Map every approval in the workspace to the depth of the action it releases, decide which current credential a person must hold to approve at each depth, and check that credential at source before adding anyone to the approver list. When a certificate lapses, the approval right lapses with it. Record the rule, the checks and every change.
Why tie approval to a certificate at all?
Agents in a governed workspace earn their depth with evidence and lose it when a certificate lapses after 90 days. The people who approve their held actions usually hold their rights indefinitely, because someone added them to a list once. That asymmetry is the weak point. A drafted refund at depth 2 and a payment release at depth 4 both wait for a named person, and the record will show that person's name. It should also be able to show that they were qualified on the day.
Tying approval to a current certificate closes the gap. It is a practice a business can adopt, not a legal requirement in most places, but it gives a clean answer to an auditor's first question about any approval. The guide to AI literacy and certification for people who work with agents explains the wider logic, and whether approval rights can depend on a current certificate answers the short version.
Who owns the rule?
The head of operations or the process owner for each workspace owns the rule for their area. Risk or compliance agrees it. An administrator applies it. The owner decides what each depth requires; the administrator only applies what is written.
What are the steps?
- Agent, depth 1: lists every approval point. Each capability that holds work for a person, the depth of the action it releases, and who currently approves it.
- Person (process owner): groups approvals by depth. Depth 2 drafts a person sends; depth 3 exceptions to routine work; depth 4 money movements and actions hard to undo; depth 5 approvals of orchestrator actions coordinating other agents.
- Person (process owner with risk): sets the credential for each depth. One workable pattern is shown in the table below.
- Person (administrator): checks each approver's credential at source. By certificate number or QR code, on the issuer's own page, never from a PDF or a screenshot.
- Person (administrator): updates the approver lists. People without the required credential come off the list for that depth and stay on lists for depths they qualify for.
- Agent, depth 1: flags certificates approaching expiry. Early enough for renewal to happen before the right lapses.
- Person (administrator): removes rights on lapse or revocation. The same day. No grace period unless the rule names one.
- Person (process owner): reviews exceptions monthly. Every temporary right granted without the credential, with its reason and end date.
| Step | The agent does | Depth | Stays with a person |
|---|---|---|---|
| List approval points | Lists capabilities, depths and approvers | 1 | Checking nothing is missed |
| Set credential per depth | Nothing | n/a | The rule itself |
| Check credentials | Nothing | n/a | Verification at source |
| Update approver lists | Works to the current lists | n/a | Adding and removing people |
| Expiry warnings | Flags upcoming expiries | 1 | Prompting renewal |
| Lapse or revocation | Holds for remaining approvers only | n/a | Same-day removal |
Which credential for which depth?
Depth by depth, a pattern many operations could adopt:
- Depth 2 (drafts a person sends): foundations training plus the team's own induction. The risk is in the wording, and the sender can read it.
- Depth 3 (exceptions to routine work): a current operator-level certificate with a practical assessment, because the approver is deciding cases the agent could not.
- Depth 4 (money and hard-to-undo actions): a current operator-level certificate, and some businesses add a second approver above a set amount.
- Changing an agent's brief, sources or bounds: a builder-level certificate, because the change affects every future case.
- Approving orchestrator actions at depth 5: the most senior credential the business recognises.
The point of setting this depth by depth is proportion. Requiring the highest credential for every approval would empty the approver lists; requiring none puts depth 4 in untrained hands.
What controls keep the rule working, and what do they leave?
Checks at source. The evidence is the date and result of each check, recorded against the approver. A public register of certificates lets anyone confirm name, credential and expiry without asking the holder.
Expiry dates in one place. The evidence is a list of approvers with credential and expiry for each depth.
Removal on lapse. The evidence is the change to the approver list, dated the day of the lapse. Read why approval rights should expire with the certificate for the reasoning behind same-day removal.
Exceptions are visible. Every temporary right appears in the monthly review with an owner.
What should you measure?
- Approvals made by people whose credential was current on the day: the target is all of them.
- Days between a lapse and removal of the right: the target is zero.
- Renewals completed before expiry, as a share of all renewals due.
- Exceptions open, and how long each has been open.
Where does it usually go wrong?
Lapses arrive in a cluster. A team certified together expires together. Stagger renewals or start reminders early; a renewal reminder email template helps.
The queue empties of approvers. If only two people can approve depth 4 and one is on leave, the rule invites workarounds. Plan cover before switching it on.
Copies replace checks. A certificate PDF in an email proves nothing about today's status.
Read why certificates for AI agent skills should expire if the rule meets resistance.
Where the Academy fits
Academy certificates are issued through VerifyDoc.ai and checked at source by number or QR code; a lapsed or revoked certificate shows as such on the same page. Certified Pryme Operator and Builder are valid for 12 months, Architect for 24, and the Foundations badge has no expiry. The team admin view lists each person's certificates and expiry dates, which gives the administrator the list this rule depends on.
Questions people ask
What happens to a held action if its only approver's certificate lapses?
It waits for someone who qualifies. That is why cover matters: a lapse should move work to another approver, not leave it stranded.
Should experienced staff be exempt?
Experience with the manual process is not the same as skill in reviewing an agent. A short assessment route for experienced staff is fairer than an exemption.
Does this apply to contractors?
Yes, on the same terms. Contractors who approve agent actions should hold the same credential and pass the same check at source.