Overview
The Requirement element allows creators to request specific information or documentation from learners within a topic. It is designed to support scenarios such as qualifications, licences, certifications, or other mandatory evidence that needs to be recorded, tracked, or verified.
This element provides a structured way to capture key details (e.g. title, dates, expiry, ID numbers) and gives creators the flexibility to choose which fields appear and how they are ordered. Optional assessor review, expiry-driven certification behaviour, and dedicated reporting make it a strong fit for compliance or evidence-based workflows.
Note: While many organisations previously used the External Knowledge feature for these scenarios, the Requirement element offers a more streamlined, purpose-built way to gather and manage this type of information.
Key concepts
Key concepts
Mandatory fields
Name and Date Obtained are required.
When the creator enters a Name, the learner cannot modify it. This supports consistent naming and cleaner reporting.
Flexible field options
Creators can enable and reorder additional fields such as Expiry Date, Identification, Notes, or Document type.
Any field left blank by the creator becomes learner-editable.
Assessor review
Submissions can be routed to an assessor for approval.
Requirements can move through states such as incomplete, pending, pass, or fail.
Expiry management
The Expiry Date can be paired with an "Override the topic certified date" setting.
This means topic certification and retake schedules can be triggered by the requirement’s expiry date instead of the topic completion date.
Reporting
Requirements are supported by a dedicated Analytics report for oversight, auditing, and compliance tracking.
Steps to add a Requirement element to a topic
Add the element to your topic or article by selecting the Requirement option from the content box (when you click + Content), then follow these steps:
Give the requirement a label for reporting purposes. This field is mandatory.
Provide a description advising learners of what they're required to do.
Add an image (optional).
Configure a colour for the element (optional).
Enter a name for the requirement or leave it blank if you want learners to populate this field themselves. Example names include: "First Aid Certificate – Level 2" or "Working With Children Check (WWCC)".
Select a date for the Date obtained field or leave this field blank if you want learners to select a date themselves.
Click + Add a field to add additional fields which you can pre-populate or leave blank to allow learners to populate themselves, as well as manage the order for.
Manage Explorer requirements.
Manage Progress settings.
If required, enable the setting Set this entire knowledge to complete once this Requirement element is completed. Only use this setting if you’re certain learners do not need to complete or review any other content in the topic before it is marked as complete.
Click Save.
Settings and options
Additional fields
The following additional fields can be selected and ordered, as required:
Code
Provider
Country and Region (optional)
Identifier
Score
Minutes
Notes (optional)
Evidence (a file upload)
Expiry date (optionally enable the Override the topic certified date to use the expiry date to trigger recertifications instead of the topic's default certified date setting)
Qualification (Certificate I, Certificate II, Certificate III, Certificate IV, Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Bachelor Degree, Graduate and Vocational Graduate Certificate, Graduate and Vocational Graduate Diploma, Bachelor Honours Degree, Masters Degree, Doctoral Degree
License class
Document type (General, Employment, Financial, Medical, Performance, Policy, Travel, Registration, Membership)
Requirement type (Training, Certificate, Qualification, License, Document, Development Plan)
Populate any fields that need to be pre-populated. Leave fields unpopulated to allow learners to populate the information themselves.
Note: When the Evidence field is enabled, learners can upload the following file types:
Documents: .pdf, .doc, .docx, .odt, .rtf, .txt, .md
Spreadsheets: .xls, .xlsx, .ods
Presentations: .ppt, .pptx, .odp
Images: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .bmp, .tiff
Audio: .mp3, .wav
Video: .mp4, .mov
Archives: .zip
A maximum size limit of 500mb applies. For security purposes, other file types are not supported.
Explorer requirements and notifications
Enable Assessor must verify this Requirement has been completed if learner submissions need to be reviewed and marked. If this setting is not enabled, the Requirement element is automatically marked as complete when the learner submits it.
