# Delete, cancel and re-open proposals

URL: https://engiprose.com/help/finalize/delete-cancel-and-reopen
Updated: 2026-09-13
Audience: all

Know when a proposal can be permanently deleted, how to cancel safely, and which re-open action to use first.

Deleting a proposal is permanent. EngiProse has no proposal archive or restore
step, so the Delete action is limited by both your role and the proposal's
current status.

:::checklist title="Before you delete"
- Confirm that you no longer need the proposal or its history
- Check whether the proposal must be re-opened first
- Read the confirmation carefully before selecting Delete
:::

## Who can delete a proposal

The **Delete** action is in a proposal row's actions menu on the Proposals page.
It appears in these situations:

- An Admin or Organization Admin can delete a proposal that is not Approved or
  Complete.
- A proposal creator can delete their own proposal while it is still a Draft.

Members cannot delete another person's proposal. A creator also loses the
draft-only Delete action after their proposal moves into review.

Approved and Complete proposals are locked, including against deletion. Re-open
the relevant state first if the proposal truly needs to be removed.

## Delete or cancel

::::steps
:::step
On **Proposals**, open the actions menu for the proposal and select **Delete**.
:::
:::step
The confirmation says, "This proposal will be permanently deleted. This action
cannot be undone."
:::
:::step
Select **Delete** to remove the proposal and its related proposal data. Select
**Cancel** to close the dialog without changing anything.
:::
::::

:::figure src="/help-figures/finalize/delete-cancel-and-reopen-1.png" srcDark="/help-figures/finalize/delete-cancel-and-reopen-1-dark.png" alt="The Acme Engineering Proposals list with a delete confirmation dialog, including Cancel and Delete actions" caption="Read the permanent-delete confirmation before choosing Delete" route="/proposals"
:::

:::warning title="Deletion cannot be undone"
There is no archive or restore option for a deleted proposal. If the proposal
may still be useful, select Cancel and leave it in place.
:::

## Re-open the right state

EngiProse has two re-open actions, and they do different jobs.

### Re-open an approved proposal

An Admin, Organization Admin or proposal approver can re-open an **Approved**
proposal. It returns to **In Review** so review work can continue. Learn about
the confirmation and reset behavior in [Approve, lock and re-open a
proposal](/help/review-and-approval/approve-lock-and-reopen).

### Re-open a completed outcome

After an outcome is saved, the proposal is **Complete** and the Outcome form is
read-only. An Admin or Organization Admin can select **Re-open** on the Outcome
screen, then confirm **Re-open outcome**. The proposal returns to **Approved**,
the saved outcome details stay in place, and the Outcome form becomes editable
again.

:::figure src="/help-figures/finalize/delete-cancel-and-reopen-2.png" srcDark="/help-figures/finalize/delete-cancel-and-reopen-2-dark.png" alt="A completed proposal Outcome screen showing its saved final document, recorded Won outcome, cycle time, and the read-only outcome details" caption="A completed outcome before it is re-opened" route="/proposals/$proposalId/finalize/outcome"
:::

Re-opening the outcome does not unlock the proposal for deletion. To delete a
formerly complete proposal, an Admin or Organization Admin must first re-open
the outcome, then re-open the approved proposal, and only then use Delete from
the Proposals page.

::::faq title="Common questions"
:::q question="Can I recover a proposal after deleting it?"
No. Deletion is permanent and there is no proposal archive. Cancel the
confirmation if you are not certain.
:::
:::q question="Why can't I see Delete?"
Your role or the proposal's status does not allow it. Creators can delete only
their own Draft proposals. Admins and Organization Admins can delete more
widely, but Approved and Complete proposals must be re-opened first.
:::
:::q question="Does re-opening a completed outcome erase it?"
No. Re-opening the outcome keeps the recorded details and makes them editable
again. This differs from re-opening an approved proposal after an exported
record, whose confirmation can reset final-file and outcome data.
:::
::::