> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://signatureapi-daf4ee54.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Ceremony URL
> Learn how to obtain the ceremony URL to deliver signing access yourself or embed the ceremony in your application.
Recipients use the ceremony URL to access their signing ceremony and complete their actions.
By default, SignatureAPI creates a ceremony for each recipient when you create an envelope. It uses email link authentication and sends the recipient an email with their ceremony link. You don't need to handle URL delivery in that case.
You may want to obtain the ceremony URL directly to:
* [Embed](/docs/embedded/introduction) the signing ceremony in your web or mobile application
* Redirect users to the ceremony from within your application workflow
* Send the invitation through your own email infrastructure with custom branding
## When ceremony URLs are available
A ceremony URL is available when the ceremony is active and not yet completed. If the first authentication method is `email_link`, SignatureAPI delivers the URL by email. The `url` property will be `null` in that case.
When SignatureAPI sends the URL directly to the recipient (as with [Email Link Authentication](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/email-link)), the `url` property is `null`. You don't need to handle delivery yourself.
## How to get a ceremony URL
Set the ceremony's authentication method to one of the following:
* [Email Code](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/email-code)
* [Custom Authentication](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/custom)
* [Multiple Authentication](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/multiple) with Email Code or Custom Authentication as the first step
The URL is returned in the `url` property of the ceremony object. You can retrieve it in several ways.
### From envelope operations
When you create or retrieve an envelope, the ceremony URL is available in the `url` property of each recipient's ceremony object.
```json Envelope object theme={null}
{
"id": "abcdef12-3456-7890-1234-abcdef123456",
"title": "Service Agreement",
"recipients": [
{
"type": "signer",
"key": "client",
"name": "John Doe",
"email": "john.doe@example.com",
"ceremony": {
"authentication": [
{
"type": "email_code"
}
],
"url": "https://sign.signatureapi.com/en/start?token=eyJhbGciOiJFUzI1NiIsInR...",
//...
}
//...
}
]
//...
}
```
### From recipient operations
When you retrieve a recipient, the ceremony URL is available in the `url` property of the recipient's ceremony object.
```json Recipient object theme={null}
{
"type": "signer",
"key": "client",
"name": "John Doe",
"email": "john.doe@example.com",
"ceremony": {
"authentication": [
{
"type": "email_code"
}
],
"url": "https://sign.signatureapi.com/en/start?token=eyJhbGciOiJFUzI1NiIsInR...",
//...
}
//...
}
```
### From ceremony operations
When you create a ceremony using the [Create Ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) endpoint, the URL is returned in the `url` property of the ceremony object.
```json Ceremony object theme={null}
{
"authentication": [
{
"type": "email_code"
}
],
"url": "https://sign.signatureapi.com/en/start?token=eyJhbGciOiJFUzI1NiIsInR...",
//...
}
```
## Short ceremony URLs
Standard ceremony URLs are long. They may not fit in space-constrained channels like SMS or push notifications.
Set `url_variant` to `short` when creating the ceremony to generate a shorter URL.
```json Request theme={null}
// POST https://api.signatureapi.com/v1/recipients/{recipient_id}/ceremonies
// X-API-Key: key_test_...
// Content-Type: application/json
{
"authentication": [
{
"type": "custom",
"provider": "SuperApp",
"data": {
"Session ID": "a4f9e8b2-7c1d-4b2d-9a4b-e0c5d6f7a1b3",
"Authenticated At": "2025-12-31T23:59:59Z"
}
}
],
"url_variant": "short"
}
```
```json Response theme={null}
// HTTP Status Code 201
{
//...
"url": "https://sign.signatureapi.com/s/BgnexxxxxxxxIbRi"
}
```
## URL expiration
Ceremony URLs expire 30 days after creation, or when a new ceremony is created for the same recipient. Contact support to adjust the expiration period.
How to get a new URL depends on the authentication method and URL variant:
| Authentication | Standard URL | Short URL |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| [Email Link](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/email-link) | [Resend](/docs/api/resources/recipients/resend) or [Create Ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) | [Create Ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) |
| [Email Code](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/email-code) | [Get Envelope](/docs/api/resources/envelopes/get) | [Create Ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) |
| [Custom](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/authentication/custom) | [Get Envelope](/docs/api/resources/envelopes/get) | [Create Ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) |
Short URLs do not refresh automatically. Create a new ceremony to generate a new short URL.
## Invalid or expired links
Recipients may see an "Invalid link" error when accessing a ceremony URL. Common causes:
* **The URL expired.** Ceremony URLs expire 30 days after creation. Create a new ceremony to generate a fresh URL.
* **A newer ceremony replaced it.** Creating a new ceremony for the same recipient invalidates the previous URL. Only the most recent ceremony URL is active.
* **The envelope was canceled or completed.** Ceremony URLs stop working after the envelope reaches a terminal status.
* **The URL was modified.** The full URL, including the token, must be used exactly as returned by the API. Truncated or modified URLs will not work.
If a recipient reports an invalid link, check the envelope and recipient status first. If the envelope is still in progress, [create a new ceremony](/docs/api/resources/ceremonies/create) to generate a new URL.