---
updatedAt: 2026-09-23T10:53:00.000Z
agentTools:
  projectIndex: https://docs.sumsub.com/llms.txt
---

# Approve and reject applicants manually

Act on applicant profiles based on verification results.

You can approve or reject an applicant regardless of their status, except when there are documents in the **Pending** status — in this case, an error message will be returned. The **Documents requested** status requires all requested documents to be uploaded before the status can be changed. For more information about applicant statuses, see [this article](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/applicant-statuses).

Members with the [Admin](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/user-roles) role can edit rejection comments (**Resubmission requested** or **Rejected**) directly in the applicant profile when changing the status for documents, selfie, or the entire profile. This means they can adjust both [labels](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/reference/rejected) and any rejection comment displayed to the end user in the SDK.

The **Approve** button is unavailable in the following cases: an approval request is in progress; there are red flags in Face match, cross-validation, or watchlist checks; there are unresolved watchlist hits that need to be handled before approval; there are reject reasons that need to be removed; there are rejected documents that need to be handled; or the applicant's E-Sign (QES) step has not passed. The **Approve** button is only available when the E-Sign step result is **Green** — if it is **Yellow** or **Red**, clicking **Approve** stops the approval and shows an error. Applicants on levels without an E-Sign step are not affected.

The **Reject** button is unavailable when an approval request is in progress, when there are unresolved watchlist hits that need to be handled, or when the user does not have sufficient permissions.

# Manage applicant status

To approve or reject applicants:

1. In the Dashboard, go to the [Applicants](https://cockpit.sumsub.com/checkus#/applicants/individual?limit=10\&page=0) page and open an applicant profile.
2. In the upper-right corner, click **Change applicant status**. Upon initiating the applicant status change, the profile goes into the **Requires action** status.
3. Recheck the profile:
   * For documents and selfies, click **Change status** and set the [resubmission requested](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/reference/resubmission-requested) and [rejected](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/reference/rejected) labels as necessary. Manual rejection-type selection works the same way for both individual and company applicants.
   * For [watchlists](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/aml-how-it-works#watchlist-screening), change the match status to [False positive](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/aml-how-it-works#match-processing).
   * For [Liveness & Face match](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/liveness) and **Summary**, manually edit the check results as necessary by clicking the pencil icon.
4. Select **Approve** or **Reject**, depending on your verdict.

When you select **Reject**, you will be prompted to choose the rejection reason. Once you set the rejection reason, click **Reject applicant**.

> You will have the option to customize the message that will be shown to the applicant in case of rejection. To do so, open the [permission settings](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/docs/user-roles#permissions) and make sure that the **Use moderation buttons** checkbox is not selected.

# Reset SPAM rejection

Change the verification status of an applicant profile that has been rejected for SPAM:

1. In the Dashboard, open an applicant profile and in the top-right corner, click **Change applicant status**.
2. Click **Reject** and unselect the **SPAM** label and other [rejected](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/reference/rejected) labels (all red labels) if you want to let the applicant continue verification.
3. Select the [resubmission requested](https://docs.sumsub.com/sumsub/reference/resubmission-requested) labels (blue labels), scroll down, and click **Request resubmission**, so the applicant will be able to resubmit their documents or complete a verification step again.

<Callout icon="📘" theme="info">
  ### Note

  The Sumsub support team cannot handle this process due to security requirements and for the purpose of logging actions in the system.
</Callout>