. You can convert a Word document to PDF before uploading.
Q: Can company documents use PDFs with merge tags?
No. Company documents can be uploaded as PDFs, but they remain static and do not support merge tags or e-signatures.
Q: Can I upload images as documents?
Yes. You can upload .png and .jpg image files as standard document uploads.
Q: Can I use “To be read” with non-PDF documents?
Yes. To be read can be used with supported document uploads and creates a To Do task that lets the recipient confirm they have read the document.