What’s New: Group-Level Sharing Permissions
Admins can now grant specific groups the ability to share forms and/or records with external users directly — without admin involvement for every request. This gives staff more autonomy to manage their own sharing workflows, while keeping admin control over who joins the organisation.
Note: The ability to add external users to the organisation (inviting them to sign in to IndyForms) remains with admin users only.
There are three ways to share forms with external users:
Option 1: Share a Public Form Link
A public form link allows anyone with the link to submit a response. This is ideal when you want open access without requiring sign-in.
Open the form you want to share.
Click Share Form in the top navigation.
Copy the New Record link and share it with your external users via email, SMS, or any other channel.
Anyone with this link can submit a response. Responses are recorded in your form's records view.
Option 2: Share with a Specific External User (Tracked)
This option lets you create an external user by email address. Their responses are tied to their email identity, so you can track exactly what they've submitted.
Open the form you want to share. You can also share from within the form builder through the Sharing tab.
Click Share Form in the top navigation.
Select More Sharing Options.
Click Create New +.
In the Add User dialog, enter the external user's:
First Name
Last Name
Email Address
Toggle Invite to Tenant? if you'd like them to be added as a tenant user (optional).
If you want to keep them as external users (not signed into your organisation), leave this box unticked.
Click Add User.
The external user will receive an email to complete the form shared with them, and their submissions will be tracked by email address in your records.
Option 3: Pre-fill a Form and Share with an External User (Tracked)
This is perfect when you want to send a form that's partially completed — for example, pre-populating a client's name, date, or any known details before they fill in the rest.
Select the form you want to share.
Create a new record (response) for that form.
Fill in the fields you want to pre-populate.
Once done, click + Share on that record.
Select + Add Contributors.
Click Create New +.
Enter the external user's details (First Name, Last Name, Email Address) and click Add User.
The external user will receive a link to the form with your pre-filled data already in place. They can then complete and submit the remaining fields.
Setting Group-Level Sharing Permissions (Admins)
Admins can grant specific groups the ability to share forms and records with external users without needing admin involvement for every request. These permissions are set per form and are controlled separately for forms and records.
Open the relevant form and navigate to the Settings tab in the form settings.
Locate the group you want to grant sharing rights to.
Tick Share Forms to allow that group to share the form with external users.
Tick Share Records to allow that group to share individual records.
These are separate tickboxes — you can grant one or both depending on what the group needs.
What External Users See
External users receive an email invitation with a personalised link. They don’t need an IndyForms account to fill in and submit the form. Once submitted, their response is recorded and linked to their email address for easy tracking.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q. Do external users need an IndyForms account to fill in a form?
No. External users receive a personalised link via email and can complete the form without creating an account or signing in.
Q. What's the difference between a public form link and sharing with a specific external user?
A public form link can be used by anyone — responses are not tied to an individual's email identity. When you share with a specific external user by email, their submission is tracked against their name and email address, giving you a clear record of who submitted what.
Q. Can I share the same form with multiple external users?
Yes. You can add as many external users as you need. Each person receives their own personalised link, and their submissions are tracked individually.
Q. Can I pre-fill different information for different external users?
Yes. Create a separate record for each external user, pre-fill the relevant details for that person, then add them as a contributor to their specific record. Each user will only see and interact with their own pre-filled form.
Q. Can I send a partially completed form to an external user?
Yes. You can pre-fill a form with known information, then share it with an external user. They’ll receive a personalised link with your pre-filled data already in place and can complete the remaining fields.
Q. What happens after an external user submits their form?
Their completed response is saved to your IndyForms records and linked to their email address. You'll be able to view, manage, and export their submission just like any other record.
Q. Can external users be added to groups or schedules?
Yes. Admins can add external users to groups and schedules where needed, allowing them to be included in workflows without requiring full platform access.
Q. What is the "Invite to Organisation?" option when adding an external user?
Enabling this adds the external user to your organisation as a General User with broader access. Leave it unchecked if you want them to remain an external user — able to complete forms via their personalised link without signing in.
Q. Can external users save their progress and return to the form later?
Yes, they can. They can access the form via their emailed link, and each link remains active for 30 days.
Tips
Use Share Forms group permission to let trusted staff send forms to external users without contacting an admin.
Use Share Records group permission to let staff share pre-filled records directly with clients or partners.
You can add multiple external contributors to the same record.
Pre-filling is especially useful for onboarding, authorisation, or any scenario where you already hold some of the respondent’s data.
All external user submissions appear alongside internal responses in your records view.
Use pre-fill + locked sections to reduce errors — complete known details in advance and prevent them from being changed.
Share with a specific external user when you need accountability — this ensures each submission is tracked to an individual.
Create one record per external user when pre-filling forms to keep responses clean and personalised.
Double-check section permissions and visibility before sending to ensure external users only see what they need to complete.