---
sourceDocument: Australia IT Service Management
sourceDocumentLink: https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/r/it-service-management

 Release :

    - australia

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Australia IT Service Management

ft:clusterId :

    - itsm

bundleId :

    - itsm

workflow :

    - Technology


---

# Change approval policies

# Change approval policies {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Australia  
Updated March 12, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 1 minute to read  
In Change approval policies, approval definitions are used to generate approvals
according to your business requirements.

A change approval policy is a course of action that can be applied to a change request. It uses
a set of variable inputs to evaluate the decisions that are associated with it. For each
matching decision, the associated approval definition is applied.

An approval policy can contain multiple decisions allowing a single policy to handle every approval required for a change type. When a decision condition matches, the related approval definition is evaluated. If one or more
decisions match, all the related approval definitions are evaluated.  
Important:  
It is recommended to use only one instance of the **Change Approval Policy** workflow activity in a workflow at a time.  
Use the Change Approval Policy workflow activity instead of the User and Group Approval workflow activities to manage the approvals at a particular stage of the workflow. For more information, see [Change Approval Policy workflow activity](https://servicenow-prod.fluidtopics.net/TRzDMuO4Rfr0SuOuxoZzOA "Use the Change Approval Policy workflow activity to control the approval process for a change request by creating user and group approvals according to a change approval policy record. Multiple activities can be used in a workflow, where each activity can reference the same or different Change Approval Policies.")  
Note:  
To use the change approval policies after you upgrade:

1. Configure the approval policies as needed.
2. Replace the User and Group Approval activities with the Change Approval Policy activity in the workflow.
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A change approval policy consists of three components:

* Policy inputs: The variable sources evaluated within the condition defined on a decision.
* Decisions: Based on the conditions, determines whether the associated Change approval definition applies.
* Approval definitions: Defines the type of approval that can applied.
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