Shopify Consent Forms: Get Them Signed Before Appointments

If clients book and pay for treatments through your Shopify store, you need a signed consent form before you start. Paper forms at the front desk slow down every appointment and get lost; a checkbox at checkout proves very little. This guide shows how to get a proper signed consent form from every client automatically when they book, on any Shopify plan, so it's done before they walk in.

Who needs consent forms

• Beauty: lash and brow treatments, facials, peels, waxing, hair colour.
• Aesthetics: skin treatments, laser, microneedling.
• Tattoo and piercing studios.
• Wellness: massage, spa treatments, cupping, float therapy.
• Fitness: personal training, classes and assessments.

In each case you want proof that the client was told about the treatment and its risks, confirmed they had no reason not to go ahead, and agreed. With a date, a signature and a copy you can find quickly.

Consent form vs liability waiver

A consent form records that the client understands the treatment, its risks and aftercare, and agrees to it. A liability waiver releases you from claims for certain risks, as far as the law allows. Salons and studios often combine both in one document so the client signs once. For the waiver side, see how to add a liability waiver to Shopify.

What a consent form should include

• Client details: name, email, phone and date of birth if age matters.
• The treatment: what will be done, in plain language.
• Risks and side effects: the common ones, honestly stated.
• Contraindications: yes/no confirmations such as allergies, pregnancy, recent treatments or medication that affects the procedure.
• Patch test: where relevant, confirmation that one was done or declined.
• Aftercare: what the client agrees to do afterwards.
• Photos: optional consent to before-and-after photos and whether you may post them.
• Minors: a parent or guardian section, if you treat under-18s.
• Signature, printed name and date.

Rules differ by treatment and country, and some treatments have specific legal requirements. Check with your trade body or insurer what your form must contain.

Step by step: consent forms with SignShield

SignShield emails each client a signing link as soon as they book a linked service. Checkout stays exactly as it is, so it works on every Shopify plan.

1. Install SignShield from the Shopify App Store and start the 7-day free trial.
2. Create your consent form. Upload the PDF form you already use, or write it in the built-in editor.
3. Place the fields. SignShield has 7 field types: signature, initials, name, email, date, text and checkbox. Use checkboxes for each contraindication question and for photo consent, and initials next to the risks section. Each field can be required or optional.
4. Use conditional sections for parts that only apply to some clients, such as the guardian section for minors or an add-on treatment. They stay covered until the client ticks the matching box, and are marked "Not applicable" in the signed PDF otherwise.
5. Link your services. Choose which products need the form. SignShield only sends it for orders that contain a linked product, so retail sales of aftercare products are unaffected.
6. Choose when it's sent: when the booking is placed, when it's paid, or manually from the order.
7. Add a message, such as "Please sign before your appointment." It appears in the signing email, in reminders and at the top of the signing page.
8. Book a test appointment and sign it on your phone to see exactly what clients will see.

Each signed form becomes a PDF with a Certificate of Completion recording who signed, their email, IP address and when. It's sealed with a SHA-256 fingerprint and an independent timestamp, and can be checked on a public verification page. If a client later says they weren't told about a risk, you can show exactly what they confirmed.

Getting it signed before the appointment

• Say it at booking. On the service page: "You'll receive a short consent form by email. Please sign it before your appointment."
• Let reminders chase. Clients who haven't signed get up to 2 reminder emails, about 1 and 3 days after the request. They're free and don't count towards your plan.
• Plan for bookings far ahead. You choose how long signing links stay valid: 2, 7 or 14 days. For appointments weeks away, you can send the form manually from the order closer to the date, and re-sending is always free.
• Phone bookings. Send the form by typing the client's name and email, with no Shopify order needed.
• Check the day before. The Signing Sessions page shows who has signed, so you can follow up in time. A client who forgot can still sign on their phone in the waiting area.
• Practitioner sign-off. On the Plus and Business plans, up to 3 people can sign one document in order, so your practitioner can countersign after the client.

A note on health information

Consent forms often touch on health, so keep them to what you actually need: yes/no confirmations rather than a full medical history. If you're a healthcare provider covered by rules such as HIPAA in the US, check with your adviser before collecting health information through any online form or e-signature app. See our privacy policy for how SignShield stores data.

Comparing apps? See Shopify e-signature and waiver apps compared.

Frequently asked questions

This article is general information, not legal or medical advice. Requirements for consent forms vary by treatment, country and state — check with your insurer, trade body or a lawyer.