> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://learn.withessential.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://learn.withessential.com/administration/settings/the-compliance-engine-integration.md). # The Compliance Engine integration The Compliance Engine integration lets you file inspection reports directly to authorities having jurisdiction from inside Essential. The Settings page requires Compliance Engine setup permission. Filing reports requires both an active Compliance Engine connection and filing permission. If the Compliance Engine settings or filing action are missing but you need them for your work, contact your business's administrator to review your role. To set it up, open Settings and go to Compliance Engine. If you're not connected yet, the card shows a Connect button. Click it, sign in to your Compliance Engine account, and approve access; you'll be sent back to Essential and the card will turn green and read Connected, showing the account you connected as. Once connected, the option to file a report to The Compliance Engine becomes available where you work with inspection reports. Authorizations can expire over time. If yours lapses, the card switches to a yellow Reconnect required state explaining that your authorization has expired. Filing stays paused until you click Reconnect and sign in again. Reconnecting restores filing without any other setup. When a selected Short+ report has required Compliance Engine questions that are not part of the Essential inspection report, Essential shows those questions before filing finishes. Enter the answers using the labels and choices supplied by The Compliance Engine, then click **File report**. If an answer reveals another required question, Essential shows the next question before continuing. Some jurisdictions track each system (for example a building's sprinkler system) as an **inventory record** in The Compliance Engine, and a report for that system must be filed against its inventory. When you choose such a template, the wizard shows the premises' inventory record and files against it; if the premises has more than one, pick the right system. If the premises has no inventory yet and the jurisdiction lets contractors add one, the wizard shows **Register inventory** as the next step: answer the few details The Compliance Engine requires (for Washington sprinkler systems, the system types and the testing frequency) and click **Register in The Compliance Engine**. The wizard selects the newly registered record and returns you to the options step so you can continue filing against it — it doesn't advance on its own. Essential remembers inventories it registered, so a retry or a later report at the same premises finds them even while The Compliance Engine still lists them as pending. If only the jurisdiction may add the inventory, the wizard says so; ask the AHJ to register the system, then file again. Whatever the template, Essential never answers a required question "not applicable" on its own. Every required question it cannot fill from the report is shown before filing: where The Compliance Engine accepts N/A, the wizard preselects it so you can accept or answer; where it does not, you answer it. Long Form templates work this way even for a report with no mapping — every required question is asked, and a mapping only saves you the typing. For a Long Form template, nothing is sent until you have seen it. The first step after choosing the template is **Review answers before filing**: every required (critical) question is listed, prefilled from the inspection report where Essential found a mapped answer, together with any required question Essential could not fill. Non-critical questions Essential could map post automatically and are not shown for review. Change anything that is wrong, answer the empty ones, then file. Prefills depend on the selected jurisdiction's template and the version of the Essential report form. Similar-looking TCE forms can ask different questions, so each uses its own configured mapping. When one Essential answer covers several checks and does not identify which check failed, the affected TCE questions remain for you to answer during review. To turn the integration off, click Disconnect and confirm. Disconnecting removes the stored Compliance Engine credentials in Essential and the filing option disappears across the app. If you need to revoke access on the Compliance Engine side too, contact the provider or your Essential team. You can reconnect at any time. If a connection attempt fails, Essential shows the reason, for example that authorization was denied; just try connecting again. > **Where to find it:** Settings -> Data & Integrations -> Compliance Engine. ## Related guides * [Feature availability and setup](/getting-started/getting-started/feature-availability-and-setup.md) * [What you can set up in Settings](/administration/settings/what-you-can-set-up-in-settings.md) --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. 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