Unable to change created date and resolution date

[James Parkin]

Hi,

we've come across an issue where people haven't been opening tickets during incidents, and have not been closing them when resolved.

I'd like to fix these and add the missing data.  But I am unable to amend the created / resolved dates.

I have tried the import external method described here

When I get to the screen to map the fields some of the system fields are not there see for example Issue Key.  There is no system field for it.  Only a custom field.

Has something changed since the article was written?  

Can anyone offer any advice on what can be done for me to be able to fix this?

Thanks

[Duc Thang TRAN]

Hello @James Parkin 

You need to have at least site admin or admin permissions in order to use the External System Import feature (via System → External System Import) with the old import experience.

During the import process, you will need to map the columns as follows:

Issue key → Work item key (thanks atlatssian for this change — I prefer using “issue key”)

Resolution → Resolution

Date resolved → Date Resolved  (to specify the exact resolution date)

Created date → Created

Please note that all field mappings require  jira admin (and not admin project (admin spaces now :) )

You can't access this feature from the menu: Issues → Import issues from CSV.

Hope this can help 

[James Parkin]

thanks, I'm really close now.  But the time isn't working properly.  Do you know the format I need it in?  

I have tried dd/mmm/yyyy h:mm am/pm but Jira won't parse it.  And If I leave it as dd/mmm/yyyy h:mm it turns 12:45 in to 00:45.

Still way better than I have, but I would love to get it accurate

[Bill Sheboy]

Hi @James Parkin 

Regardless of how you decide to update the existing work items, I recommend next doing a bit of root cause analysis (RCA) on why the creates and resolutions / closures are delayed. 

That may reveal opportunities for process improvements and / or automation to add the incident-work-item creation to your existing reporting processes and the closure to the release / resolution actions.  Even with those, there could still be gaps, so perhaps additional custom fields may be added to enhance incident management, such as for when the defect was introduced to the product versus detected versus the incident created, etc.

Kind regards,
Bill

[Gor Greyan]

Hi @James Parkin

In the Jira system, fields like “Created,” “Updated,” and “Resolved” are read-only and cannot be edited directly—even via the CSV import feature. Atlassian deliberately locks these fields to preserve data integrity, so you can’t override them through imports, the UI, or automation rules.

For the workaround, I can suggest our solution, which we are using in our company.

We have created 2 custom fields: Incident Start Time and Incident End Time

We are putting the date and time there, as it can be different from the original creation date of the incident.