Troubleshooting & common questions

When something doesn't behave the way you expected, it's usually one of a handful of causes. This page walks through the problems firms run into most often: what's normally behind them, and what to check first. It's organized by symptom, so scan for the one that matches what you're seeing.

If none of these fit, use Contact support or ask the assistant on this page to reason through your specific situation.

A few things cause this, in rough order of likelihood:

The sign-in link was used or expired. Invite and "email me a sign-in link" links are one-time and time-limited. Some corporate email systems scan links before the person clicks, which can quietly consume a one-time link, so the client sees "link no longer valid." Send a fresh invite, or have them sign in with their password instead.
It's in spam, or went to the wrong address. Confirm the email on the client's record matches the one they're checking, and ask them to look in spam.
They were never invited. Only a client your firm has invited has a portal account: a brand-new email can't create one on its own. Invite them from the client's record.

See The client portal and Account & security.

A new request or return went to the wrong place, or nowhere

Routing is driven by a mapping you control, so an unrouted or mis-routed item almost always means the mapping has a gap:

Requests route by category → department. If a request's category isn't mapped to a department (or a new category was added without a mapping), the request won't land anywhere useful. Fix the mapping in Settings → Workflow.
Returns route by return type → department. If a return type has no department mapping, it won't route.

Once routed, the item is assigned to someone in that department. See Request & return routing.

A return didn't get a document checklist

Checklists are copied from a template that matches the return type. If a return comes in with no checklist, it's usually because:

There's no checklist template for that return type yet, or
The template exists but was archived.

Create or restore the template under Settings → Checklist templates, and it will apply to new returns of that type going forward. See Document checklists.

A return isn't advancing to the next stage

Stages can advance on their own when the current stage's checklist is complete. If a return seems stuck:

Check for unfinished checklist items in the current stage: the return waits until they're done.
You can also move it forward manually from the return if you want to override.

See Stage checklists & advancement.

A client says they can't see a return, request, task, or document

Clients only ever see their own items, so this is nearly always a linkage issue:

Confirm the item is attached to the right client. A return, request, or client task only appears in a client's portal when it's tied to their record.
For documents, check the document is on the item the client is actually looking at.

If it's genuinely linked to the right client and still missing, that's worth a support ticket. See The client portal.

An expected notification or email didn't arrive

Notifications are governed by rules and preferences, and different channels behave differently:

In-app first. The notification bell is the primary place updates show up, so check there before assuming a notification didn't fire.
Email follows each person's own preferences, in Settings under Notifications. If a specific email didn't go out, check the recipient's preferences there, then the Email Log under Communications to see whether it was sent.
Text (SMS) only sends when the client has a phone number on file and has given SMS consent, and texting may be limited until carrier setup is complete.

See Notifications and Communications.

A signature request isn't showing up for the client

Confirm the request was actually sent (not just drafted) and that the client's email is on their record.
Signature requests appear on the return or request they belong to in the client's portal, not as a separate area. Make sure the client is looking at that item.

See Signatures.

A payment link or invoice isn't working

Payment links depend on your firm's Stripe Connect setup and which environment it's in (test vs. live). A link created in one mode won't work in the other.
If a client reports a broken link, confirm the invoice was sent and the firm's payment setup is complete. See Billing.

A recurring task didn't generate

Recurring work is created on a schedule by a recurring template. If an expected task didn't appear, check that the recurring job is still active and that its schedule covers the date you expected. See Tasks & jobs.

Still stuck?

If you've checked the likely causes and something still isn't behaving, it may be a one-off worth a closer look. Describe what you did, what you expected, and what actually happened, and send it through Contact support. That detail is exactly what makes it quick to diagnose.