Compliance Glossary for Confluence

What is the term lifecycle?

Every new term starts as Draft. An administrator can Submit it for review. A separate administrator can Approve it or Reject it to Draft. An Approved term can be sent for review or deprecated. A Deprecated term can be reactivated for review. Each transition records a new version, actor, time, status, and required reason.

Last verified against production v6 · 26 September 2026

At a glance

Current stateActionNext stateControl
New termSelect + New Term and saveDraftName and definition are required.
DraftSelect SubmitIn ReviewA transition reason is required.
In ReviewSelect ApproveApprovedThe creator, submitter, or last content editor cannot approve.
In ReviewSelect RejectDraftA rejection reason is required.
ApprovedSelect Send for ReviewIn ReviewPrior approval metadata is cleared.
ApprovedSelect DeprecateDeprecatedA deprecation reason is required.
DeprecatedSelect ReactivateIn ReviewReactivation does not approve the term.
Any visible termSelect HistoryVersion HistoryHistory shows change, reason, communication evidence, status, actor, and time.

How it works

  1. Open Terms.
  2. Select + New Term.
  3. Enter the meaning and save the Draft.
  4. Select Submit and provide the submission reason.
  5. Ask an eligible administrator to select Approve.
  6. Use Reject when the wording needs more work.
  7. Use Send for Review when an Approved meaning needs reassessment.
  8. Use Deprecate when the term should no longer govern new usage.
  9. Select History to review the recorded lifecycle.

Example

A policy owner creates “material incident” as a Draft. They select Submit and record the source change. A different administrator reviews the meaning and selects Approve. Months later, guidance changes. The owner selects Send for Review. The term returns to In Review, and the earlier approval metadata is cleared.

What this does not mean

Editing an Approved term does not automatically change its status. Use Send for Review when changed wording needs reassessment. The lifecycle records application actions. It does not provide an electronic signature or external release approval. Approved terms cannot be deleted directly; deprecate them first.

Related questions

Next step

Create one Draft term. Move it through review with a second administrator. Then confirm the evidence in Version History.

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Verification basis: production v6 code, tests, manifest, and operations guidance. Verified 26 September 2026.