how to create a new Jira Form template

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

Hi,

I need help understanding how to create a new Jira Form template that can be manually attached to an existing work item (issue), rather than one that automatically creates a new issue on submission.

Problem:
I want to create forms that I can manually attach to an existing issue via the "Attach form" action, without them triggering creation of a new issue.

When I go to the "Forms" tab in the project's top navigation and create a new form there, it appears to only support the "intake" use case: when someone fills it out, it automatically creates a brand new issue. I could not find any setting (e.g., an "Issue Form" toggle) to disable this auto-create-issue behavior.

Questions:
1. Where can I create a new form template that is meant only to be attached to existing issues (and not tied to automatic issue creation)?

Thanks for your help!

[Martin Runge]

Hi @Akzhan Tynymbay

Welcome to the Atlassian community!

If you are working in a business project, the system natively treats forms as intake and creates a new work item when this form is submitted.

As far as I know, and just tried, only Jira Service Management spaces support attaching a form to an existing work item or request without creating a new request. Each form has a settings panel where you can disable the "Create a shareable link," but all forms can still be selected for attachment.

.

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

But on another board on another team (we use the same Jira), there's this feature. You can attach a form to a task and fill it out. I have admin access to my board, but I can't do this.

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

[Trudy Claspill]

Hello @Akzhan Tynymbay 

Welcome to the Atlassian community.

What type of Space does this concern? Click the ellipsis button next to the Space name in the navigation panel on the left. What do the last two lines in the pop-up say? It will be something like:

Software space

Company-managed

Forms functionality differs between Software and Service Spaces, so the type of the Space will affect the answer we provide.

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

Software space

Company-managed 

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

But on another board on another team (we use the same Jira), there's this feature. You can attach a form to a task and fill it out. I have admin access to my board, but I can't do this.

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

[Trudy Claspill]

What is the Space type of the space where you see the Add Form option?

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

Software space too.

Company-managed 

[Trudy Claspill]

After a lengthy discussion with Google Chrome Gemini it ultimately reiterated what @Martin Runge said - that in Software projects forms are used for intake.

The Add Forms option it typically available only as part of the Forms engine used for Service projects. That was formerly known as Proforma. Software and Business project types use a different Forms engine.

Having said that I have heard of cases where people had used Proforma with Software projects in their Data Center environment, and migrated those projects to Cloud, and the Proforma functionality remained available. I have also heard of people accessing the Proforma functionality for a Software project using a manually constructed URL.

Did you happen to migrate the project that does have the Add Form button from Data Center to Cloud?

In the project where you can see the Add Form button, if you go to the Form editing interface what is the URL you see (showing only what appears after the atlassian.net/ portion of the URL)?

And if you go to the Form editing interface for the project where you do not see the Add Form option, what is the URL there?

[Trudy Claspill]

As a final question to Gemini I asked it, given the conclusion about how the current Forms engine for Software projects works, how could you be having different experiences in two Software Company Managed projects on the same Jira instance. It came up with the following respons.

---

Given that Jira Software Cloud forms function strictly as issue-creation tools and do not naturally attach to active tickets, seeing the "Add Form" option on existing issues in one software project but not another means the two projects are not running on identical background infrastructure. [1, 2]

The user is experiencing this discrepancy due to one of three possible architectural differences between the two company-managed projects: [1, 3, 4]

1. Legacy ProForma Feature Flag (The "Back in the Day" Request)

Before Atlassian launched the native Jira Software forms engine, the older ProForma engine (now JSM Forms) could be manually activated for specific Jira Software projects. [3]

• The Reason: An administrator previously opened a support ticket with Atlassian to explicitly enable the ProForma Issue Forms feature flag on Project A, but never did so for Project B. [3]
• The Result: Project A retains the legacy JSM-style capability, granting it the Add Form button inside the issue view ... menu. Project B uses the modernized, out-of-the-box Jira Software forms engine, which restricts forms strictly to intake. [1, 5, 6, 7, 8]

2. Marketplace App Intervention (Smart Forms / Extension Apps)

Jira Cloud allows third-party add-ons to bridge features between product types. [9, 10]

• The Reason: The instance uses a marketplace form app (such as Smart Jira Forms, Formas, or Extension for Jira).
• The Result: These apps inject an artificial Add Form button into issue screens. If Project B uses a separate, restrictive Issue Type Screen Scheme, the app's custom UI panel or button was never added to Project B's screens by the Jira Admin. [9, 11, 12, 13]

3. Masked Template Roots (Shared Jira Service Management Schemes)

Company-managed projects look identical on the surface but can secretly share back-end configurations. [4, 11]

• The Reason: Project A was originally created using a Jira Service Management or legacy Jira Work Management template and later manually reconfigured to mimic a Software Kanban/Scrum board. Alternatively, Project A might be sharing an Issue Type Screen Scheme or a Field Configuration Scheme directly tied to an active JSM project. [4, 11, 14, 15, 16]
• The Result: Project A inherits JSM's internal issue capabilities, keeping the Add Form module active on its tickets. Project B was built cleanly from a pure Software template, which fundamentally lacks JSM architecture. [1, 4, 17]

---

To prove which scenario is happening, check the issue view of the project that has the option: when you click "Add Form," does the resulting form UI match the native Software forms you built, or does it look like a Jira Service Management agent portal form? [18]

[1] https://community.atlassian.com

[2] https://community.atlassian.com

[3] https://community.atlassian.com

[4] https://community.atlassian.com

[5] https://jira.atlassian.com

[6] https://jira.atlassian.com

[7] https://community.atlassian.com

[8] https://community.atlassian.com

[9] https://help.saasjet.com

[10] https://community.atlassian.com

[11] https://community.atlassian.com

[12] https://jira.atlassian.com

[13] https://www.salto.io

[14] https://confluence.atlassian.com

[15] https://community.atlassian.com

[16] https://community.atlassian.com

[17] https://confluence.atlassian.com

[18] https://www.atlassian.com

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

After clicking the Add Form button, the URL does not change and remains the same as it was before clicking the Add Form button.

[Trudy Claspill]

I was unclear.

When I was asking about the URL I was asking you to navigate to the location where you edit the layout of the form, where you add and remove fields on the form.

The screen and URL you see when editing the form should be different if you are editing a Proforma form vs. a form from the engine that is currently used in software projects.

[Akzhan Tynymbay]

I don't have access to edit the template from another board. Could a Jira company administrator (who has access to all boards and projects) tell me if they can add the "add form" feature to our board?

[Trudy Claspill]

You can work with a Jira Administrator for your environment to try to address the issue. They can reference the information here in your community post and they can open a support case directly with Atlassian for more assistance if needed.

But I believe the final answer will be that the Add Form option will not be able to be enabled in the Software project with which you are now working.