Turn a Word file into a document template

Start a new document from a Word (.docx) or PDF file. It’s read in your browser and becomes an editable template with the file’s text, tables and images, and then you place the record’s fields in it.

4 minUpdated Oct 27, 2026

Open in Corteksa

Before you start · for owners and managers

The permission to create document templates

You need: The permission to create document templates

Steps

Open Settings → Document Generator and press New document.

Under Start from, choose Import Word or PDF.

Drop a .docx or .pdf file in the box, or press Choose a file.

The number of pages read shows, with “ready to create”, and the Name is taken from the file.

Choose Prints from, the Language and the Paper, then press Create document.

The document opens in the editor with the file’s text, tables and images, ready to edit.

Place the record’s fields in the text. See Record fields in a document, and how each value prints.

How it works

The file is read in your browser, and the text becomes editable: it flows from page to page like any other document in the document editor.

Scanned PDF pages are read with OCR in Arabic and English. The message after the import says how many pages were read this way, so proofread their text.

To bring a file into a document you already have, press the document’s name at the top of the editor and choose Open a Word file or Open a PDF. The file replaces everything in the document, so if the document already has content, you’re asked to confirm with Replace first. You can also press Import on the Document Generator page and pick the file; you’re then asked which unit it prints from.

To keep a Word file exactly as it is, as a fixed background with the fields placed on top, use Upload Word in the classic designer. See The classic designer: templates with fixed elements.

If something goes wrong

What you see

Why

What to do

“The file could not be read. If it is password-protected, remove the password and try again.”

The file is protected or damaged.

Remove the password or save the file again, then press Choose another file.

“No text could be read from this file — even OCR found nothing.”

A blank page, or a scan that’s too unclear.

Use a sharper copy.

“This PDF draws its text with fonts that never say which letters the shapes are…”

The PDF stores its text as shapes.

Export the PDF again from the program that made it, keeping the text.

“This file has too many pages to import. Split it and try again.”

The PDF has more than 100 pages.

Split it.

“This file is too large to import.”

The Word file is over 25 MB.

Make its images smaller, or split it.

“Something went wrong reading the file.”

Another problem with the file.

Check that it opens in another program, then try again.

A real example

Shield Security Co.

The situation

The company has its maintenance contract in Word, and retyping it would take a day.

What they did

They chose Import Word or PDF in New document and dropped the contract file.
They placed the client name, date and amount fields in the imported text.

The result

The contract prints with each client’s details, and its text can still be edited.

A made-up company, to show the idea. The numbers are rounded.