# Cancel a letter and issue it again

Cancel a draft or approved letter, know what a canceled letter still allows, issue it again as a new draft, archive the letters you no longer need and find them back.

A letter is canceled from **Draft** or from **Approved**, and **Canceled** is final: no button brings it back to draft. To correct and send a canceled letter again, you make a copy, which starts as a new draft. Archiving is different: it only takes a letter out of the lists, whatever its state.

## Before you start {#before-you-start}

- Canceling, copying and archiving need the **Manager** access right on **Letters**.
- In the steps below, the letter `Letters demo: Training day on Thursday`, for all employees, has just been approved.

## Cancel the letter {#cancel}

1. Open the letter in **Employees/Letters**, then **Actions**, and choose **Cancel**.

![Cancel in the Actions menu of an approved letter.](https://jaah.app/web/image/15868-9f549d20/hr-letters-cancel-a-letter-cancel_entry-en.png)

On a phone, **Actions** sits at the top of the form, beside the **+** button.

2. The state at the top right turns to **Canceled**, and the chatter records the change.

![The letter is Canceled; the chatter records the change of state.](https://jaah.app/web/image/15870-65a59bbd/hr-letters-cancel-a-letter-canceled-en.png)

Canceling sends nothing: the employees who already received the letter are not told. When they must know, send them a new letter.

## What a canceled letter still allows {#after-cancel}

A canceled letter stays editable and printable, and its **Actions** menu still offers **Send by Email**, **Send by Discuss** and **Send by WhatsApp**. Nothing stops a canceled letter from being sent, so check the state before you send.

![A canceled letter still offers the three sends; Duplicate starts a new draft from it.](https://jaah.app/web/image/15875-71339642/hr-letters-cancel-a-letter-canceled_menu-en.png)

## Issue it again {#duplicate}

1. In **Actions**, choose **Duplicate**.
2. The copy opens as a new **Draft** with the next number. It keeps the template, the subject, the employees or **Send to all**, the date and the text of the original; change the date and anything else that needs correcting.

![The copy is a new draft with the next number, the same subject, recipients and text.](https://jaah.app/web/image/15879-7b32e6c4/hr-letters-cancel-a-letter-reissued-en.png)

3. Save, approve and send the copy as in [Your first letter](your-first-letter). The canceled original keeps its number and its history.

## Archive a letter {#archive}

In **Actions**, choose **Archive** and confirm. The letter leaves the lists and the counts of its template but keeps its state, its chatter and its number. **Archive** is available in any state, and **Delete**, in the same menu, removes a letter for good.

## Find letters again {#find}

Open the search options with the arrow at the end of the search bar. The filters **Draft**, **Approved** and **Canceled** follow the states; **Send to All** keeps the letters for everyone; **My Letters** keeps those you wrote; **Date** picks a period; **Archived** shows the archived letters, where **Actions** then **Unarchive** brings one back. The same panel groups letters by **State**, **Template**, **User**, **Send to All** or **Date**. [Search, filter and group records](/docs/essentials/search-filter-and-group-records) explains the panel.

![The filters of the letters, by state, by recipients, by author and by date, with Archived further down.](https://jaah.app/web/image/15887-18470a44/hr-letters-cancel-a-letter-letter_filters-en.png)

## FAQ {#faq}

### Can I put a canceled letter back to draft? {#back-to-draft}

No. Duplicate it: the copy is a new draft with its own number.

### Does canceling tell the employees? {#tell-employees}

No. Canceling only changes the state of the letter; send a new letter to inform them.

### Should I cancel or archive? {#cancel-or-archive}

Cancel a letter that is withdrawn, so its state says so; archive a letter, canceled or not, that you no longer want to see in the lists.

### Why can an employee still read a canceled letter? {#employee-reads}

An employee with the **User: Own Documents Only** access right reads every letter sent to all or naming them, whatever its state. Archive the letter to take it out of the lists they see by default.

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- Source: https://jaah.app/docs/hr-letters/cancel-a-letter
- Updated: 2026-10-28
- Version: Letters 19.0.1.0.5
- Verified: 2026-10-28