---
key: work-the-public-booking-waitlist
title: Work the public booking waitlist
audience: staff
section: operations
routes: ["/bookings/public-operations", "/bookings/public-operations/:surfaceUid/:workspace?"]
permissions: ["org.settings.public_booking.waitlist.read"]
features: ["booking.public.operations"]
since: 0.0.1
updated: 0.0.1
status: published
summary: Review customers who joined the online booking waitlist when nothing was available, invite them when a slot opens, convert them to a booking, or close the entry.
keywords: [waitlist, no availability, online booking, invite customer, convert to booking, public booking, website booking]
related: [approve-a-public-booking, resolve-a-public-booking-identity-review, find-a-booking-on-the-calendar]
---

In the sidebar, open **Operations**, then **Online Booking**. The page address is `/bookings/public-operations`. The page opens on the **Waitlist** tab.

## Before you start

- Your admin has to give your role permission to read the public booking waitlist. To invite, close or convert an entry you also need permission to manage it.
- Converting an entry straight into a booking needs the waitlist conversion feature on your plan. When it is off, a lock notice sits next to **Waitlist queue**.

## Steps

1. Under **Managed public surfaces**, press the booking surface you want to work. Each card shows the surface name, its status, and **Default** or **Branch-scoped** when that applies. The **Selected surface** section confirms your choice.
2. On the left, press **Waitlist**.
3. Narrow the **Waitlist queue** with **Status** (open, invited, converted, closed, expired, duplicate), **Service** and **Preferred date**. Press **Refresh** to reload the list.
4. Read each entry: the customer's name, email and phone, the service they asked for, their preferred date, the status, and when they signed up. A review line means the customer still has an open identity review; see [[resolve-a-public-booking-identity-review]].
5. When a slot opens, press **Invite** to tell the customer. The entry moves to invited.
6. To book the slot for them yourself, type the start in **Conversion start time (UTC)** in the format shown in the field, then press the **Convert** button that carries the customer's name under the list.
7. If the customer no longer needs the slot, press **Close**.

## What you see

Nova confirms each action: the invitation is queued or the entry is marked as invited, the entry is converted and a booking now exists on the **Schedule** calendar, or the entry is closed. **Invite** and **Close** only work on open or invited entries. The **Convert** buttons show for the first three open or invited entries in the list.

The other tabs on this page are **Identity Reviews**, **Payment Approvals** and **Support Tools**. **Open settings** and **Open analytics** in the header take you to the surface's settings and its analytics.

## If something looks different

- The page says no booking surfaces are available yet: nobody has set up online booking. Ask your admin.
- **Convert** stays disabled: fill in **Conversion start time (UTC)** first, or the conversion feature is off for your plan.
- Nova says you do not have permission to manage waitlist entries: your role can read the queue but not act on it.
- The list says no waitlist entries exist for this surface yet: try another surface, or clear **Status** and **Preferred date**.