When registrants can't get through your form, it's almost always one of the settings below. Work down the list.

Start with the message they see

If you can, ask the registrant for the exact message on their screen, or a screenshot. Certain shows a set message for each of the common causes, so it usually tells you where to look. You can see and edit these messages on the form: go to Plan > Forms > (form) > Setup and click Advanced at the bottom of the page.

The defaults are:

• "Online registration has not yet started for this event." The form's open date hasn't arrived. See step 1.
• "Online registration is no longer available for this event." The form's close date has passed. See step 1.
• "This event has ended." The event's end date has passed. See step 1.
• "This form is closed." The form's status is Closed. See step 1.
• "The maximum number of registrations for this event has been reached." The event hit its registration capacity. See step 2.
• "Online registration is currently unavailable for this form. Please try again later." Too many people are registering at the same moment. Ask them to try again in a few minutes.

If your organization changed any of these messages, the wording on screen will match your version instead.

1. Is the form open?

• The form's Form status is Live, not Test or Closed (Plan > Forms > (form) > Setup).
• The open and close dates include today. The event end date also closes every form unless Allow form open beyond event end date is on.
• The event isn't Cancelled. A cancelled event has no form.

2. Has the event hit capacity?

When registration capacity is reached, the form closes and shows a message. It stays open only if waitlisting is on and Allow form to remain open when event Registration Capacity is reached is checked on the form's Setup page. Scroll the Settings list to find it.

3. Is there a primary form?

Every event needs one form marked as primary. Without it, you can get server errors, especially from additional registration forms and emails with display rules. Go to Plan > Forms > (form) > Setup and check This is the primary form for the event. See What's a "Primary Form"?

4. Is the email address blocked?

"Invalid email" or "already in use" errors come from the email uniqueness setting. See Why does my form say an email address is invalid or already in use?

5. Does the form limit who can get in?

Go to Plan > Forms > (form) > Entry and check:

• Form Entry Permissions. Open Enrollment or Profile Login lets anyone start. Reg ID in URL or Integrations Only only lets people in through their own registration link, like the one in an invitation email, so the plain form link won't work. Restrict to Registrations in this event only lets in people who are already registered or imported; everyone else sees your Invalid Registration Error message.
• Username and Password or Passcodes set to Require. People can't get in without them.
• Single sign-on. If your organization set the form up to use its own login, people have to sign in through your organization first, then go back to the form. If they can't sign in, they need your organization's IT team, not Certain.

6. Was the event deleted?

A deleted event disappears from your event list, and its registration link stops working. To restore it, see How to delete or restore an event

Still stuck?

Send Certain Support the form link, the registrant's name or registration code, and a screenshot of the error.

Next step: Test the form yourself in a private browser window after each change.