Global Settings
Global admin can access additional global settings in Approval Path.
To find them, navigate to Apps → Approval Path → Settings. There you can navigate to:
General
Allow Manual Initiation of Approvals
Once it’s enabled, users can start new approvals directly from a work item
Once it’s disabled, users won’t be able to run new approvals
The “New” tab previously allowed users to manually initiate approvals by selecting from available approval definitions. With this setting disabled, the “New” tab is completely removed from the interface, ensuring that approvals can only be triggered via workflows or automation.
The change applies system-wide for all users.
When the tab is removed, no permission-based message is displayed.
Actions
This tab allows you to configure general actions and notifications settings for the approval process.
‘Enable abstain action’ option allows users to take action to abstain from voting. Once enabled, the Abstain button will appear as an available action in the active approval step. You can find the detailed documentation page here: Abstain Option
‘Enable quick action buttons’ option enables an authorized person to decide directly from the list of approvals. Once enabled, all available action buttons will appear in the Action column, allowing the authorized person to take action directly from the list.
Quick action buttons
‘Require comment on actions’ option enables mandatory commenting for all or selected user actions(Approval, Rejection, Abstain) in the Approval Path. Once it’s enabled, it allows customization on the definition level.
Notifications
Enable action buttons in notification emails option allows users to make decisions directly from received emails. Once enabled, the Approve/Reject buttons will appear in the content of sent notifications. By default, this option is disabled.
Enable actions without login option allows users to make decisions directly from the received email without the need to log in to Jira. The link will be active for 24 hours.
Allow sending email approval reminders dictates if and what type of reminders a user can send to another currently assigned user to a step of approval. The two notification mechanisms are Jira notification (default) and direct email.
Enable automatic reminders option - sends reminders automatically to users who haven't voiced their input within the designated timeframe. It allows customization on the definition and approval levels and has a maximum of three notifications.
Choose notification mechanism defines how notifications are sent. There are two options:
Jira notification is selected by default and allows sending emails directly from Jira.
Direct email allows sending emails directly from the Approval Path.
Enable notifications on Approval Path workflow trigger failure: When enabled, an email will be sent if an Approval Path workflow trigger fails. Disable this to stop receiving such alerts.
Expiration
Expiration date settings allow you to define values on three levels: global, definition, and during approval creation.
Optional – expiration date can be omitted at lower levels,
Required – expiration date is mandatory at lower levels,
Custom – allows setting the maximum expiration period.
This tab lets you configure and test email settings, including sender address and delivery method.
Available email carriers
Message templates
To learn how to configure settings, you can check the documentation about Notification templates
Permissions
These settings let you control visibility and permissions for Approval Path sections in both team-managed and company-managed Jira spaces, allowing space permissions to govern who can view, add, edit, or manage approvals.
Gain more information about permissions here.
JSM
Jira Service Management Customer access: Disabling this option will prevent customers from seeing the Approval Path.
Public comment visibility: Disabling this option will prevent customers from seeing the Approval Path comments.
Choose which link(s) to include in approval notifications for Jira Service Management: Defining whether approval notification emails include an internal Jira link, a customer portal link, or both (default). Verification confirmed correct behavior - including when approvals are in non-JSM.
Preferences
The preferences tab allows the global admin to adjust preferred views for displaying the Approval path on the work item level, affecting all users.
Each user can also individually customize these settings for their own preferences. More information can be found in User preferences.
For more information and best practices regarding a global admin's role in the Approval Path for Jira, please refer to the Guide for Global and Space Admins.