--- title: How to Set Up a Refresher Workflow description: Set up a Refresher Workflow in Acorn to expire completions on a schedule, and understand archiving and re-enrollment. image: https://help.acorn.works/hubfs/acorn-meta-preview.png --- [Skip to content](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/how-to-set-up-a-refresher-workflow#main-content) English - Australia Show submenu for translations [Contact Us](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/kb-tickets/new?hsLang=en-au) [Customer Portal](https://support.acorn.works/tickets?hsLang=en-au) [![AcornLogo\_Horizontal\_FullColourWhite\_1000px](https://help.acorn.works/hs-fs/hubfs/AcornLogo_Horizontal_FullColourWhite_1000px.png?width=200&height=45&name=AcornLogo_Horizontal_FullColourWhite_1000px.png)](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre?hsLang=en-au) - [Help Articles](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles) - [Patch Notes](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/patch-notes) - [Status](https://status.acorn.works/) Open main navigation Close main navigation - [Help Articles](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles) - [Patch Notes](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/patch-notes) - [Status](https://status.acorn.works/) - English - Australia Show submenu for translations - [Contact Us](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/kb-tickets/new) - [Customer Portal](https://support.acorn.works/tickets) Welcome to the Help Centre - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. [Acorn Help Centre](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre?hsLang=en-au) 2. [Help Articles](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au) 3. [Workflows](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#workflows) 6 November 2026 # How to Set Up a Refresher Workflow ## Set up recurring training by expiring completions on a defined schedule. A Refresher Workflow expires a user's completion after a set period (e.g. 12 months) so they need to complete the Course again. This is the standard approach for ongoing compliance training in Acorn. Users are only re-enrolled automatically if the Course is set up to do so (see below). ### How does a Refresher Workflow work? - When a user completes a Course, the refresher clock starts. - After the **Refresher Period**, the completion expires. It is archived, and the user unenrolled, at the next scheduled run (roughly every 12 hours). - The user must complete the Course again to become compliant. - Reminder emails can be sent before the expiry date to prompt re-completion. ### How do you create a Refresher Workflow? 1. Navigate to **Admin \> Workflows** and click **Create Workflow**. 2. Enter a **Name** (e.g. "Annual Compliance 12 Month Refresher"). 3. Select 'Refresher' from the **Workflow Type** dropdown menu. 4. Set the **Content Type** to Course or Live Learning. 5. Set the **Refresher Period** (e.g. 12 months). This is how long after a completion before it expires. 6. (Optional) Set a **Cut Off Date** if all completions before a specific date should expire, regardless of the refresher period. Useful for resetting compliance after a policy update. - Turn on **Include Emails** to notify users when their completion expires or is approaching expiry. - Click **Add Reminder Email** to set up pre-expiry reminders (e.g. 30 days before expiry). - Turn on **Send Emails Retroactively** to email users whose completions already expired before this workflow was created. **This only controls the email. It does not stop existing completions from being archived.** - Turn on **Repeat Completion Expired Email Monthly** to resend the Completion Expired email once a month until the user completes again. This is off by default. - Turn on **Also Send Expired Email to Supervisor** to send the user's supervisor the same email, with text identifying which user has expired. If monthly repeat is on, the supervisor also receives the monthly resend. (Optional) Add **Cohort Restrictions** if this refresher should only apply to specific user groups. Click **Create Workflow**. ### How do you add the workflow to a Course? 1. Navigate to the Course in the catalogue. 2. Click the cog icon \> **Update Course**. 3. Scroll down and click **Add Workflow**. 4. Select your Refresher Workflow and click **Update Course**. ### Are users re-enrolled automatically? Only if one of these applies to the user: - **Prevent Learner Unenrolment** is turned on for the Course. - An Enrollment Workflow on the Course covers the user. - A Due Date Workflow with the Enrollment trigger and **Prevent Unenrolment** ticked covers the user. Otherwise the user stays unenrolled until they, or an administrator, enroll them again. ### What happens when you change the refresher period? - **Shorter period:** more completions fall outside it and are archived at the next run. Check users' completion dates before you shorten a period or move users into a stricter cohort. - **Longer period:** a user's most recent archived completion counts as current again if it falls inside the new period. Their enrollment and progress are not restored. ### Where do archived completions go? Archived completions are not deleted. They stay in the user's Training History and the Content Completion report with an **Archived** status, next to any newer completion. ### Can you add more than one Refresher Workflow? Yes. If more than one applies to a user, the one that asks them to refresh most often applies. See How to Add a Workflow to a Course. ### Things to keep in mind - Refresher Workflows do not share email reminders with Due Date Workflows. If you want reminders for both new and returning users, configure emails in both workflows. - A cut-off date cannot be set to a future date. - This workflow does not manage re-enrollment for Acorn-to-Acorn shared content. - On a Live Learning, the completion is archived but the user is not unenrolled. - [Help Articles](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#main-content) - [User Management](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#user-management) - [Course Management](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#course-management) - [Live Learning Management](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#live-learning-management) - [Email Management](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#email-management) - [Tenancy Management](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#tenancy-management) - [Reporting](https://help.acorn.works/help-centre/help-articles?hsLang=en-au#reporting) - 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