---
sourceDocument: Australia Governance, Risk, and Compliance
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/governance-risk-compliance

 Release :

    - australia

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia Governance, Risk, and Compliance

ft:clusterId :

    - grc

bundleId :

    - grc

workflow :

    - Technology


---

# Document version workflow

# Document version and approval workflow {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Australia  
Updated August 18, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 1 minute to read  
Every new version of a document in the Documents panel can go through an optional
review and approval workflow before it is published and replaces the previous
version.

When you upload a new version of a document from the Documents panel, the version moves
through the following states:
{#document-version-approval-workflow__table_document-version-states__entry__2}

| State | Description |
|-|-|
| Draft | The new version is uploaded but not yet submitted. |
| Awaiting review | The version is submitted and is waiting for the assigned reviewer to review it. This state occurs only if a reviewer is configured for the version. |
| Awaiting approval | The reviewer has completed their review and the version is waiting for the assigned approver, or the next approver in sequence, to approve it. This state occurs only if one or more approvers are configured for the version. |
| Published | The version is published and becomes the current version of the document. The previously published version is automatically retired. |
| Retired | An earlier version that was replaced when a newer version was published. Retired versions remain available for reference but cannot be edited or republished. |
[Table 1. Document version states]

{#document-version-approval-workflow__table_document-version-states}

If you don't add a reviewer or an approver before you submit a version, the version
publishes immediately and retires the previous version.

## Reviewers and approvers

Before you submit a new version, you can add one reviewer and one or more approvers on
the version. When you add more than one approver, you set the sequence in which they must
approve the version, for example, first approver, second approver, and so on. Reviewers and
approvers act on a version from the Document version approval item on
their task list. For the steps, see [Set reviewers and approvers for a document version](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/vZTHaLlOABMFMIhc0HfekA "Configure a reviewer and one or more approvers on a document version before you submit it, so the version is reviewed and approved before it publishes.") and [Approve or reject a document version](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/TftwOwv4~xm~PwJA000b_g "Review or approve a document version that is waiting for your action from your task list.").

## Rollback is not supported

Note:  
After a version is published, you cannot roll back to a previous version. To make changes to a published document, upload a new version.