How to add terms and conditions in Google Forms?

Boobesh Ramalingam
Boobesh Ramalingam
Co-founder of Guesswork.co.
"terms and conditions to give a client before he/she agrees to the service"- Quora

You run a service business, sign up new clients with Google Forms, and your terms have to be accepted before the work starts. For example, you clean homes and each client has to accept your cancellation policy before your first visit, so nobody argues about a late cancellation fee. Google Forms has no place for terms and conditions. You can paste them into the form with an "I agree" checkbox, but a client can tick it without reading a word. The Formesign - Signature for Google Docs addon shows your terms on a consent screen before submit, and the response only goes through when the client clicks Agree. That click is your record that each client saw the terms.

Let's start. Open your form in Google Forms. There are three ways to add your terms, and the third one puts them on a consent screen.

#1 Add terms and conditions

You can add the terms and conditions text directly in Google Forms.
  1. Open your form in Google Forms
  2. Click on the TT option to add a title and description
  3. Enter "Terms and conditions" in the title option
  4. Enter the terms and conditions text in the description option
  5. To get consent from the users, you can add a required checkboxes question with "I agree" as the answer choice
The limitation with this option is that the form might become difficult to access and complete. Users may need to scroll through the form to read them, fill the answers and submit it.
A title and description card in Google Forms with Terms and conditions as the title and the terms in the description, with the Tт icon and the card marked

#2: Add hyperlink

You can add the link to the terms and conditions as a hyperlink in the description option for the checkboxes question so that users choose to click on the link to read the terms and then check the "I agree" answer choice to provide consent.
  1. Open your form in Google Forms
  2. Click on the + Add question icon to add a checkboxes question
  3. Enter "Terms and conditions" in the title option
  4. Add the link to the terms & conditions page as a hyperlink in the description option
  5. Add "I agree" as an answer choice for this checkboxes question
  6. Mark this question as required so that users have to answer this question to submit the form
The limitation with this option is that the users will have to open an external link to read the terms; some users might skip this step and submit the form without reading the terms.
A required checkboxes question titled Terms and conditions, with a Click here link in its description and the choice I agree, with the description and Required marked
If you don't have the terms and conditions published online, either on your website or other platforms, then you can create google doc with T&C's and publish it.
  1. Create a google document with the terms and conditions text
  2. Click on the Share option in the top right corner
  3. Change the general access to "Anyone with the link" with viewer permissions
  4. Copy the link and add it as hyperlink in the form
The Share dialog of a Google Doc named Terms and conditions, with General access set to Anyone with the link and Viewer, and Copy link marked

#3: Show consent screen

The options listed above provide a simple way to inform the users about the terms and conditions. However, for legal purposes, it's recommended to have users explicitly acknowledge your terms and conditions by clicking on a button. You can use the Formesign - Signature for Google Docs addon to show a consent dialog box with the terms and conditions before submit.
  1. Add the terms and conditions in the form's description
  2. Install the Formesign - Signature for Google Docs addon from Google Workspace marketplace
  3. Open your form in Google Forms
  4. Click on the addon icon
  5. Click Formesign - Signature for Google Docs
  6. Click More options ...
  7. Click Proceed if the addon asks to modify the form
  8. Click Share in the Share this with users row
  9. Click on "Edit" tab
  10. Click on the Submit setting gear icon in the After page row at the end of the form
  11. Click Consent
  12. Check the show consent screen option and click Save
  13. The terms and conditions will be displayed in the consent screen before submit.
The Consent tab of the Submit setting panel, with the Consent tab, the ticked Show consent screen while submitting form option and Save marked
When the user fills the form and clicks on the submit button, the consent screen will be displayed. Users can review the terms and conditions and then click on the Agree button to submit the response or click Close. The clickwrap agreements are often considered more legally enforceable than checkbox agreements because they require users to take an affirmative step to demonstrate consent.
The consent screen, a white sheet on grey with the Cleaning service agreement, its terms and Maya Patel's answers, with the Close button and the Agree button marked

Summary

Google Forms has no built-in place for terms and conditions and an "I agree" checkbox can be ticked without reading them. With Formesign, you show the terms on a consent screen before submit and users have to click on the Agree button to send their response. Open your form in Google Forms and complete the steps above. If you have any questions, write to support.

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