Why Word’s Footnote Continuation Notice Disappears on Specific Layouts

When you create a long footnote in Word that spans more than one page, the program normally inserts a footnote continuation notice at the bottom of the first page. This notice tells readers the footnote continues on the next page. On certain document layouts, that notice disappears without warning. The cause is a combination of paragraph formatting settings and the specific view or print layout mode you are using. This article explains why the continuation notice vanishes and provides the exact settings to restore it.

Why the Footnote Continuation Notice Vanishes in Certain Layouts

Word uses two types of continuation notices for footnotes: a continuation separator (a horizontal line) and a continuation notice (text such as “Continued on next page”). These elements are controlled by the document’s footnote separator styles and a global option in Word’s advanced settings. The notice disappears when one of three conditions is met.

First, the view mode matters. The continuation notice displays only in Draft view and Print Layout view. In Read Mode, Web Layout, or Outline view, Word hides the notice entirely. Second, the option “Show footnote continuation notice” under File > Options > Advanced > Show document content may be unchecked. Third, the paragraph style assigned to the continuation text may have its font color set to white or its size reduced to 1 pt, making the text invisible.

The most overlooked cause is the use of a custom document template that overrides the default footnote continuation style. When you copy content from another document or apply a template, the continuation style can inherit formatting that hides the notice. Additionally, documents created in older versions of Word may have the continuation option disabled by default.

Steps to Restore the Footnote Continuation Notice

1. Switch to Draft or Print Layout view
   Go to the View tab and select Draft or Print Layout. The continuation notice does not appear in Read Mode, Web Layout, or Outline view. If you are working in one of those views, the notice is hidden regardless of other settings.
2. Enable the continuation notice option
   Click File > Options > Advanced. Under the Show document content section, make sure the checkbox labeled “Show footnote continuation notice” is checked. Click OK to apply the change.
3. Inspect the footnote continuation style
   Press Alt+Ctrl+Shift+S to open the Styles pane. Scroll down to find the style named “Footnote Continuation Notice” or “Footnote Continuation Separator.” Right-click the style and select Modify. In the Modify Style dialog, click Format > Font. Verify that the font color is not set to white or another color that blends with the page background. Set the font size to at least 8 pt. Click OK twice.
4. Check the footnote separator in Draft view
   Switch to Draft view. Click the References tab and then click Show Notes. In the Footnotes pane at the bottom, select “Footnote Continuation Notice” from the dropdown list. The text in the pane should be visible. If it appears blank, type the notice text manually, for example “Continued on next page.” Close the pane.
5. Reset the document template
   If the notice still does not appear, the Normal.dotm template may be corrupted. Close Word. Press Windows+R, type %appdata%\Microsoft\Templates, and press Enter. Rename Normal.dotm to Normal.old. Restart Word. A fresh template is created automatically. Reopen your document and check the notice.

If the Notice Still Does Not Appear

Word Shows a Blank Line Instead of the Notice Text

In Draft view, the dropdown in the Footnotes pane may show “Footnote Continuation Separator” instead of “Footnote Continuation Notice.” The separator is a horizontal line, not text. Select “Footnote Continuation Notice” from the dropdown. If that option is missing, the document may have been created in a very old version of Word. Insert the notice text manually as described in step 4 above.

Notice Disappears After Saving and Reopening

This usually indicates that the document’s theme or template overrides the style on open. Go to the Design tab and click the Themes dropdown. Select the default Office theme. Then reapply the footnote continuation style as described in step 3. Save the document as a .docx file, not .doc or .rtf, to preserve modern style behavior.

Notice Is Present in Print Preview but Not on Screen

This occurs when the display setting for graphics acceleration interferes with footnote rendering. Go to File > Options > Advanced. Under the Display section, uncheck “Disable hardware graphics acceleration.” Restart Word. The notice should now appear on screen in Print Layout view.

Item	Draft View	Print Layout View
Continuation notice visibility	Visible when option is enabled	Visible when option is enabled
Continuation separator visibility	Visible as a line	Visible as a line
Read Mode visibility	Not applicable	Hidden
Web Layout visibility	Not applicable	Hidden
Style modification needed	Yes, if font color is white	Yes, if font color is white

You can now restore the footnote continuation notice by checking the correct view, enabling the option in Advanced settings, and adjusting the footnote continuation style. Next, verify the notice appears in Print Preview before printing or sharing the document. As an advanced tip, create a macro that resets the footnote continuation style to default if you frequently work with documents from external sources.