Word template page break ignored when combining documents in CLM workflow

Question

Hi Community,I am working on a DocuSign CLM workflow that combines a generated document with user-uploaded attachments into a single merged PDF using the Combine Documents workflow step.I followed advice from this community thread (https://community.docusign.com/clm-112/workflow-combine-documents-step-20902) which recommends adding a page break at the end of the main Word template so that the attached documents start on a new page in the merged output.What I did:Opened the main Word template (.docx) in CLM	Placed the cursor at the very end of the document after all content	Inserted a hard page break using Ctrl + Enter	Saved and re-uploaded the template back to CLMProblem: The page break is not being preserved in the merged output. The combined PDF does not show any page separation between the main document and the appended attachments.Questions:Is a hard page break (Ctrl + Enter) the correct way to do this, or is there a specific CLM merge tag or method that should be used instead?	Does the CLM merge engine strip out trailing page breaks during PDF conversion?	Is there anything else that needs to be configured in the Combine Documents step itself to ensure proper page separation?Any guidance would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Pawan Gangwani · Answer

Hello ​@SikandarWelcome to the Docusign Community!Yes, using a hard page break is generally the correct approach within Word. However, CLM’s document generation/PDF conversion process can sometimes ignore trailing page breaks, especially if they appear at the very end of the document with no additional content after them.Recommended workaroundInstead of leaving the page break as the last element, try one of the below:Add a page break + a small placeholder element after it, such as:A blank paragraphA hidden text line (e.g., a space in white font)A simple label like: “Attachments follow”Just to note:You cannot combine different file types to create the combined document.Thanks!👪 Docusign Community LeaderboardTop 5contributor💹 Ranked #3 in theReply Royaltycategory inDocuSign Community Wrapped 2024🤝Let’s LinkedIn and roll:Pawan Gangwani - EY | LinkedIn

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