Approve an Information Update Request

The article provides a comprehensive guide on approving information update requests in BambooHR. It outlines the process initiated when an employee updates personal information requiring approval. Approvers receive email notifications detailing the changes and must view requests in BambooHR for full data visibility due to security measures. Users can access pending requests through their inbox, where they can approve or deny updates. The guide includes steps to view the status of requests and highlights multi-level approval processes. Additionally, it explains how fields are locked during pending requests and provides instructions for both administrators and employees on tracking request progress. Interactive guides are available for those who prefer hands-on learning.

Jun 30, 2026
Knowledge

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Article Text

How do I approve an information update request?

Purpose: You will receive an information update request in your BambooHR inbox when an employee updates their personal information, and it requires your approval. This guide will show you what information is available within the request and how you can take action.

Do you prefer hands-on learning? Our interactive guides will guide you through different aspects of your BambooHR experience. We have an interactive guide specifically designed to show you how to approve employee requests. You can use the link below to access this guide. All you need to do is modify the "REPLACEME" with your BambooHR subdomain, and you can get started!

https://REPLACEME.bamboohr.com/home?pendo=Lp6P6KpjUBEyWLZL6YRM7Y7TM2A&step=POmYM3WqWbjRuuzAfUWZ2kmDv_k

Table of Contents

Email notification of an information update request
Inbox
Details of an information update request
How do I tell if a field is pending approval?
How do I see where a request is in the approval process?

Email notification of an information update request

When an employee makes a change in a field that requires approval, the designated approver(s) (including yourself) will receive an email notification. This notification will contain a list of one or more fields that need approval and a link to view the request in BambooHR.

For security reasons, an information update request will have a field's data redacted within the email notification. You will need to view the request in BambooHR to see the updated information.

Inbox

When logged in to BambooHR, you can also navigate to pending information update requests through your inbox to review and approve or deny items that need your attention.

Under Information Updates of the Approvals section in your inbox, it lists requests that employees have sent for an information update.

You can view any completed information updates in the Completed section of your inbox.

For Administrators: If you are not the first approver in a workflow, you still can go to your inbox and bypass the previous approvers on a request. To do this, navigate to the inbox, click Assigned to Me in the top left corner and change it to Assigned to Company. In this way, you will see all requests in the company. Navigate to the information update request and take action. You will immediately see a pop-up box notifying you that you are bypassing other approvers. Click Approve Anyway to continue with this action.

Details of an information update request

To approve or deny a pending request, click a specific information update request in your inbox:

1. Approve or Deny: Clicking Approve or Deny will result in immediate action. After you approve or deny the request, the employee will receive an email notification, and any applicable data changes will be in effect within BambooHR.

2. Edited: The column shows the proposed data change(s). If you approve the request, it will update information in the requested data field(s).

3. Old: The column displays the current data within the field(s) included in the request.

4. Comments: You can add comments and files to the request you are viewing. Requests will keep your comment(s), and they will be viewable in the Completed section of your inbox.

To take action on a request, click Approve or Deny.

5. Multi-level approvals: If an administrator has multi-level approvals set up for your company, you can easily see who is next in line to approve an update. Once the first level approver has approved the update, the next approver will receive a notification of the update so they can take action.

The employee will not receive a notification of the approval until the last approver has approved the information update. The multi-level approval process will end if any approver denies the request before completing the process, and the employee will receive a notification of the denied request.

How do I tell if a field is pending approval?

When a field ties in with a pending information update request, the specific field will be locked, and a user cannot make additional changes until an approver approves, denies, or deletes the pending request. If an approver approves the pending request, the submitted change(s) will appear on the employee's profile. If a user tries to make a change request within a field with a pending request, a gray pencil icon will display for the user to indicate the pending action on the original change request.

How do I see where a request is in the approval process?

Full admin users can see where an information update request is in the approval process. To do so:

1. Navigate to their inbox.

2. Switch from "Assigned to Me" to "Assigned to Company".

3. Select Information Updates from the left column.

4. Click the request and check the workflow above the request information.

Approvers can see where an information update request is in the approval process. To do so:

1. Navigate to their inbox.

2. If the user has already approved the request, they will select Completed from the left column. If they have not yet approved the request, it will still be in their inbox, and they can move to step 3.

3. Select Information Updates from the left column.

4. Click the request and check the workflow above the request information.