Links candidates receive: saving, resuming and managing an application

Every link a candidate can be sent, what each one does, how long it lasts and what to do when it stops working.

Candidates never log in to Recruit. Everything they do after applying happens through a link in an email. There are four links they get for their application (resume, manage, reopen and document upload), plus scheduling and offer links that are covered elsewhere. This article explains what each link opens, when it stops working, what the candidate sees when it does, and how you replace one.

Link	Sent when	How long it works
Resume	A candidate saves a multi-page application to finish later	Until the job's closing date (90 days from the first save if the job has none), or until the application is submitted
Manage	In the application acknowledgement and application complete emails	No expiry date
Reopen	A System Admin or HR user selects Reopen Form	7 days from sending
Document upload	A System Admin or HR user selects Request Document	14 days from sending

The resume link (save and return)

On a multi-page application form the candidate can select Save and finish later. After they confirm consent in the Save your progress box (Save and exit), they see a confirmation with the link on screen and Recruit emails it to them. The first save sends the Application started email you set on the Applied stage of the pipeline template. Saving again, or moving on to later pages, sends nothing further and the original link keeps working. See Stage automations and rejection emails for how to set that email up.

Opening the link takes the candidate back to their form with everything they entered, including files they attached, already filled in. Their answers save automatically as they go (they see Progress saved). They finish with Complete & Submit and see Application Submitted!.

Until they submit, the application has the status Incomplete. It does not count towards the job's application total and is hidden from the default pipeline view. To see it, use View incomplete applications on the Pipeline tab. If you want to move an incomplete application forward without waiting for the candidate, select Mark as complete on it; the timeline then shows Application Marked Complete. When the candidate does submit, the application becomes Active and they receive the Application complete email.

How the resume link expires

Recruit checks the job's closing date each time the link is opened, not the date that was set when the link was sent. So if you extend the closing date, links that had already lapsed work again, and if you bring the date forward, links stop working from the new date. If the job has no closing date, the link works for 90 days from the candidate's first save. A link also stops working as soon as the application is submitted.

The manage link

The acknowledgement email and the Application complete email carry a Manage your application link, provided the template contains the manage link merge field. The standard wording does, and an Application started template cannot be saved without it. The link has no expiry date. It opens a page titled Manage Your Application that shows the job title and the candidate's name, with these sections:

Finish Application: appears only while the application is Incomplete and takes the candidate back to the resume form.
Download Application: a PDF of the form as submitted. An incomplete application shows "Your application cannot be downloaded until complete."
Edit Application: lets the candidate change their answers while the application is Active, still at the first stage of the pipeline, has no evaluation saved and the job is still open with its closing date not passed. Changes save as they go and go live when the candidate selects Submit changes and confirms. Files can be replaced, and a required file cannot be removed. Each resubmission is kept as a version, does not send a new acknowledgement, and emails the job's hiring lead (if the job has one) to say the candidate updated their application. Once any of the conditions stops being true the section reads that the application can no longer be edited online.
Withdraw My Application: after the candidate confirms with Yes, Withdraw, the application is withdrawn. This cannot be undone.
Request Data Deletion: asks for the data on this application to be deleted, and the candidate's other applications are not affected. It is submitted for review and the application is withdrawn.

Once an application is withdrawn, rejected or hired, or the candidate's data has been erased, withdrawing and requesting deletion are no longer offered and the page says "This action is no longer available for your application."

Reopening a form: Reopen Form

Reopen Form sends a candidate a fresh link to their own submitted application so they can correct or add to it. It is for System Admin and HR users only.

Select the candidates, either on the Candidates list or on the job's Pipeline tab.
Select Reopen Form. The Reopen Application Form box opens and shows how many candidates it is sending to.
Edit the Subject (it starts as "Please update your application for ") and the Email Body. The body must contain the merge field, otherwise you get "Email body must contain merge field". The Merge fields list shows what else you can use.
Select Send Emails.

