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How to Create a Microsoft Lists Form Users Can Save and Complete Later

Bushra Parveen Oct 12, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user wants to configure a Microsoft Lists form so that respondents can partially fill out the form, save it as a draft, and return to complete the remaining fields at a later time.

How to Create a Microsoft Lists Form Users Can Save and Complete Later

Product: Microsoft Lists
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Creating extensive data entry forms where users require multiple sessions to gather information and complete all the required fields.
Observed behavior: By default, submitting a list item finalizes it. To allow a "save and continue later" workflow, draft item security and versioning must be enabled to keep incomplete items visible only to the author and approvers.

Before you start

Ensure you have List Owner, Administrator, or Full Control permissions for the specific Microsoft List to modify its versioning and content approval settings.

Solution 1Recommended

Enable Content Approval and Draft Item Security

Configure your list settings to require content approval, which automatically activates draft security. This allows the author to save incomplete items as drafts that only they and approvers can view.

By turning on content approval, any new item submitted to the list will remain in a "Pending" or "Draft" state. Combining this with draft item security ensures that regular users cannot see incomplete entries, while the original author can return to edit and finish their submission.

Access List Settings

Open your Microsoft List. Click the 'Settings' gear icon in the top right corner of the screen, and select 'List settings' from the dropdown menu.

Open Versioning Settings

In the List Settings page, under the 'General Settings' column, click on 'Versioning settings'.

Require Content Approval

Look for the 'Content Approval' section at the top. Select 'Yes' under 'Require content approval for submitted items?'

Configure Draft Item Security

Scroll down to the 'Draft Item Security' section. Select the option 'Only users who can approve items (and the author of the item)'. This restricts draft visibility so the author can work on it privately.

Save and Approve

Click 'OK' to save your changes. Users can now create an item, leave it in draft status to complete later, and notify an approver once it is fully complete.

Enable Content Approval and Draft Item Security

Approval Process: Once the form is complete, an admin or designated approver must officially approve the list item to make it visible to all other users with read access to the list.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I allow users to edit their own list items without requiring content approval?

Yes. If you don't want to use content approval, you can go to List Settings > Advanced settings, and under 'Item-level Permissions', set read access to 'Read all items' and create/edit access to 'Create items and edit items that were created by the user'.

Will users receive a notification when their draft item is finally approved?

Not by default. However, you can set up a Power Automate flow or configure standard SharePoint alerts on the list to send an email notification to the creator when the 'Approval Status' column changes to 'Approved'.

Do these versioning and draft settings work in modern SharePoint views?

Yes, draft item security and content approval settings are fully supported in both classic SharePoint list views and the modern Microsoft Lists experience.

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