Work Permits

Permits authorize dangerous work with safety requirements.

Statuses

Permit types

Every permit has a type: General, Hot Work, Confined Space, Working at Height, Electrical, Excavation or Chemical. The type decides which checklists and which approval stages apply to it, so it can no longer be changed once the permit has been submitted.

Pre-work and post-work checklists

Build each checklist once as an HSE template (HSE > Templates) with the category "Permit — pre-work checklist" or "Permit — post-work checklist", and choose the permit type it applies to (or all types).

• The pre-work checklist is created automatically when the permit is submitted, the post-work checklist when someone clicks "Work completed"
• Both appear on the permit, with a "Fill in" button, and every required item must be answered
• The permit cannot go live until its pre-work checklist is completed with no required item failed, and cannot be closed until its post-work checklist is completed

Approvals and closure

Approval stages are set in Company Settings > Workflows > Work Permits. The preset "Work permit — joint Safety + Area sign-off" gives a Safety review then the area manager (the manager of the permit’s location) before activation, and the same pair again before closure.

• Stages on the "Pending closure" status form the closure sign-off; the last signature closes the permit
• On the Business plan, each stage can be limited to some permit types, so each type gets its own approval levels
• The next approver is notified as soon as it is their turn, and a permit’s status changes only through these actions

Safety Details

• Identified hazards
• Required precautions
• PPE requirements
• LOTO required / verified
• Emergency procedure

Linked to Work Orders

Permits are not a separate, disconnected register — they connect directly to work orders.

• A work order task flagged 'Requires a work permit' auto-creates a linked DRAFT permit when the work order is created
• Open the work order's 'Work Permits' tab to create or attach a permit manually
• The work order cannot start until a linked permit of the type the task requires is Approved or Active
• Permits follow their own configurable approval chain (Company Settings > Workflows > Work Permits)

Your own fields on a permit

A permit-to-work form differs by site and by regulator, so you define the fields rather than us guessing. Company settings > Custom fields > Work permit.

Documents that expire

Attach proof of insurance and employee certifications to the permit, each with an expiry date and a reminder. An expired certificate is worse than none — everyone believes they are covered — so the reminder reaches you before the contractor arrives, not after.

Exporting the register

Press Export at the top of the Work Permits screen to download the register as CSV or Excel. The file contains exactly what the filters on screen are showing, so filter first and export second. Permits cannot be imported: a permit is an approval backed by a signature trail, and a file that could create approved permits would defeat what the register is kept for.