# Send a rejected document back to whoever submitted it

When an approver rejects, the document goes to a corrections work queue and the submitter gets an email with the reason — a Movement on Process trigger set to rejections, plus Work Queue - Assign and Send E-mail actions.

Product: content-central · Versions: 7.8+ · Audience: catalog-administrator · Time: 20 minutes · Last verified: 2026-09-05

Canonical: https://help.ademero.com/content-central/workflow/send-a-rejected-document-back-to-the-submitter

**When you're done, a rejection puts the document in the corrections team's work queue and emails the submitter with the approver's note, so fixes start immediately instead of when someone notices the rejected pile.**

```plan
scope: document-type
trigger: Approval Processes › Movement on Process | Approval Process: your process · Process Evaluation: All Rejections
action: Work Queue - Assign | Work-Queue Assignment Evaluation: Selected Group(s) · AP Corrections · Expiration Type: No Expiration
action: Send E-mail | Message Template: "Your document was rejected" (Email, Workflow Access)
rule: "Rejected → corrections queue and email", enabled
```

## Which rejection?

The **Process Evaluation** list has several rejection flavors. Pick deliberately:

| Option | Fires when |
| --- | --- |
| `All Rejections` | Any member rejects, at any stage — the safe default |
| `Rejection by First Member` | Only the first stage rejects (a rejection at stage one is usually "fix the paperwork") |
| `All Rejections Except First Member` | Later-stage rejections only (often "policy problem," which may need a different audience) |
| `Single Rejection (Source)` / `(Destination)` | A rejection out of, or into, a specific stage you choose |

## Build the trigger

1. Go to **Administration** > **Catalogs & Document Types**, pick the **Catalog** and **Document Type**, click the **Workflow** tile, then **Triggers** > **New Trigger**.

2. **Type:** `Approval Processes` and `Movement on Process`. **Trigger Name:** `Rejected by an approver`.

3. **Approval-Process Evaluation:** `Single Approval Process`; **Approval Process:** pick it. **Process Evaluation:** `All Rejections`.

4. Click **Save**.

## Build the actions

1. Click **Actions** > **New Action**. **Type:** `Work Queue - Assign`. **Action Name:** `Send to corrections queue`. **Work-Queue Assignment Evaluation:** `Selected Group(s)`; under **Selected Groups**, pick the corrections group. **Expiration Type:** `No Expiration` — a rejected document must not silently age out. **Save**.

2. **New Action**. **Type:** `Send E-mail`. **Action Name:** `Email submitter — rejected`. Pick the template under **Message Template:**. Rejections in Content Central always prompt the approver for a reason, so build the template's body around the insert codes for the document name and the latest approval note, and its **To** around the submitter's address field. **Save**.

## Wire the rule

1. Click **Rules** > **New Rule**. **Rule Name:** `Rejected → corrections queue and email`.

2. **Add Trigger:** `Rejected by an approver`. **Add Action:** `Send to corrections queue`, then `Email submitter — rejected`. **Apply**.

## Test it

1. Start the approval on a test document and have the first approver **Reject** it with a note.

2. Check the corrections group's **Work Queue** and the submitter's inbox.

**What you should see:** the item in the corrections queue, the email with the note, and both actions in **View History**. Fix the document and restart the approval; the recipe fires again only if it's rejected again.

## Variations

| Want this instead | Change this |
| --- | --- |
| Route to the original submitter's own queue | Work queues are assigned to chosen users or groups; for per-person routing, give each submitter's team its own group and its own rule, or notify by email only |
| Restart the approval automatically after a fix | A **Content Field Values** trigger on a "Corrected" field ([field-change recipe](/content-central/workflow/clear-paid-invoices-from-queues-and-file-them)) with **Approval Process - Start Process** |
| Different handling for late-stage rejections | Two triggers: `Rejection by First Member` and `All Rejections Except First Member`, two rules |
| Stamp a "Rejected" status | Add **Content - Update Field** with the status field and value |
| Move it to a Rejected folder | Add **Content - Move to Folder** |

## What's next

- [File the document and notify the requester after final approval](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/workflow/file-and-notify-after-final-approval)
- [Send documents to a work queue](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/workflow/send-documents-to-a-work-queue)
- [A document is stuck in — or skipped — approval](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/workflow/document-stuck-in-approval)