When assessor verification is enabled, you can also turn on notifications which can be sent to one or more of the following recipients:
Topic creators: All assigned creators
Topic assessors: Applicable assessors
Other stakeholders: One or more specified email addresses (separated by commas, if needed)
Progress settings
These settings control whether learners can move through a topic or complete it before submitting a requirement.
Explorer cannot progress in this topic until all requirements are met
When selected, learners must complete the Requirement element before they can continue to the next section of the topic.Explorer cannot complete this topic until all requirements are met
When selected, learners can continue through the topic without submitting the Requirement, but they cannot mark the topic as complete until their submission has been made.
Best practices
Use clear names (e.g. Working at Heights Certificate).
Only enable fields you genuinely need to keep the experience simple.
Use assessor review for items requiring verification or compliance.
Enable expiry override when you need retakes to be triggered by actual licence/certification expiry.
Keep naming conventions consistent by pre-filling the Name field.
Use the dedicated Requirements report to monitor statuses, expiries, and assessor outcomes.
Examples
Example 1: Certification with expiry
Used for items that require renewal (e.g. First Aid Certificates, CPR Certification, Fire Warden Certificates).
Fields: Name, Date obtained, Expiry Date, Evidence
Behaviour: Expiry override enabled → Retakes triggered by Expiry Date
Example 2: Licence details without review
Ideal for straightforward documentation checks (e.g. Driver Licence, Forklift Licence, Security Guard Licence).
Fields: Licence class, Evidence
Behaviour: No assessor approval → Automatically completed when submitted
Example 3: Evidence requiring verification
Useful for items that need validation by an assessor
(e.g. Police Checks, Working With Children Checks, Professional Registrations, Insurance Certificates).
Fields: Name, Date obtained, Notes, Evidence
Behaviour: Assessor review enabled → Submission moves through review states
Troubleshooting
Problem: Learner cannot change the Name field
Cause: The creator pre-entered the name in the Name field.
Solution: Only creators can edit fixed names to maintain consistency.
Problem: Retake reminders aren’t aligned with expiry dates
Cause: Expiry override was not enabled.
Solution: Enable Override the topic certified date when using an Expiry Date field.
Problem: Requirement is awaiting review for too long
Cause: Assessor approval is enabled but not actioned.
Solution: Ensure assessors are assigned and monitoring pending submissions.
FAQs
Does the Requirement element create External Knowledge items?
No. The Requirements element functions like other topic elements and does not create or modify External Knowledge records.
Can we migrate External Knowledge records to the Requirements feature?
Yes. This is particularly beneficial if you want your External Knowledge records updated on an ongoing basis for compliance and tracking purposes. Check out our guide on Requirements CSV imports.
Can learners edit submissions after they pass?
No. Passed requirements become read-only.
Can I customise the fields and their order?
Yes, creators can select and reorder optional fields.
Is the Requirement element suitable for compliance tracking?
Yes, the element supports structured data capture, assessor approval, expiry logic, and reporting - ideal for compliance or evidence workflows.
How do learners complete a Requirement element?
When learners encounter a Requirement element in a topic, they're required to fill in any editable fields, and upload supporting documents if needed. Once everything is complete, they submit the requirement. If assessor review is enabled, the submission will move to Pending until a decision is made. Passed requirements become read-only, while failed submissions can be updated and resubmitted.
I’ve set the requirement’s expiry date to override the topic’s certification date. Do I need to enable any other settings to prompt learners to submit the next requirement when the time comes?
If you’ve set a requirement’s expiry date to override the topic’s certification date, also ensure the topic is set for recertification. This ensures that when the requirement expiry date (the 'certified' date) is approaching, learners are automatically enrolled in a retake of the topic the requirement sits in. To ensure learners are notified when they need to recomplete the requirement, be sure to enable the retake notification for the topic.
What reports can I use to ensure requirements remain valid continuously?
The Requirements report allows you to track all requirement contributions including assessor results, evidence and expiry dates.