You see "Reopen emails sent to N candidate(s)", or a count such as "2 sent, 1 failed, 0 skipped". An application fails when its status is not Active (an Incomplete, rejected or withdrawn application cannot be reopened), or when the job has no application form. Started from the Candidates list, a candidate with more than one active application is skipped. Reopen those from the job's Pipeline tab instead, where you pick the application.

The link works for 7 days and can be opened more than once in that time. It does not depend on the job's closing date. Sending Reopen Form again for the same application ends the earlier link straight away and issues a new one.

The candidate sees the form with their existing answers and files filled in. Their email address is locked ("Your email address cannot be changed here. Contact the recruiter if it needs updating."). They select Update & Submit and see Application Updated. Their new answers replace the old ones on the application, which stays at the same stage, and the previous answers are recorded in the audit log.

Requesting a document

System Admin and HR users can ask a candidate for a specific document from the candidate's profile.

Open the candidate and go to the Documents section.
Select Request Document.
Choose a Document Type: Driving Licence, Passport, DBS Certificate, Proof of Address, Right to Work, Qualification Certificate, Professional Registration or References.
Select Send Request. You see "Document requested".

The email uses your organisation's Document Request template if you have one, and standard wording if not. It carries an upload link that works for 14 days. The candidate opens a page headed with the document type, chooses a file and selects Upload. PDF, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG and JPEG files are accepted, up to 10 MB. Larger files show "File is too large. The maximum size is 10 MB." A failed upload shows "Upload failed. Please try again." and the candidate can retry with the same link. When it works they see Document uploaded.

The file appears on the candidate's profile under Additional Documents. The link is not tied to an application, and sending a second request does not cancel the first link. There is no screen listing outstanding requests, so check the candidate's documents to see whether a file has arrived.

Scheduling and offer links

Interview booking and offer responses also work through links, filled in when the email is sent using the and merge fields. They are set up and managed in their own areas. See Candidate self-scheduling links and How interview scheduling works for scheduling, and Making an offer and Offer lifecycle for offers.

What a candidate sees when a link no longer works

Link	Heading	Message
Resume, closed or lapsed	This link has expired	This link has expired because the job advert is no longer accepting applications.
Resume, already submitted	Application already submitted	This application has already been completed and can no longer be resumed. A Manage your application button is shown unless the application was withdrawn.
Reopen, past 7 days or replaced	This link has expired	This link has expired and is no longer valid. Please contact your recruiter for a new link.
Reopen, application no longer Active	Application inactive	This application is no longer active.
Document upload	Link not found	This upload link is no longer valid or has expired. Please contact your recruiter for a new link.
Manage	Link No Longer Valid	This link has expired or is no longer valid. Please contact the hiring team if you need assistance.

A link that was mistyped or never existed shows Link not found with "This link is no longer valid."

Sending a new link

Resume link: the candidate can ask for it again themselves with Email me the link again, shown on the saved confirmation and on the resume form. They see "We've emailed you the link again." A second request within about 10 seconds is ignored. If the link has expired because the closing date passed, extending the job's closing date makes it work again.
Manage link: it does not expire, so the candidate can use it from any earlier acknowledgement or completion email.
Reopen link: select Reopen Form again. The old link stops working.
Document upload link: select Request Document again.
An email that never arrived: if the candidate's Communications tab shows the email as Failed or Bounced, System Admin and HR users can select Resend on that row. The Resend email box shows the message and an editable Recipient, so a mistyped address can be corrected. It sends the same message with the same link inside it, so if that link has since expired, send a new one instead.

Where these emails show up

On the candidate's profile, the Communications tab lists each email with its date, subject, recipient, source and status. Application started, Application complete and Reopen Form emails appear with the source System, and the failure reason (for example that the recipient had unsubscribed) is shown on a Failed row. Emails sent by a stage automation show Stage Automation. The Activity timeline records emails sent or failed and the Application Marked Complete action. The document request email is not listed on the Communications tab.