Automation triggers and actions reference

Last updated: August 26, 2026

Reference catalog of what you can trigger automations on and what actions they can perform. Use this to understand what's possible when building. Automations are found in Configuration → Automations.

What's covered

This article lists every trigger entity and dependency property, the values each property accepts when you reference it in a condition rule, every action type with its parameters and outputs, and the time-delay baselines available in automations. It does not explain how to build an automation step-by-step — see 📄 How do I build an automation? for that.

Trigger entities and dependency properties

An automation fires when a trigger entity—a task or placement—experiences a change to one of its dependency properties. You can also configure an automation to fire when the entity is created.

Trigger entity	Dependency property	Fires when
`task`	`status`	Task status changes (e.g. moves from open to submitted)
`task`	`expired_at`	Task expiration date is set or changes
`task`	`due_at`	Task due date is set or changes
`task`	`next_action`	Task `next_action` value changes (gotcha: fires on every stage transition — see callout)
`placement`	`status`	Placement status changes
`placement`	`progress`	Placement progress field changes
Entity creation	Check `Run on new {entity} creation` to fire on `task.created` or `placement.created`

task.next_action fires every time a task moves between stages in its workflow. Pick it intentionally, not as a default. Most use cases that need a notification when onboarding begins — like a welcome email — want placement.created instead.

Condition values by trigger property

When you reference a trigger property in a condition rule, the value you type must match how Onboarded stores that property. The table below lists the accepted values for each property in the triggers table above.

Field	Allowed values	Notes
`task.status`	`requires_action`, `completed`, `expired`	Closed set. Use with `is` / `is not` / `is in` / `is not in`.
`task.next_action`	`employee_action`, `employer_action`, `system_action`	Closed set. Describes who the task is currently waiting on.
`task.due_at`	Any ISO 8601 timestamp (e.g. `2026-06-15T17:00:00Z`), or null when no due date is set	Stored as a timestamp, not a string the rule engine can compare with `greater than` / `less than`. Use `exists` / `does not exist` to test whether a due date is set, and use a time node with the `Task Due` baseline for "X days before due."
`task.expired_at`	Any ISO 8601 timestamp (e.g. `2026-12-31T23:59:59Z`), or null when the task never expires	Same comparison limits as `due_at`. Use `exists` / `does not exist` and the `Task Expired` time node baseline.
`task.assignee`	Sub-paths: `task.assignee.email`, `task.assignee.uid`, `task.assignee.is_admin`	Pick the sub-path in the picker. `task.assignee` on its own is the whole object and won't compare cleanly. Use `exists` on `task.assignee` to test whether an assignee is set.
`placement.status`	`completed`, `incompleted`	Derived from `placement.progress`: `completed` when progress hits `1.0`, otherwise `incompleted`.
`placement.progress`	`0.0`, `0.1`, `0.2`, … `1.0`	Stored as a one-decimal string, not a number. `is` / `is not` work (e.g. `is 1.0` for "fully complete"). Numeric `greater than` / `less than` won't reliably evaluate against a string value — use `placement.status` for "is the placement done?" instead.

Values are case-sensitive and the input is always plain text. Completed won't match completed, and employer-action with a hyphen won't match employer_action with an underscore. Type the value exactly as it appears in the table above.

Action types

Each action performs a specific operation. Parameters marked optional can be omitted depending on the action's context. Outputs are available to later nodes in the same automation using {{action_name.output_field}} syntax.

Action	What it does	Key parameters	Outputs available to later nodes
`Send Email`	Sends an email through Onboarded's email service, or through a connected SendGrid account	`email_service`, `email_subject`, `email_body`, `recipient_type` (`employee` or `custom`), `recipient_email`, `theme_id` (optional), `sendgrid_template_id` (optional), `dynamic_template_fields` (optional)	`recipient_email`
`HTTP Request`	Calls an external endpoint	`url`, `method` (GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE), `headers` (optional), `url_parameters` (optional), `body` (optional)	`success`, `status_code`, `response_body` (optional), `request_body` (optional)
`Create Task`	Creates a task on the placement (de-duplicates by lineage)	`task_lineage_uid`	`task_id`, `task_status`, `form_name`, `form_id`
`Create Compliance Requirement`	Creates a suggested task or compliance requirement; optionally also creates the task	`task_lineage_uid`, `also_create_task` (optional)	`task_ids`, `form_name`, `form_id`, `placement_ids`
`Assign Task`	Assigns a task to a user or group (task triggers only)	`assignment_type` (`individual_user` or `group`), `assignee_id` or `group_id`	`assignee_email`, `assignee_id`, `assignment_type`, `group_name` (optional)
`Create Onboarding Link`	Generates a fresh signed onboarding link covering current tasks	`onboarding_link_type` (`employee` or `task`), `assignee_type` (`employee` or `employer`), `locale`, `redirect_to` (optional), `active_theme_id` (optional — pass a theme UID to override the employer/account default; see 📄 Understanding themes), `otp_required` (optional), `otp_methods` (optional)	`onboarding_link`
`Set Task Expiration`	Sets or updates the expiration timestamp for a task on the placement	`task_lineage_uid`, `expiration_strategy` (`specific_time`, `relative_time`, or `form_field`), `expiration_time_amount` (optional), `set_earliest_expiration_time` (optional)	`task_uid`, `expiration_time`

The Set Task Expiration action is feature-gated and may not appear in all accounts. Check with your Onboarded account manager if you don't see it in your automation action picker.

Time node baselines

A time node introduces a delay before the automation proceeds. The baseline determines what moment in time the delay is measured from.

Reference time	UI label	Wait until
`now`	Now	Trigger time, plus the offset
`task_expired`	Task Expired	The task's expiration timestamp, plus the offset
`task_due`	Task Due	The task's due timestamp, plus the offset

The offset field is labeled After / Before. Time units are Minute, Hour, and Day (capitalized). Use a negative number to run before the baseline timestamp. The When data changes during wait: toggle determines whether the automation re-evaluates conditions using current data if the specified task or placement is updated during the wait period. Options are Use the latest data from Onboarded (true) or Use data from before the wait time (false).

Rerun behavior options

Allow reruns — The automation can fire multiple times on the same trigger entity. Each time the dependency property changes, a new automation run starts. Do not allow reruns — The automation fires once and never again for this trigger entity, even if the dependency property changes. Allow reruns and cancel previous runs — The automation can fire multiple times, but if a new trigger fires before the previous run completes, the previous run is cancelled and a new one starts.

Variable namespacing in templates

Action outputs are addressable in templates using {{action_name.output_field}}. The action name in the automation builder becomes the namespace. For example, if you name a Send Email action Welcome email, its output is {{Welcome email.recipient_email}}.