Submit Catalog Item Request action

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Submit Catalog Item Request action

    The Submit Catalog Item Request action allows users to create a requested item in a Service Catalog Request within ServiceNow. This action is available in the Workflow Studio and can be configured by users with the flowdesigner or admin roles.

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    Key Features

    • Inputs:
      • Catalog Item: Name of the catalog item requested, with dynamic fields appearing based on selection.
      • Quantity: Number of items requested.
      • Special Instructions: Text for any specific instructions related to the request.
      • Delivery Address: Location for item delivery.
      • Requested for: User for whom the item is requested.
      • Don't fail on error: Configurable option to decide if the flow should fail upon error.
      • Wait for Completion: Forces the flow to wait for action completion before proceeding.
      • Enable timeout: Sets a limit for how long to wait for action completion.
      • Duration: Time to wait if timeout is enabled, specified in hours, minutes, and seconds.
      • Schedule: Defines the business schedule for timeout duration.
    • Outputs:
      • Error Message: Displays if an error occurs.
      • Requested Item: Document ID of the requested item.
      • Status: Numeric status of the action (0 for success, 1 for error, 2 for timeout).

    Design Considerations

    When creating flows with the Submit Catalog Item Request action, consider the following:

    • Escape quotation marks in string data using the String Replace transform function to avoid JSON formatting errors.
    • Utilize transform functions to validate data pills for action inputs.

    Create a requested item [sc_req_item] on a Service Catalog Request [sc_request].

    Roles and availability

    Available as a Workflow Studio ServiceNow core action. Users with the flow_designer or admin role can add an action to a flow and define configuration details.

    Inputs

    Input Description
    Catalog Item

    Name of the requested catalog item.

    Extra inputs may be added dynamically, depending on which catalog item is selected. For example, when the requested catalog item is a new email account, a field for Preferred Email address appears.

    Note:
    The following Service Catalog variable types are not supported.
    • list collector
    • lookup multiple choice
    • lookup select box
    Quantity Number of items requested.
    Special Instructions Text describing any special instructions about the item request.
    Delivery Address Location where the requested item should be delivered.
    Requested for User that the item is requested for.
    Don't fail on error Option to determine whether to fail the flow if the action produces an error.
    Wait for Completion Option to force the flow to wait until the action has been completed before continuing.
    Enable timeout
    Option to limit the amount of time that the flow waits for the action to be completed before continuing.
    Note:
    Use the Enable timeout option to prevent this action from continuing to run. If the condition to continue is never met, a timeout value specifies when the system skips the Wait for Condition action and go to the next item in the flow. You must set a Duration value to enable a timeout. You can also select a Schedule if you want to compute the duration end date based on a specific work schedule.

    This field appears only when the Wait for Completion option is selected.
    Duration

    Amount of time that the flow waits before continuing when the Enable timeout option is selected. Enter the time to wait in hours, minutes, and seconds. If you leave this field empty, the flow does not wait.

    This field appears only when the Wait for Completion option is selected.
    Schedule

    Schedule used to compute the timeout duration when the Enable timeout option is selected. For example, waiting for 10 hours as part of an 8-5 weekdays schedule causes the flow to wait for one or more business days. If you leave this field empty, the timeout runs without a schedule.

    This field appears only when the Wait for Completion option is selected.

    Output

    Field Description Data Type
    Error Message Message that displays if the action produces an error. String
    Requested Item Document ID for the requested item. Document ID
    Status The completion status of the action as a numeric value.
    • 0 (success)
    • 1 (error)
    • 2 (timeout)
    		 Choice

    Example

    Example Submit Catalog Item Request action in a flow.

    Design considerations

    Follow these design considerations when creating flows that contain Submit a Catalog Item Request actions.

    Escape quotation marks from string data pills with the String Replace transform function
    Complex string variables are converted into JSON format when stored in the system. To prevent any JSON formatting errors, you can use a Replace String transform function to escape the quotation marks present in any string data pills you use for catalog variables. See String transform functions.
    Use transform functions to validate data pills
    Whenever you use a data pill to provide data for an action input, you can use a transform function to validate the data. See Transform functions for a list of available transform functions.