When to Use
Use Date fields for:- Birth dates and ages
- Deadlines and due dates
- Start and end dates
- Incident or claim dates
- Contract dates (signature, expiration)
- Submission dates
- Approval dates
- Any date that drives workflow logic
- Use Text for date ranges or free-form date descriptions
- Use Number for year-only values that don’t represent actual dates
Configuration Options
| Option | Description | Type | Default | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
key | Unique identifier | String | Required | birth_date |
name | Display label | String | Required | ”Date of Birth” |
description | Help text for users | String | Optional | ”Your date of birth” |
ai_description | Hint for Intelligence | String | Optional | ”The person’s date of birth” |
min | Earliest allowed date | Date string | None | 1900-01-01 |
max | Latest allowed date | Date string | None | 2026-12-31 |
format | Display format | String | YYYY-MM-DD | DD/MM/YYYY |
default | Default value | Date string | None | today, 2026-01-01 |
visibility | Display setting | String | always-visible | hide-when-empty |
section | Section this field belongs to | String | None | Section UUID |
Examples
Birth Date
Collect date of birth with reasonable validation:Deadline Date
Set a future deadline:Incident Date
Collect when an event occurred:Contract Expiration
Track contract end date:Validation
Date fields provide automatic validation:Format Validation
- Only valid dates accepted
- Prevents impossible dates (February 30, month 13, etc.)
- Handles leap years correctly
- Consistent date format across platform
Range Validation
min- Earliest allowed datemax- Latest allowed date- Use
todayas dynamic value for current date - Use relative values like
+30days,-1year
Special Values
today- Current date+Ndays- N days from today (e.g.,+30days)-Ndays- N days before today (e.g.,-7days)+Nmonths- N months from today+Nyears- N years from today
AI Descriptions
AI descriptions help Intelligence extract date values from emails and documents. For date fields: Be specific about:- Which date you’re asking for (incident date vs report date)
- Expected format (DD/MM/YYYY vs MM/DD/YYYY)
- Where the date typically appears
- What the date represents
| Field | AI Description |
|---|---|
birth_date | ”The person’s date of birth in DD/MM/YYYY or YYYY-MM-DD format, typically found in identification documents like ID cards or passports” |
incident_date | ”The date when the incident or claim event occurred (not the date it was reported), usually found in the incident description or claim summary” |
contract_start_date | ”The date when the contract becomes effective or was signed, found in the contract header or signature section” |
policy_expiration | ”The date when the insurance policy expires and needs renewal, shown in policy documents and renewal notices” |
submission_deadline | ”The deadline date by which all required documents and information must be submitted” |
- “Incident date, not report date”
- “Contract signing date, not effective date”
- “Birth date, not application date”
- “Expiration date, not issue date”
Date-Based Automations
Date fields enable powerful date-based automations: Deadline reminders:- Send reminder 7 days before deadline
- Escalate when deadline passes
- Update status based on deadline proximity
- Calculate age from birth date
- Determine eligibility based on age
- Trigger different workflows for age groups
- Move to “Overdue” if response not received by deadline
- Archive cases after 90 days from closure date
- Trigger renewal workflow 30 days before expiration
- Ensure start date is before end date
- Check if incident date is within policy coverage period
- Validate dates fall within reasonable ranges
Best Practices
Use Date fields for all date values:- Don’t store dates as text (prevents date-based logic)
- Enables date calculations and comparisons
- Provides consistent date formatting
- Prevents clearly invalid dates
- Use
todayfor dynamic validation - Consider use case (birth dates should be in past)
- Distinguish between similar date types
- Specify format commonly used
- Mention where date appears in documents
- Use
todayfor current date fields - Use
+30daysfor typical deadlines - Leave blank when user must actively choose
- Dates are stored in ISO 8601 format
- Display format respects user locale
- Specify timezone requirements in description if critical
Related Field Types
Number
Use for year-only values that aren’t specific dates
Text
Use for date ranges or free-form date descriptions
Automations
Create date-based workflow automations
Data Schema Overview
Back to Data Schema overview